Is it Safe to Pray?

Is it Safe to Pray?

No matter what religion a person practices, everybody has gone to church whether it is on a regular basis or for an occasion such as a wedding or funeral. When you look up at the altar and see the priest, you don’t question their morality because society is taught not to question a higher authority figure. Why would such a symbol of purity and sanctity have anything shameful to hide? All of the sudden the man at the altar has lawsuits being filed against him. Child molestation is presenting itself as an issue that is becoming recurrent in society and more of an epidemic within the Catholic Church. In the past, the priests involved in these incidents have not been subjected to a punishment equal to the crime they committed. A priest involved in such deplorable activities should immediately be defrocked and subjected to criminal prosecution.

This is a problem that lends itself to secrecy. The priests who commit these immoral acts are masters at using justifications, denial, and within an environment of religion, to look for a higher power for forgiveness which allows the abusive priest in his own mind to excuse the behavior. The failure of some bishops of the Church and the Church itself to respond effectively in the manner consistent with their positions as leaders with a duty to protect to most vulnerable members of the Church, is in some ways more disturbing than the criminal acts of the priests themselves. These same bishops may have confused forgiveness with leniency towards criminal behavior. In some cases, the bishops and other church leaders placed their thoughts and emotions with the accused priests over those of the victims, by accepting the denials from the priests instead of listening to the victims.

Numerous cases are adding up into the millions and the churches are filing bankruptcy. But ultimately where does the fault lie? What actions should be taken to see that justice is served and have the Catholic Church remain solvent? If a priest is found to have committed acts of sexual misconduct with minors, he should not be shuttled from one position in the church to another but should in fact be defrocked and removed completely from the Catholic Church and deprived of any services provided by the Church. In this manner, it is possible to remove the temptation from the priest and safeguard the wellbeing of the Church family.