Two searing headlines about the Catholic Church and the morality (or otherwise) of some of its clergy sum up the current mess in that institution.
- Pope publicly acknowledges clergy sexual abuse of nuns
- Four in five Vatican priests are gay, book claims
That, plus the persistent refusal of so many Church leaders to publicly proclaim what the Church teaches and (at least officially) believes, has in turn led to this cynical condemnation:
I'm afraid that last headline is all too accurate in many cases. I have a friend who's in the process of preparing to get married in a few weeks' time. His local diocese is insisting on all sorts of bureaucratic i-dotting and t-crossing, none of which have a single thing to do with his actual faith, and all of which are obstacles to celebrating his nuptials in the sight of Christ and his church. Those involved are behaving like lawyers and bureaucrats, not men and women of faith. The Church has, in far too many cases, become nothing more than yet another worldly institution, where filling out the right forms and clocking in and out of the office on time are more important than the faith it's supposed to preach, teach and practice.
As for the (im)moral situation of at least some of its clergy . . . what more can be said that hasn't already been said? Priests and bishops are supposed to lead by example: yet very few of them are making even a token attempt to do so. Many are hunkering down, not daring to stand out in public and defend the truths of their faith for fear that their own hierarchy will discipline them for doing so. The few that actually preach and practice what the Church teaches are in constant danger of being removed from their pastoral offices, because such behavior is no longer politically correct. In how many parishes today can one hear sermons about the moral evil of abortion, or promiscuous sex, or honesty, or fidelity? Precious few.
The clergy child sex abuse crisis over the past couple of decades is symptomatic of the decline - if not the virtual extinction - of the moral authority that the Catholic Church once had. If it tries to proclaim today that something is immoral, it's more likely to be greeted with scorn and derision than with agreement, along with the pointed observation that people in glass churches should not throw stones. It no longer has the moral authority it possessed for centuries . . . because it's thrown it away. Some might suggest a stronger verb than "thrown". I agree.
I've cited Bob Mumford before. He's a Pentecostal evangelist who, back in the 1970's, defined secular humanism as "what happens when the world evangelizes the church". I think he was exactly right, and I think that's what we're seeing in so many Christian churches today. (The Catholic Church is far from alone in its moral malaise, more's the pity.) More and more, the so-called "Benedict Option" (a term coined by Rod Dreher) seems to make sense. Certainly, I don't see any other way in which the teachings of Christ can survive in an utterly secular, post-Christian First World society and culture, since the Catholic Church (and most other Christian churches) are no longer proclaiming, defending or living them.
I recommend Dreher's book on the subject to those who see no other way forward.
He doesn't have all the answers, to be sure . . . but I think he offers more of them than the current institutional Church - and that's a tragedy in itself.
Peter
9 comments:
The church was the first target of our enemies, more than a century ago. Their conquest of the church is complete, and their destruction of her from within is nearly so.
From the bastions of the church, they have attacked the faith itself. Its destruction proceeds apace.
"America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great."
The problem has been blatant for many, many years. It has often been commented upon that the reason for so many catholic and high anglican churches wanted only many boy singers and rejected female voices has nothing to do the the music.
Why don't people simply walk away from the Catholic Church? Easily readable translations of the Bible are available. Commentary can be found online which makes understanding the Bible relatively easy. Why do people let an organization so obviously corrupt control them, or have such a tremendous power over their lives? No disrespect intended toward those members of the clergy who take their vows and calling seriously.
Jesus said, " Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28, KJV. If a church, any church, is not making that possible, why support it?
This is not an attack on religion. The ORGANIZATION of the Catholic church (and it appears a Baptist organization also) WILL NOT clean their house!!
The pedophilia and homosexuality rampant in the organization has been there a LONG LONG TIME.
I recall a Bishops meeting in Dallas in 1984, they put pedophilia to a vote and it was NARROWLY VOTED DOWN!!!
Devout Churches still exist, but they are harder and harder to find...frequently they will be small independant 'Bible Churches' and the like. It requires that devout persons actively seek them out instead of choosing a Church based on the denomination. In that regard we are reaping what we as a society sow...too many are content to remain comfortable in the pews or simply turn their back altogether. Go find a Church.
Why don't people simply walk away from the Catholic Church?
The primary reason people don't simply walk away is that they believe the words of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who established the Catholic Church, and promised that the gates of Hell would never prevail against it.
He further commented that he would prefer that we be as one. That is, one holy, catholic (universal) and apostolic church.
Dismiss the words of the savior at your own peril. The Catholic Church has survived the likes of Borgia, and many other evil persons. It will survive Bergoglio as well. Rooting out and removing the sodomists and diabolical narcissists within the catholic hierarchy is of the utmost importance.
In the words of Saint Peter, the first pope, where else would we go, Lord?
You hit on a key point, perhaps inadvertently- bureaucracy. From the 1800s onward, bureaucracy spread across the world. It was more or less obvious in terms of state structure, but church structure appeared to be preserved, yet it was not, for the mindset of the clergy changed.
They were no longer nobles, they were bureaucrats. The closest thing to a 'good' bureaucrat is a nostalgic one. This is our 'conservative' who wants to preserve tradition- unfortunately, for him, tradition is already high-jacked, and he must (whether he knows it or not) compromise with the rest of the bureaucracy in order to maintain his position and livelihood.
Conservatives, as we have seen from the political sphere, conserve nothing.
Bureaucracy grieves the Holy Spirit, for you are paying attention to whatever the committee or what have you said, rather than discerning what God wants you to do in a particular situation. Consider the various rules, classes, and hoops they have ostensibly put into place to protect children- the reality is few parents have the time to go through all that nonsense- meanwhile pedophiles have a reason to sit through all the classes.
As should be obvious, bureaucracy has been destructive of all institutions, not just the Catholic church. Indeed, public school is more dangerous for your children than Catholics are. Unfortunately, there isn't an easy solution, because we need a nobility, and nobility are human. They need to grow and be trained in the appropriate mindset- one we may have trouble inculcating given that we ourselves were trained to be bureaucrats.
If the Church is saved, it will come from ex-commie Central European faith.
All believers must press, continually and insistently, against homosexuality. And against promiscuity -- the BIG nose of the sex-camel under the tent.
The Benedict Option is a good option for the US at this point, to inculcate more pure, more faithful believers. But in the meantime, the democracy based elite-led mob, the PC-Klan, continues to try to destroy, diminish, and demonize the Church and all the believers.
Joining Christian groups, and working with them to increase religious freedom should be a high priority -- but getting rid of queer priests is very very important.
The homosexual mafia in the Church was a big supporter of Pope Francis. His actions so far indicate at least some cover & support for the queers. The Church increases its internal rot by allowing sexually active priests -- and queers seem less capable of being chaste than others.
milton f,
Rooting out and removing the sodomists and diabolical narcissists within the catholic hierarchy is of the utmost importance.
Apparently it isn't. Homosexuality and sexual abuse by priests has been a problem in the Catholic Church as long as I have been an adult. That is quite some time now; far too long for any reasoning adult to maintain ties to such an institution.
CDH, well said.
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