Recent headlines take direct aim at the pope and Catholic Church. This seems to be a yearly occurrence in weeks leading up to Easter Celebrations. A secular venture to plant seeds of doubt; so as to bathe the believers (without guilt) in the luke-warm waters of contentedness.
These headlines are intended to defame the pope, claiming that he was (as head of Doctrine of the Faith) the man responsible for abuse in our Church.
Why do these reports forget to use the word ‘alleged’, when they first
proclaim these charges and before checking their sources? Why the Rush?
The Church should be held to higher standards, but there should be some
concern for truth rather than seeking sensational headlines.
Long after the headlines are recanted or apologized for; the bad taste still
remains!
I'd like to add that we should NOT get our religion from nbc, abc, cnn or
oprah. They (secular media) can be useful sources to sound the alarm, but we should measure their reports with caution. We should not be afraid to question wrongdoings in the Church; but we must also be vocal when the charges are not backed by facts. Our faith deserves a special reserved place in our hearts.
Ignorance is never an excuse; we should endeavor to be informed.
Let's take a closer look at these claims...
The first headline, ‘Vatican Declined to Defrock U.S. Priest Who Abused Deaf Boys’, was from the new york times and this one seemed to kick off further slanders. The innuendo is to show that Cardinal Ratzinger (now pope) failed to protect the victims.
The facts:
The priest in question, Lawrence C. Murphy, was assigned to St. John's
School for the Deaf in 1950. (before Joseph Ratzinger was ordained).
Reports of his (Murphy’s) abuse of the deaf children surfaced in the 1950s.
Police and prosecutors were alerted by parents of the boys in the mid 1970's.
The case was dropped; however since 1974 Murphy was removed from the school and given no further pastoral assignments.
Bishop Weakland, who became archbishop in 1977, did not write to Rome until 1996.
After investigating these claims, a church tribunal was set in motion and a
trial was to begin in 1998.
Murphy was ordered to appear, and the judge was informed he couldn't travel due
to illness. He died a week later.
Even the New York Times has acknowledged that there is no evidence that in
1996 Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (the pope) was even aware of proceedings
against Murphy. Weaknesses are apparent; however the facts don't match the implications of 'Scandalous Headline'.
And as John Allen of National Catholic Reporter noted, Cardinal
Ratzinger "did not have any direct responsibility for managing the overall
Vatican response to the crisis until 2001.
..Prior to 2001, Ratzinger had nothing personally to do with the vast majority of sex abuse cases, even the small percentage which wound up in Rome."
By the time Cardinal Ratzinger was commissioned by John Paul II to clean out
the stable, Murphy had been dead for three years. These journalists are acting more like artists, and painting their own pictures.
The next headline was on the msnbc website and subtitled, "Losing Their Religion? Catholicism in Turmoil”.
The headline read, ”Pope Describes Touching Boys: I Went Too Far"
The link brought up an article that had nothing to do with the title.
How could a character defaming mistake such as this actually be unintended?
After outcries from informed Catholics (lead by the Catholic League); nbc issued the following apology:
NBC apologized today for an article on MSNBC's website entitled, "Pope
Describes Touching Boys: I Went Too Far." The article that readers accessed
says absolutely nothing about the pope. Yet MSNBC paints Pope Benedict XVI as a child molester in the tease to the article.
Catholic League president Bill Donohue accepted the apology and added ‘We hope that whoever was responsible for this outrageous post is questioned about it and that appropriate measures are taken. We look forward to hearing the outcome.’
The apology took place, but the odor still fills the air!
The next headline to hit was, “EXCLUSIVE: Future pope stalled pedophile case..”
The ‘AP’ (associated press) thought they had found a smoking gun: a 1985
letter bearing (then Cardinal) Ratzinger's signature purportedly stalling the laicization of
a priest. The AP got the story all wrong. Turns out the facts of the case
exonerate Ratzinger entirely. The journalist did not know the difference between laicization and being suspended. The offending priest was suspended from active duty. Laicization means being released from vows; it would be a reprieve and not a further punishment, as the author insinuates. The skullduggery continues because they did not understand, but ignorance runs rampant in their rush to accuse the Church.
As a side note; to imagine that the Pope has the ability or the manpower to oversee and police the actions of every cleric around the globe is ‘not being of sound mind’.
It's a good thing for these media people that the pope doesn't sue.. maybe
he should!
Amid cries from the secular media; we seem to forget many actions of our Holy Father responding to sins from our church.
He met with victims of church abuse in the U.S (2007) and in Australia (during world youth day 2008). He met Canadian abuse victims in 2008 & 2009. He wrote a pastoral letter to Irish (early 2010). He also addressed and met with victims in Malta (Apr. 2010).
Here’s a headline that ran (EWTN News) but most didn’t see, “Abuse victim in Malta says: Pope Benedict XVI is a 'saint' “. Yet there are many articles asking for apologies from the Church. There is very little coverage in the main media, when Pope Benedict has addressed this abuse scandal; but lots of flapping jaws from the scent of a shocking accusation. This ‘sensational headline syndrome’ shows no concern for the victims.
It’s also interesting to note: a bill in Connecticut USA (HB.5473) was recently introduced to combat child abuse for private institutions (ie: the Church); but it does not include any public institutions.
This biased bill that would give teachers, administrators & coaches all a pass; and begs the question, why?
Also, last year 2 bills were debated in Albany NY on the subject of sex abuse; one targeted only private institutions, the other covered both private and public (guess which one the ny times endorsed?)
It’s very sad when the focus on a ‘first to report’ mentality drives the bus; this is like the ‘ambulance chasers’ focused on their wallets but forgetting there’s a patient.
Media is attempting to arrest our attention and create an appetite that’s dependant on their existence. We can do better than to fulfill their desires.
I'm glad our Holy Father is not waltzing to these whipped-up headline-driven correspondents and instead is staying the course by focusing on the victims and the church.
Listen to the words he wrote in his letter to the Irish regarding clerical abuse;
To the abusers: "You betrayed the trust that was placed in you by innocent young people and their parents, and you must answer for it before Almighty God and before properly constituted tribunals. ...examine your conscience, take responsibility for the sins you have committed, and humbly express your sorrow. God's justice summons us to give an account of our actions and to conceal nothing. Openly acknowledge your guilt, submit yourselves to the demands of justice, but do not despair of God's mercy."
To the bishops: "It cannot be denied that some of you and your predecessors failed, at times grievously, to apply the long-established norms of canon law to the crime of child abuse. …it must be admitted that grave errors of judgment were made and failures of leadership occurred. ..continue to cooperate with the civil authorities in their area of competence."
To the victims: "You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. I know that nothing can undo the wrong you have endured. Your trust has been betrayed and your dignity has been violated. Many of you found that, when you were courageous enough to speak of what happened to you, no one would listen. It is understandable that you find it hard to forgive or be reconciled with the Church. In her name, I openly express the shame and remorse that we all feel. At the same time, I ask you not to lose hope."
___
How much clearer can he be?
The Holy Father needs our prayers during these very trying times.
Ask the Holy Spirit to continue to guide and protect him from these attacks.
..And remember these misleading accusations when the next big headline is revealed!
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