Reactions to Sexual Scandals
June 9, 2002

A woman gave me an envelope the other day. On the outside, written in Spanish, was this: “This is 10% of my first pay check from work. You [God] have given me work, now I give this 10% to help poor children. Thank You, Lord.” Inside the envelope was $30.00. I placed the money in the box we keep for people in need who come to the door. Tithing, the giving of 10% of one’s income is a practice that has its origins in the Old Testament. It indicates the desire a person has to return to God a portion of what has been received as a sign of gratitude for God’s beneficence. Tithing is a natural practice for all believers in God.

Money is necessary for the work of our parish. I get nervous when I read in the paper that some people are suggesting people not give to the parishes as a protest for the misdeeds of some priests and of some bishops. This is a shortsighted approach because the parish incurs expenses day after day. I get the impression that those people believe that withholding contributions will force some kind of change. It seems to me that the changes they seek are already being made, in fact, have been made in our Archdiocese years ago. Unfortunately, we have not communicated these changes clearly to all. Withholding is the opposite of tithing and will hurt the good our parish is doing.

Two weeks ago I addressed our parishioners about the situation in our Archdiocese at all the Masses. I thank you for your warm response, especially at the 9:30 Mass. Last Monday, as one of ten deans present, I attended a meeting with Bishop Sklba, our diocesan administer; Father Hornacek, vicar of clergy; and Father Kohler, head of priest placement. Together we urged the Archdiocesan leaders to explain the present situation to all parishioners more clearly than we have heard so far. I was assured that plans are being made to communicate the truth through a means that will get through to the homes of Catholics. I left that meeting in a much better frame of mind, knowing what I do now. I trust that a clearer understanding will help us all.

On top of all these concerns, in the last week I heard from a person who had been abused by her pastor. The feelings that arose within me were (and are still) intense. I certainly have a deeper appreciation of the pain suffered by the victims than I had before, although I always felt great compassion for them. Even with these feelings, I am not sure that a blanket “no tolerance” policy is the best for priests who offended years ago and have remained celibate since then. I wait to see what the United States bishops have in mind after their meeting.

What will be the long-term effects of these scandals within the Church? I ask myself that every day in my prayer. I alternate between depression and hopefulness. One the one hand, I realize that no one is perfect, even priests who preach the Word of God. Sinfulness and disease both depress me as I gaze into the result of sin in our world. On the other hand, I know that God works in our weakness, much like St. Paul noted centuries ago. God is God, we are not. The faith we have in God is not faith in one another. Our faith in God comes first. God is the healer, the Savior. Our faith is a pure gift from God even though is communicated to us through our parents, families, and churches. Though the instruments are imperfect, God uses them to communicate His love for us. Our faith is given to us to be cherished and nurtured in this body, the People of God, called the Church. Our task is to be perfected, as the Father is perfect. In this growth I find hope for the future. Therefore, I believe that, in the end, the long-term effects of the scandals will be strengthening of each person’s faith and the faith of the larger body.

Until that happens, we, as a parish and as part of the larger Church, must be vigilant in our practice of our faith. Our task is to learn all we can about our faith and then put that faith into practice in our lives. When you think about it, scandal happens when we live in ways that differ from what we profess to believe. If we lived our faith, scandals would not exist. This is much easier said than done. We can start with the little things.

We can pray. This is so obvious that I hesitate to write this. Yet, it is obvious to me that prayer is the starting point. Daily private prayer gives each of us the grounding in our relationship with God. Not one of us would think of not talking with our spouse or family at home each day. We must communicate with those we love and who love us. Weekly communal prayer is also necessary, since our faith is not just “me and Jesus.” We are a body called together by God to celebrate his presence among us. The celebration of Eucharist is the way Jesus ordained for our weekly worship. Missing Mass is a serious breach of that commission.

Having been fed in our prayer, having encountered the Risen Lord, we are then prepared to live our faith in our daily lives. Our morality builds upon our personal relationship with God. We were told by Jesus to share the Good News with all nations. Our little patch of those nations is right here in Kenosha. Here is where we are to live our lives without scandal. Here it is that we are to bring forth the Life of God in relationships with our fellow citizens. Here we are to love all those around us, especially the marginalized and the poor. Scandal will never touch us if we are faithful. Let is be so here in our parish.

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