Some People Just Can't Read What's In Front of Them

More reasons why there ain't no "comments" feature on The Blog.

Cardinal Ratzinger's indisputably correct observation has stirred up a hornet's nest in the comments box over at In Between Naps.

Some of the folks over there seem to think Ratzinger is blaming MM for the Catholic clerical abuse scandal. He does not say that. He does not come close to saying that. Here is what he said:

.... Q[uestion]: This past year has been difficult for Catholics, given the space dedicated by the media to scandals attributed to priests. There is talk of a campaign against the Church. What do you think?

Cardinal Ratzinger: In the Church, priests also are sinners. But I am personally convinced that the constant presence in the press of the sins of Catholic priests, especially in the United States, is a planned campaign, as the percentage of these offenses among priests is not higher than in other categories, and perhaps it is even lower.

In the United States, there is constant news on this topic, but less than 1% of priests are guilty of acts of this type. The constant presence of these news items does not correspond to the objectivity of the information nor to the statistical objectivity of the facts. Therefore, one comes to the conclusion that it is intentional, manipulated, that there is a desire to discredit the Church. It is a logical and well-founded conclusion....

"Priests also are sinners." Yep, that's a denial alright. Geesh.

Some folks are questioning the Cardinal's claim that Catholic clergy commit these kinds of offenses less often than other categories of people. There's plenty of evidence to confirm that view. A lot of it is related in Philip Jenkins' book Pedophiles and Priests, and I addressed it in Wolves in Shepherd's Clothing, in the first part of which I asked, and answered, the following question:

How long, for instance, will we have to wait until the Boston Globe, or the New York Times, or the Los Angeles Times, or the Washington Post does some intensive investigative reporting into Jenkins’ account of the Church Mutual Insurance Company having receiving seven hundred claims in cases of sexual abuse involving non-Catholic clergy in one ten-year span — half of them involving children? Until hell freezes over, that’s how long.

Now, having said all this, it must also be important to say why I'm saying it, since so many people seem to be incapable of making necessary distinctions. I'm not excusing anybody in this mess. Priests have done horrible things, and they ought to be punished severely. I'm not shifting the blame from anybody to anybody else. Bishops have done inexcusable things, they are not being held accountable, and not much is going to change until they are held accountable.

Nonetheless, MM has focused on sexual abuse committed by Catholic clergy to the virtual exclusion of that committed by anybody else, including Protestant clergy among whom the problem is at least as great and among whom the supposed "solutions" to the "Catholic problem" — married clergy and female clergy — have existed for decades, if not for centuries.

Yes, they have focused on the problem among Catholic clergy despite the evidence that says the problem is at least as large, if not larger, among Protestant clergy. Why? Because you can't trash the Catholic Church when you're investigating and reporting the sins of Protestant clergy, or UN workers, or "U.S. aviation-security personnel".

That is what Ratzinger was asked about; that is what he commented on; and he is indisputably correct.

P.S. Before you fly off the handle and write me to remind me that, without MM, the problem would not have come to light, take some time to read what I have already written about it, including this:

I cannot help but imagine the glee with which the editors of newspapers like the Boston Globe and the New York Times find another juicy tidbit of Catholic scandal to set before their readers. I cannot imagine that they are motivated by concern for victims or by a passion for justice: they are motivated, mostly, by a concern to sell papers, but also by a deep long-held animus against the Catholic Church. No matter. They do us a favor by exposing the misdeeds of priests and their superiors.

[Follow-up: Back to Ratzinger.]

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Thu. 12/05/02 07:55:13 AM
Categorized as Religious.