Scandals in the Church

Most media coverage of the church in the last decade has focused on the issue of clerical pedophiles both in America and in Ireland. In the last year or so it has also included Germany and Austria. The scandal has escalated as evidence of cover-ups by the Church hierarchy extending to the highest levels. Responses have ranged from outright denial, protestations of ignorance of the facts, or blaming of lesser authorities. This seems to be the only instance where church authorities endorse the principle of subsidiarity.
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This said, I found an interesting item in the news last week which seemed to get little play in the media.
Apparently a survey of doctors in regard to substance abuse found that a substantial number of those surveyed knew of colleagues who abused drugs and alcohol. Many of them said they would not report them even while admitting that the abuser represented a real danger to his patients! Aren’t doctors also responsible not only for their own actions but also for the elimination of those in their midst who are a danger to their patients and to their profession’s reputation?

Authority had its privileges but it also involves responsibility to those who are subject to that its control and failure to live up to that responsibility is a violation of trust. Unfortunately we are accustomed to such failures by politicians who we no longer trust for that reason. Until recently clergymen and doctors were top of the list of those we trusted.

As Catholics we looked to our priests and failing them to our bishops. The head of a diocese is responsible to his flock for the proper administration of the diocese and for any neglect or culpable conduct of his subordinates. If it happens on his watch, it is his responsibility. This is true whether he is Bishop of LaCrosse or Archbishop of Mainz or Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith or Bishop of Rome. It seems few such prelates have accepted responsibility even when faced with facts.