Philadelphia Veredict

The veredict is in in the trial of the Vicar for Religious in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Guilty! But the veredict is not about Monsignor Lynn who did what he was told by his Archbishop, Cardinal Bevilacqua, who happily died before the trial; it is about all those who lied and covered-up the abusers of children in their care because their religious superiors told them to and it is about those superiors who prefessed ignorance and refused to listen to reports of such abuses by highly plsaced, wealthy and influential figures in the Church. It is about the cult of "clericalism" in the Church which exempted this special caste from the demands of moral decency and civil law.

As a Catholic I am proud of onr thing about this trial: the prosecutor is a Catholic layman who faithfully carried out his duty in spite of the pressure he undoubtedly experienced in doing so. I presume that some of the jurors were also Catholic. It is a sad contrast with the performance of our moral leaders who failed everyone, the children, themselves, the Church by their prevarications and carefully crafted denials of facts.

But the case for the defence accurately poimted the finger at who was ultimately responsible for Msgr Lynn's actions: his boss, the late Cardinal, who determined policies and made final decisions on all those actions. Despite clear statements on the right and responsibility of the individual to follow their conscience, Church authorities from the pope down demand unquestioning obedience to their commands. Ask the LCWR, ask Hans Kung or Charles Curran.

Coincidentally the NCR this week published a review by Jason Berry of a book about the Legion of Christ and the life of their founder,Marcial Maciel Delgallado. It describes in great detail the efforts of many priests to tell Pope John Paul II from 1998 until his death about Maciel's abuse of his followers and his manipulation of supporters. John Paul II refused to hear their accounts and continued to praise Maciel as an example to others. Several authority figures in the Vatican who profited from their relationship with Maciel refused meet with or hear those who made these reports.

To the credit of Benedict XVI, he listened and removed Macial from power, but he does not seem to grasp the failure of John Paul II to act upon reports. He is still surrounded by toadys of his predecessor and seeks to canonize John Paul II, to hold him up as a model, especially to those who exercise authority in the Church. God save us from more unresponsive leaders. We have enough already.