There have been reports of members of the Catholic clergy abusing their positions of authority to engage in sexual misconduct with vulnerable young members of their flocks for decades. But recently, there have been a flurry of new reports of abuse — and cover-ups of that abuse by the Church — and now, Pope Francis himself has addressed the allegations of “atrocities” committed by members of the clergy.
The Pope admitted that abuse within the Church is a serious problem, and called for “prayer and penance” from the entire Church in response.
In a “Letter to the People of God” shared in its entirety by Vatican News, Pope Francis quoted Saint Paul in 1 Cor. 12:26, writing of the alleged abuse: “If one member suffers, all suffer together with it.”
“Atrocities” left “deep wounds”
In his letter, the Pope acknowledged “the suffering endured by many minors due to sexual abuse, the abuse of power, and the abuse of conscience perpetrated by a significant number of clerics and consecrated persons” over the years.
He also acknowledged the “deep wounds” such crimes have left on victims and their families, and noted that there was no sufficient way in which to beg forgiveness or repair the damage that had been wrought. Instead, he sought to help create a new culture in the Church that would both prevent future instances of abuse and prevent the Church from covering up such criminal behavior.
“We have realized that these wounds never disappear and that they require us forcefully to condemn these atrocities and join forces in uprooting this culture of death; these wounds never go away,” the Pope wrote. “The heart-wrenching pain of these victims, which cries out to heaven, was long ignored, kept quiet or silenced.”
He went on: “With shame and repentance, we acknowledge as an ecclesial community that we were not where we should have been, that we did not act in a timely manner, realizing the magnitude and the gravity of the damage done to so many lives. We showed no care for the little ones; we abandoned them.”
Prayer and penance
The Pope also mentioned ongoing efforts poised to devise new ways to “ensure the safety and protection of the integrity of children and of vulnerable adults” and promised to have “zero tolerance” toward those who violate the young.
He also apologized for the delay in implementing such reformatory measures.
He then called on the whole of the Church, from the highest ranks of the clergy to the lowest layperson, to devote themselves to a “penitential exercise of prayer and fasting” such that the Church could stand together against such abuse in solidarity so such abuse and cover-ups would “never again” happen.
“It is essential that we, as a Church, be able to acknowledge and condemn, with sorrow and shame, the atrocities perpetrated by consecrated persons, clerics, and all those entrusted with the mission of watching over and caring for those most vulnerable,” he wrote. “Let us beg forgiveness for our own sins and the sins of others.”
[show_poll poll_id=736]
Pope Francis more or less confessed that the Church has been aware of and covered up the sexual abuse of minors by members of the clergy, but he admitted the grievous sins were wrong and must be addressed head on.
Whether his call for fasting and prayer as a form of penance from the entire Church will prove sufficient to ensure such crimes don’t continue going forward remains to be seen.
811 Responses
It’s hard to find knowledgeable people in this particular subject, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
I have been browsing online more than 4 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours. It’s pretty worth enough for me. In my view, if all webmasters and bloggers made good content as you did, the internet will be much more useful than ever before.|
I relish, lead to I discovered exactly what I was having a look for. You’ve ended my four day long hunt! God Bless you man. Have a nice day. Bye
You really make it appear really easy together with your presentation but I in finding this matter to be really something which I feel I’d by no means understand. It seems too complex and extremely vast for me. I am taking a look ahead on your next put up, Ill try to get the grasp of it!
Thank you a bunch for sharing this with all of us you really know what you’re talking about! Bookmarked. Please also seek advice from my site =). We can have a link trade contract between us!
This is a very good tip particularly to those fresh to the blogosphere. Simple but very accurate information… Thank you for sharing this one. A must read post!
Good post. I’m experiencing many of these issues as well..
I have been exploring for a little bit for any high quality articles or weblog posts in this kind of space . Exploring in Yahoo I finally stumbled upon this website. Studying this info So im glad to convey that I’ve a very just right uncanny feeling I found out just what I needed. I most indisputably will make certain to do not overlook this web site and provides it a glance regularly.
Hello there, I think your website could possibly be having browser compatibility issues. Whenever I take a look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine however when opening in I.E., it’s got some overlapping issues. I merely wanted to give you a quick heads up! Besides that, great website!
Aw, this was an extremely nice post. Finding the time and actual effort to create a very good article… but what can I say… I hesitate a whole lot and don’t manage to get nearly anything done.
I blog often and I genuinely appreciate your content. This article has truly peaked my interest. I will book mark your website and keep checking for new information about once per week. I opted in for your RSS feed too.
Good post. I learn something totally new and challenging on websites I stumbleupon on a daily basis. It will always be exciting to read articles from other writers and use something from other web sites.
After looking into a handful of the articles on your web page, I seriously appreciate your way of blogging. I saved as a favorite it to my bookmark webpage list and will be checking back soon. Please visit my web site as well and let me know how you feel.
Good article! We are linking to this particularly great article on our site. Keep up the good writing.
Great article. I am dealing with many of these issues as well..
Hey! I’m at work browsing your blog from my new apple iphone! Just wanted to say I love reading your blog and look forward to all your posts! Keep up the great work!|
Spot on with this write-up, I absolutely believe that this amazing site needs much more attention. I’ll probably be back again to see more, thanks for the advice!
The very next time I read a blog, Hopefully it does not disappoint me as much as this particular one. I mean, Yes, it was my choice to read through, however I genuinely thought you’d have something helpful to talk about. All I hear is a bunch of moaning about something you can fix if you were not too busy looking for attention.
This is a good tip particularly to those new to the blogosphere. Simple but very precise information… Thank you for sharing this one. A must read article!
Your style is really unique in comparison to other people I’ve read stuff from. Many thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this site.
very good post, i definitely love this website, keep on it
This website was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something which helped me. Many thanks!
Greetings, There’s no doubt that your blog may be having internet browser compatibility problems. When I take a look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine but when opening in IE, it has some overlapping issues. I merely wanted to give you a quick heads up! Aside from that, fantastic site!
It is really a great and useful piece of info. I am glad that you shared this useful info with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.
Very good article. I will be experiencing some of these issues as well..
excellent post, very informative. I wonder why the other experts of this sector don’t notice this. You should continue your writing. I’m confident, you’ve a huge readers’ base already!
This is a topic that’s near to my heart… Cheers! Exactly where are your contact details though?
Hello! I could have sworn I’ve been to this site before but after browsing through many of the articles I realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m certainly happy I came across it and I’ll be book-marking it and checking back regularly!
Hi would you mind letting me know which web host you’re working with? I’ve loaded your blog in 3 completely different browsers and I must say this blog loads a lot faster then most. Can you recommend a good web hosting provider at a fair price? Thanks, I appreciate it!
Aw, this was an incredibly nice post. Finding the time and actual effort to create a superb article… but what can I say… I procrastinate a whole lot and don’t seem to get nearly anything done.
Wow! This blog looks just like my old one! It’s on a completely different subject but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Wonderful choice of colors!|
When I initially left a comment I appear to have clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on each time a comment is added I recieve four emails with the same comment. Is there an easy method you can remove me from that service? Thanks!
Good post. I am facing some of these issues as well..
Thanks for your marvelous posting! I actually enjoyed reading it, you will be a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will often come back from now on. I want to encourage yourself to continue your great work, have a nice morning!
Just bookmarked this post as I have actually found it rather useful.
Thank you, I have recently been looking for information approximately this topic for ages and yours is the best I have found out till now. But, what about the conclusion? Are you positive about the supply?
You’ve made some really good points there. I looked on the web for more information about the issue and found most people will go along with your views on this web site.
Hello, just wanted to tell you, I liked this blog post. It was inspiring. Keep on posting!|
Generally I don’t learn post on blogs, however I wish to say that this write-up very pressured me to take a look at and do so! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thanks, very nice article.
Thanks for sharing superb informations. Your site is very cool. I’m impressed by the details that youve on this blog. It reveals how nicely you perceive this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for more articles. You, my pal, ROCK! I found just the info I already searched everywhere and just could not come across. What a perfect website.