Abuse scandals and why I will never abandon the Church

As the Catholic Herald <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/exclusive-bishop-reported-to-police-for-abuse-as-vatican-probes-lockdown-sex-parties/">reported yesterday,</a> Catholics face another test of faith as news of another suspected sex abuse scandal involving our priests emerges. The institutional Church has over years been devastated by clergy sex abuse scandals around the world, including, notably, in Ireland, the United States and most recently France. We should never underestimate how many Catholics end up turning their backs on the institutional Church because of these scandals. Good, decent, Mass-going Catholics who have said they’ve had enough and walked away. I wouldn’t dare judge them, although it is not something I have decided to do myself for different reasons. I grew up in Ireland when the uncovering of abuse scandals in the Church was at its peak. One scandal after another devastated one of the most Catholic countries in the world. As scandal after scandal rocks the Church, we should first always pray and remember the children and now adults who had their childhoods and innocence destroyed by repeated, evil and often sadistic attacks on their bodies and their innocence.&nbsp; I don’t think any of us can truly understand what it is like to walk a mile in their shoes. The fact that the abuse happened in the Church was bad enough but the cover-up only compounded the evil, leaving thousands of children to be sacrificed at the expense of the Church’s reputation.&nbsp; So why do so many, including myself, stay?&nbsp; First, I like to attend Mass not just for reasons of faith. It is also the sense of community that attracts me, as well as the simple pleasure of hearing the readings and the Gospel every week. Yes, you could hear the Gospel on a new app or read the Bible at home, but that is a solitary activity. I would not be able to share the experience with others. Most importantly, there is the Eucharist which, unless you are sick, you must attend Mass to receive. Further, it is the knowledge that it was actually the teachings of the Catholic Church that turned child abuse from a norm into the evil we know it is that keeps my faith strong. When Christianity first appeared on the scene in the Roman Empire, children and young slave boys in particular were routinely abused by their male owners. This was an everyday part of life, no one ever challenged it although many families did attempt to shield their boys from such abuse. This is well-documented in <em>Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind</em> by Tom Holland, and <em>Paul Among the People</em> by Sarah Ruden. The teachings of Jesus also show how precious children are in the eyes of God. In Matthew 19:14, Jesus rebukes his own disciples when they try to prevent children from being presented to Jesus. “Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’” I think the idea that the kingdom of heaven belongs to children, not to the mighty, is very powerful indeed. In another passage, when the disciples ask Jesus who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, the answer comes back that it is certainly not those who are greatest on earth. Jesus invited a little child to stand among them. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me.” Jesus states again the importance of humility and innocence, both of which of course come naturally to children. In Matthew 18:6, Jesus also said, “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” It is true that many interpretations of this passage believe little ones could mean any believer. Therefore, anyone who tempts a believer to sin, sins himself. But I also believe that it is very clear that any adult who causes a child to sin, or sins against a child, will be held accountable if not in this life, then in the next. Jesus makes clear how great an evil it is to sin against a child, namely it would be better that this abuser was drowned in the depths of the sea than to sin against or harm a child.&nbsp; So, it is true that when scandal engulfs the institutional Church it tests the faith of all Catholics. But it was the teachings of Jesus who changed the entire attitude to children – they will be the greatest in heaven, they should be permitted to come to Jesus, and anyone who wrongs them will be severely punished. The Church clearly has an on-going problem with child abusers who have infiltrated their ranks. But I will not abandon the Church to these monsters. It is up to good faithful Catholics to tell them that their time is up, and that their judgment awaits.