As the abuse crisis deepens and Church officials struggle to reassure laity that they are taking their grievances seriously, some social media users have proposed a radical solution of their own. They’re urging President Donald Trump to sever diplomatic ties with the Holy See. The argument stems from widespread claims – particularly those stemming from Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò’s “testimony” – that Pope Francis and other Vatican officials are not being forthcoming about their knowledge of sexually abusive priests in the United States. Viganò also claims that relevant documents are being held at the apostolic nunciature (the Vatican embassy) in Washington, but the nuncio has so far refused to confirm or deny this. These frustrated lay people claim – sincerely, but in an unwitting echo of centuries-old anti-Catholic propaganda ­– that the Holy See must now be treated as a hostile foreign power: one that is complicit in the systematic sexual abuse of US citizens and the sheltering of their abusers. Making dramatic threats towards the Holy See is certainly within the realm of possibility when it comes to Trump’s abrasive style of diplomacy. He is more than happy to verbally abuse American allies and enemies alike, heaping scorn on North Korea one day and Germany the next. Whether that would be wise is another matter entirely. Douglas Kmiec (pictured), the former US ambassador to Malta, told me that “the expulsion of some or all diplomats from Rome is highly doubtful to meaningfully affect the Church’s handling of the crisis”. Rather, Kmiec says that we need “diplomatic pressure as well as domestic insistence upon Pope Francis to provide the necessary assurances that no one involved in past cover-up continues to serve as a bishop of the Church”. And the US can’t do that if it withdraws its embassy staff. So, all things considered, it’s best if diplomatic channels are kept open.