Sick of the Scandals? Here’s What I Plan to Do (Part II), by Phil Lawler

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture, July 25, 2019

Yesterday I announced that I’m finished reporting on the scandals in the Catholic Church. The question naturally arises: then what will I do?

(Before I answer that question, let me pause just a moment to thank the many people who have sent me supportive and complimentary messages. I’m grateful for your kind words and for your prayers. And friends, please don’t think that I’m depressed about my own situation. Quite the contrary. I’ve wrestled with this decision for some weeks, but having made it, I’m feeling immensely relieved.)

Here’s the problem: I’m in the business of writing and commenting on news about the Catholic world. If I don’t write about the scandal—the news that is in the headlines everywhere else—what will I write about? The bake sale at St. Dymphna’s?

Unfortunately, many “official” organs of the Catholic Church have chosen that route. Diocesan publications studiously avoid mention of the scandals, and when a discouraging word is finally heard, it comes in the form of a dry, lawyerly statement from the chancery. The diocesan paper is much more likely to feature the pastor who is top performer in his Friday-night bowling league than his associate who was arrested at a rest area on the interstate. The “official” Catholic media—the outlets that are subsidized, directly or indirectly, by bishops—carefully protect the institution.

On the other extreme, secular outlets are delighted to attack the Church, to focus exclusively on the scandals, to use every opportunity to denigrate the faith. The liberal media anxiously promote any theory that suggests the scandal is a natural outgrowth of orthodox Catholic belief. ….

Read more at  https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otn.cfm?id=1354