[sinkspur]

Treating this problem through the sin-forgiveness paradigm was an obvious and grievous mistake in retrospect. In their defense, I highly doubt US church leaders had much good advice on this problem, otherwise, I'm sure they would have dealt with it differently.

One would think that Catholic bishops would not have to get "advice" in order to be concerned about the young people being abused. Instead, they turned the lawyer-dogs loose on them, threatening them with lawsuits, or paying hush money, just to protect the reputation of the Church. The total focus was on the welfare of priests, and taking care of them. No thought to the abused. At all. Some of these abused have taken their own lives over this stuff!

The church has paid dearly for this, and has learned its lesson.

The Church has not paid nearly as much as it's going to pay. The Church will have learned its lesson when Benedict XVI invites some of these victims to the Vatican, meets with them, and publicly apologizes on behalf of the Church for, in many cases, ruining their lives.

[Antoninus]

The Church has not paid nearly as much as it's going to pay. The Church will have learned its lesson when Benedict XVI invites some of these victims to the Vatican, meets with them, and publicly apologizes on behalf of the Church for, in many cases, ruining their lives.

Actually, such a thing wouldn't be nearly as appropriate as Cardinal Mahoney, Archbishop Weakland, Bishops Clark, Hubbard, and McCormick and many others of that ilk appearing in sack-cloth and ashes on national television, begging forgiveness for what they've done--and then stepping down.