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If one believes that Judaism is from God, then priests who are guilty of sexual exploitation being sheltered by superiors does not rule out the possibility that the Church is still from God, as precisely that situation arises in I Samuel 2:22-25, with Eli and the boys. They are not walking a godly path, but they are still the representatives of God—very flawed representatives, but representatives none the less.

If you use that example, your priests ought to be shaking in their boots.

You are aware, aren't you, of what fate awaited the sons of Eli because nobody dealt with them?

1 Samuel 2 27And there came a man of God to Eli and said to him, "Thus the LORD has said, 'Did I indeed reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh? 28 Did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? I gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel. 29Why then do you scorn my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded, and honor your sons above me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?' 30Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: 'I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,' but now the LORD declares: 'Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 31Behold, the days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your house. 32Then in distress you will look with envious eye on all the prosperity that shall be bestowed on Israel, and there shall not be an old man in your house forever. 33The only one of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar shall be spared to weep his eyes out to grieve his heart, and all the descendants of your house shall die by the sword of men. 34 And this that shall come upon your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be the sign to you: both of them shall die on the same day. 35 And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and in my mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before my anointed forever. 36And everyone who is left in your house shall come to implore him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread and shall say, "Please put me in one of the priests’ places, that I may eat a morsel of bread."'"

It never ceases to amaze me how Catholics will justify and excuse any evil perpetrated or protected in and by the Catholic church.

I have rarely seen a people so willfully blind to the evil in their midst.

Catholics condemn corrupt and immoral behavior in non-Catholics, but excuse and justify and cover up corrupt and immoral behavior in Catholic priests.

The kind of evil and corruption that exists in the Catholic church and has for centuries certainly does rule out the possibility that the Catholic church is of God.

That said, the horrible way in which the Church is run is actually a proof of divine grace.

IOW, the more evil and immoral it gets, the more it's proof it's from God?

just.......

wow.......

Words fail me.

You are aware, aren’t you, of what fate awaited the sons of Eli because nobody dealt with them?

Yes, very much so, —if you had read as far as the second paragraph of my post, it is fairly evident. The elipsed out thoughts refer to re-enacting Leviticus 10:2—though this would likely reduce the number of men willing to become Bishops or priests significantly.

Things racked by sin are inherently unstable. The kingdoms of this world pass, even when they are well run over periods of time. The Church endures not because her human management is dominated by evil geniuses, but because God works through the weak tools that He has chosen.

I suspect, being a Catholic who has devoted some twenty years to studying the Church and her teachings, that I am far more aware of the weakness of the Church than you—but where weakness abounds, grace abounds the more.

Weakland has many other flaws, and frankly, has damaged the Church far more deeply than driving an archdiocese into chapter 11. But the Church will survive by God’s grace.