Since you weren’t raised Catholic, you were never conditioned by the church to never, ever, ever question or challenge a priest or any clergy in it, the way someone who was raised in it was.
When you saw priests at functions drinking and smoking, you NEVER commented on it or criticized it. I heard more than my share of Catholics excuse their own smoking and drinking on the basis of the the priests doing it. And if the priest did it, it can’t be all wrong and since they can do it and get to heaven anyway, then everyone else can do it and get to heaven anyway.
To say that they put the fear of God in you is an understatement. To a Catholic, challenging a priest is about like challenging Jesus Himself. To accuse a priest of something that horrendous entails the risk of eternal damnation what with the binding and loosing of sins they teach.
Any priest who molested any children who wanted to retaliate against those exposing him, could, in the most serious, way possible. Catholics believe that he literally holds their destiny in his hands.
It’s no small matter for someone raised Catholic to bring to light impropriety on the part of a priest.
I’m so sorry you had such a bad time.
Wow, I have no idea where you ended up but it seems as if it is a place that has no kind of love or forgiveness in it.
Sounds like you were raised Catholic, but you had a very unhappy relationship with the Church.
You are speaking of the priest when you say, “Catholics believe that he literally holds their destiny in his hands.”
That is a badly catechized Catholic. Christ holds our destiny. If you are a Catholic (tho fallen away from the Church) then you were poorly taught and unfortunately it seems you have never tried to find out the truth.
Too bad that Christ turned water into wine for the wedding feast. Whoa, guess we can still get to heaven. After all Christ was even accused of being a drunkard.
And a priest smoked and that meant he was going to Hell?
Where did these ideas even come from?