Although I am now a Protestant, I was a Catholic many years ago and an altar boy also. I and my family were VERY close to the clergy and the Catholic Church. I can smell a homosexual a mile away. NEVER did I EVER meet a priest who was like one of these predators.
As Ms. Noonan implied in her editorial, this issue can be clouded by individuals with another agenda - Catholic bashing.
As she also said in her editorial, the 70's and 80's and 90's were really bad times for America. Public morality is at an all time low. Moral relativism has become an accepted fact of life among the public and too many churchmen. Perhaps this will be the beginning of a movement back to what religion should be about and a correction in this dangerous turn towards approving what appears to be popular, rather than what is biblical correct.
Time has run out. The time to take action is now, not next week or next month or a year from now. He must immediately remove from office all the Bishops who were involved in the conspiracy of silence and make an unequivocal statement that he will defrock all priests found guilty of homosexuality and pedophilia. Get rid of them. Most Catholics are out of patience and completely demoralized by one of the worst crises to hit the Church in her history.