I've come to notice recently that whenever I leave a comment on secular sites (mostly news sites) that go against the reigning anti-Catholic "verities", commenters often retort by saying "oh, but abusing (or raping) children and then covering it up is good, right?" or words to that effect. Their expectation is that by throwing the accusation to my face I will be reduced shameful and embarrassed silence.
I want to announce to my readers, and to those who care to know, that's not going to happen.
I want to borrow a thought from Bishop Leonard Blair of Toledo, Ohio, who when asked by NPR's Fresh Aire hostess, Terry Gross (herself echoing an accusation leveled by the National Catholic Fishwrap's Kathy Gallagher) the following question:
GROSS: I think some people think that, you know, that the church is actually being very hypocritical about certain issues like homosexuality and gay marriage, and trying to prevent nuns from questioning any church positions on sexuality while at the same time, many people think there was so much neglect and cover-up within the church of the priest sex-abuse scandal, with abusive priests sometimes just being moved to a different parish.he replied:
BLAIR: So having said that, though, I don't think you - or anyone - would suggest that because there is this scandal; and because there were tremendous failures, and we have to live with that, and try to make reparation for it; that doesn't mean that the Catholic Church now is somehow going to cease to exist, or that the bishops can no longer exercise their responsibility for being teachers of the faith, for proclaiming the Gospel, for celebrating the sacraments, for speaking to the world about Christ.
And if we have to - if we are to continue that mission, well, that includes our responsibility for church teaching. And that's the issue here with the doctrinal assessment.I make mine Bishop Blair's reply - within my competence as Catholic layman, blogger, and evangelizer. Despite our sins and shortcomings, we cannot stop preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ as received and handed down in the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. I shall continue to bring my Catholic moral perspective on every public or political issue in which I, as a layman, am competent to speak about.
As the Prophet Isaiah said long ago:
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch. (Isaiah 62:1, NIV)Silence is not an option and I will not be silenced.