A Chance for True Healing in the Church
In I Peter 4:17, St. Peter declared:
For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?
Indeed.
We just had a similar statement from Bishop Morlino of Madison, Wisconsin. May God bless him. Similar, I say, in the sense that he is acknowledging what most of us have known for a long time. It is time for “judgment to begin with the household of God” with regard to the problem of homosexuals in the clergy as well as the problem of the abuse of children over the last 60 years in the Church.
The problem of pedophiles among clergyman has been and is real, to be sure. But this point must be made loud and clear: Though even one case of pedophilia is both damnable and criminal–it is a manifestation of the very heart of the mystery of iniquity–the problem of pedophiles in the clergy pales in comparison to the far greater problem (numbers-wise) of homosexuals among the clergy. Too often this most serious problem is glossed over or even ignored in favor of emphasizing pedophilia exclusively though all of the available statistics reveal the overwhelming number of offenses over the decades have actually been cases of homosexual acts of depravity, not pedophilia.
Thanks be to God, Bishop Morlino is unequivocal:
It is time to admit that there is a homosexual subculture within the hierarchy of the Catholic Church that is wreaking great devastation in the vineyard of the Lord.
This letter is a must-read for every bishop in the Church and the only hope for true healing in the Church. Sin must be acknowledged for what it is, repented of, and penance must be done in a spirit of contrition in order for the grace of God to do its work of healing and restoration in the vineyard.
In fact, folks, I would say to you, be very leery of any call for “repentance” that does not address the real problem of homosexuals in high places in the Church. It is easy to decry the evils of pedophilia. The entire world agrees with the Church on this point. A priest or bishop who laments this evil–and rightly so–will receive accolades from everyone from the Washington Times to the New York Times. That’s easy! But let him speak to the real issue of homosexuals among clergymen and he will hear a very different tune! He will very quickly earn the disdain not only of the world at large, but of those in the Church who represent the heart of the problem to begin with. In fact, he will be called “insensitive,” or worse, “not pastoral!”
God forbid!
Thank God for the clarion call of Bishop Morlino! Hopefully, this letter will spark some courage among the bishops to face up to reality and appeal for mercy to the Lord of Mercy who is able to do what no spin attorney or PR person can ever do:
Let us pray for the judgment of the Lord to begin in the household of God as we know the Lord’s judgment brings with it the Lord’s mercy and healing this side of the veil. Cover-ups, by nature, encourage the continuation of damnable sins. Cover-ups lead to eternal damnation. The Lord’s judgment brings pain and humiliation in this life to be sure, but in the end, it brings salvation. All God asks is that we “repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of … repentance” (Acts 26:20).
