Obsessed With Scandal in the Church

I get the feeling that much of the editorial "Toward Reconciliation" in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was written before Pope Benedict even set foot on U.S. soil.

The Editorial Board had to commend the Pope for repeatedly addressing the clergy sex abuse scandal and for meeting one-on-one with victims during his visit to the United States; but it still had to get in some shots.

Expected to address the matter only once, the pope returned to the issue repeatedly. He talked about the crisis as a cause of "deep shame." He told American bishops that the problem sometimes has been very "badly handled" and said it was their duty to heal the wounds caused by abuse. He asked Catholic parishioners at a Mass on Thursday "to do what you can to foster healing and reconciliation and to assist those who have been hurt."

And he apologized to victims, meeting with a handful on Thursday for 25 minutes. Two Boston-area victims of abuse shared details of the meeting in interviews late Thursday with The Associated Press. One man who had been abused as an altar boy said he placed his hand over Pope Benedict XVI's heart as he pleaded with the pope to fix the problem of sexual abuse of minors. The pontiff apologized for his poor grasp of English and for "everything," according to another victim.

The meeting was believed to have been the first time a pope had met with victims of clergy sexual abuse and was an extraordinary moment in a dark chapter. But it was also simply the right thing to do, something that should have been done.

What's needed now are more such moments. American bishops and parishioners have to take the pope's words to heart. Thousands of victims of the more than 4,000 priests accused of molesting minors in the U.S. since 1950 are still in pain. Their claims need to be effectively addressed. The Catholic Church and its officials need to be much more open about the accusations, the accused and the complicity of the church hierarchy in what happened.

Why doesn't the Board note that Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy Dolan has taken the Pope's words to heart, long before his trip to America and even prior to him becoming the Pope?

Why not mention that the Church has paid out more than $2 billion as a result of the scandal?

Why not note that the overwhelming majority of priests were NOT molesting minors, but devoting their lives to ministering to others?

The scandal was a terrible betrayal. Without a doubt, how these cases of abuse were handled by Church officials was inexcusable. But clearly, the claims of the victims are being addressed.

The Board preaches that "parishioners have to take the Pope's words to heart," as if we've ignored the scandal to date.

Note to Board: We've been dealing with the scandal -- FOR YEARS.

Is the Journal Sentinel Board really as clueless as its editorials make it out to be?