I found this article both refreshing and audacious at the
same time. In our current climate of accusation and Neo-McCarthyism few have
been bold enough to stand against the tide and resist the trend of presumed
guilt and the abandonment of due process.
But when it comes to the crimes of Rome and its sodomite
priesthood I believe that not only are most of the accusations true, we've only
seen the tip of the iceberg...
Nevertheless, this story reveals that even the process of
convicting Roman Catholic clergy has its deficiencies and raises questions.
These crimes are particularly vexing because there's often little evidence
other than the testimony of the victim and the legacy of destroyed lives and
tormented souls.
There are additional problems concerning the nature of
Church-State relations and the notion that the Church turns to the state for
justice and to right its wrongs.
These are crimes and yet I continue to be uncomfortable with
the idea of state intervention in Church affairs. I suppose for many this
symbiotic relationship is probably ideal and many have embraced (without
reflection) the idea that the state can regulate finances, polity and internal
policies requiring 'clearances' and the like. There are so many issues and
different angles to these questions which are further clouded by ecclesiastical
models and practices that already represent departures from the Scriptural
model.
Many Church leaders and not just within the institution of
Roman Catholicism have betrayed their flocks and have been exposed as derelict
and corrupt. They should be taken down and removed and yet I don't think the
Church should ever look to the state when it comes to these questions.
Rome's crimes are no surprise. A false Church, it is patently
filled with unregenerate people who according to Biblical parameters are still
children of wrath and disobedience in the grip of Satan. And though you
wouldn't know it when listening to today's Evangelicals, Rome's crimes are on
an almost unfathomable scale. They are guilty of destroying realms, societies
and souls.
And yet this is also true when it comes to the vast ranks of
Protestantism. In some cases we have overtly false Churches and of course we
have other bodies that are ostensibly and relatively sound in doctrine and yet
nevertheless have been corrupted by aberrant and corrosive theology and
practice. In other words we are surrounded by False Christianity and dangerous
error and yet very few leaders are steering a clear course, delineating false
from true and helping the Church to understand its place in the world. The
crisis is yet another manifestation of the error resulting from cultural
accommodation and the quest to appropriate the world's power and find peace
with its institutions and cultures. This programme has flooded the Church with
unbelievers and evil men.
I found it strange that the article decided to invoke the
memory of Ted Stevens. While his indictment was vacated his corruption was
patent and known to all. His power had afforded him opportunities to mask his
crimes and if Stevens is the best the author can come up with as an example of
prosecutorial misconduct, then there's not much to say.
That said, a very strong case can be made regarding
prosecutorial misconduct in general and there are large numbers of innocent
people sitting in prison.
Taking the article prima
facie, the arguments in defense of Pell are compelling but of course
there's another side to the story and the arguments are further compounded by
narratives within Roman Catholicism between the mainstream and the
Traditionalists. Each has their own angle on the abuse crisis, its sources and
its course.
Is Pell being persecuted? Is he suffering Christian
persecution? I can see their point but I'm not moved by the argument. Rome has
so tarnished its reputation that virtually no credibility exists. There is no
trust and no integrity. If Pell is innocent then the misconduct of the prosecutors
must be condemned. And yet, the real culpability that the National Catholic
Register seems unwilling to acknowledge lies with the Roman Catholic hierarchy
and its Magisterium.
What a mess. What a disaster. It's a Pandora's Box of a chaos
and misery for all involved. But they've brought it on themselves and while
some prosecutors are corrupt and self-serving, aspiring bureaucrats seeking a
feather in their cap... others are moved with genuine moral indignation in
response to the crimes of Rome. And I'm certain they're zeal is stoked by a
real desire to take down monsters and there are many robed monsters among us.
And thus while Pell's case may leave some questions, I think to characterise it
as persecution is misleading...
But par for the course when it comes to members of the Roman
Catholic hierarchy who regularly and systematically traffic in deceit.
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