Shaken by Scandals: Catholics Speak Out about Priests' Sexual Abuse

I finished reading the above book except for a few appendices about 2-3 weeks ago. It was a pretty good book which outlines different perspectives which various Catholic commentators have on the root cause, phenomenon, and potential solution to this present priestly sexual abuse scandal. About a year ago, I would respond to every comment on this crisis, with a knee jerk reaction by saying one of many things: 1. This is blown way out of proportion by the liberal anti-Catholic media. 2. The problem is not as "bad" as "they" make it out to be. 3. Many of these people just want to make money out of this. 4. Critics are just looking for ways to reject the God and His Church. 5. If Vatican II didn't ruin everything, we would still have an abundance of priests and didn't have to "lower the standards" and accept less qualified priests. The list probably goes on... Even up to a few days before I started reading this book, some co-workers scoffed at the notion that I thought of being a priest. There's always a sense of alienation, as if you can just feel that they want to say, "That's okay, as long as you don't abuse the kids." I fended off their comments by using the "flawed constituents doesn't mean we get rid of the system" argument by bringing up the 50%+ divorce rate. Also, that the crisis is not a problem with pedophilia, although it is an occurrence, the crisis is a homosexuality problem, since 90%+ of the cases of abuse, was with post adolescent boys, teenage, and young men. I went throughout the whole repertoire of psycho-babble and philosophy of cause and effect to find any plausible excuse I can to explain this away, all except for the solution to end it. This book is a great book. Some of the contributors state the obvious, but most shed much insight into the state of the Church here in America. A few things I learned from this book: (1) This problem cannot be solved by blaming MTV. MTV is the not the source of the problem. (2) Flawed morality is the problem. The enemy is not from outside the Church, it is from within. (3) The media is a godsend for doing what the Church hierarchy in America has failed to do. Instead of hating the media for bringing this story to the limelight, we must thank them for exposing this sin. (4) Celibacy is definitely not the cause of this crisis, and that true celibacy includes chastity, and not just the mechanical avoidance. (5) This is a homosexual crisis, and therefore, we must not ordain homosexually inclined individuals. (6) This presents a challenge for faithful and Holy priests; they suffer from the effects of the sins of their brothers. (7) Fight evil with good. If you want to get a pretty good treatment of the current scandal, theories of the causes, and prospects for the solution or resolve, positive and negative, please pick up this book. Very quick and light reading. God Bless, Lauren

This book differs from other books about the scandals in the Church in that it is a collection of essays, rather than one work by one author. As such, it covers a wide range of scandal-related topics from a wide range of views.The basic view undergirding all of the others is that all Catholics face a renewed call to holiness. Beyond this, there may be some differences among the authors, but basically all agree that this is no time for the Catholic Church to be talking about changes in Her teachings and practices. The proper remedy for these scandals is for all Catholics, but especially priests and bishops, to be faithful to the Church's teachings. No one can argue that these scandals were created by priests who embraced celibacy joyfully and who protected it jealously!Although all of the essays are good, a few stand out. Gregory K. Popcak's essay on how to help a victim of abuse offers much-needed guidance for a difficult problem. Mark Shea's essay offers a possible reason that the pope hasn't removed offending bishops - and whether you find yourself agreeing or not, it is a compelling argument. Fr. Mitchell Pacwa asks the reader to consider the effects of these scandals on innocent priests. Finally, Kristine L. Franklin offers helpful advice on how to discuss the scandal with children.I join the authors of these essays in looking forward to happier days in the Church after this period of painful purification, and I thank God that many faithful Catholics are making their voices heard.