BishopAccountability.org
	Old Wounds Re-opened By Howard Elliott The Hamilton Spectator October 6, 2009 http://www.thespec.com/Opinions/article/648219 Regardless of one's religious affiliation, or the absence of any, only a hard-hearted soul could fail to feel empathy, sympathy and support for members of the Roman Catholic Church affected by the latest sex scandal in Eastern Canada. Bishop Raymond Lahey, known as the face of reconciliation in the parish where children allegedly endured decades of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests, turned himself in to police last week after child pornography was found on his laptop computer. Seeing another priest linked to sexual deviancy would be wrenching enough, but the fact that Lahey was the chief architect of a historic agreement with known and alleged victims of sexual abuse by priests in Nova Scotia makes this latest revelation doubly tragic. He was the church's central figure in the case, liked and respected by victims and their families. And he now stands accused of possessing and importing child pornography. Perhaps even worse, police in Newfoundland and Labrador say they're reviewing an allegation that Lahey possessed child porn more than 20 years ago. During the 1989 inquiry into abuse at Mount Cashel orphanage, a former resident of the orphanage testified he saw something in Lahey's home that disturbed him and caused him to be hospitalized for depression. The lawyer for the inquiry warned him not to mention what he'd seen, raising the troubling possibility that Lahey's habits could have been investigated and dealt with long before now. At weekend masses, Halifax Archbishop Anthony Mancini laid bare his own pain with the latest scandal, acknowledging "my heart is broken, my mind is confused, my body hurts and I have moved in and out of a variety of feelings, especially shame and frustration." His candour is appropriate, as is his plea to parishioners to keep their faith as they grapple with these latest allegations and the recent history of similar stories. People of faith know better than most that their faith must not be undermined by the individual actions of men and women, no matter how hard that may be, as in this case, which seems one affront too many for some Catholics. But this latest tragedy within the church would be compounded immensely if that were allowed to happen. How well clergy and parishioners, and anyone who cares about the welfare of the church, recover from this latest calamity depends in part on how senior church leaders react and respond. There has never been a greater need to speak openly and forthrightly to the faithful about the seeming epidemic of abuse that has swept the church. Archbishop Mancini's straightforward disclosures and willingness to share his pain and humiliation give voice to an untold number of parishioners and other Catholics who cannot, for whatever reason, be as public and honest as he was. The church's leadership would do well to assume the same posture and attitude, as it provides the best -- perhaps the only -- environment where wounded adherents can contemplate and begin recovering and maintaining their precious faith.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.