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	Child Abuse Can No Longer Be Treated As Taboo by Churches Herald Scotland April 4, 2010 http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/herald-view/child-abuse-can-no-longer-be-treated-as-taboo-by-churches-1.1018339 SCOTLAND -- Easter should be a time of renewal and hope. Yet this weekend found the Roman Catholic church mired in its deepest crisis in recent times over its handling of child abuse by paedophile priests. Opinions regarding the scale of this crisis have become dangerously polarised. At one extreme the Vatican public relations machine has continued to maintain that this is a case of "a few bad apples" and that paedohpilia is no more common in their ranks than the public at large. (In St Peter's Square yesterday, Cardinal Angelo Sodano dismissed the crisis as the "petty gossip of the moment" and Pope Benedict made no reference to it.) Conversely, there are those who maintain the Catholic church offered a unique environment for paedophilia, which became institutionalised through a culture of suppression and denial. This was especially the case in Ireland, where the response to a rising tide of serious allegations was particularly sluggish. Archbishop Rowan Williams unwittingly fuelled the cynical response many have about Roman Catholicism in particular and organised religion in general by suggesting the Church in Ireland had "lost all credibility". This was deeply hurtful to all those who work tirelessly to live out their Christian vocation. He should have chosen his words more carefully. Despite recent friction in Anglican-Catholic relations, he should recognise that all churches are fighting the same battle against secularism and the erosion of Christian influence. Despite Pope Benedict's recent pastoral letter to Irish Catholics, the Vatican has yet to come to terms with the seriousness of this crisis. As a former Vatican enforcer, he is seen as an active investigator of sex abuse allegations. So it is disappointing that he has failed to take action against bishops directly implicated in cover-ups or use his authority to instruct all bishops to contact the police immediately on receipt of a complaint. In Scotland, Cardinal Keith O'Brien did well to confront the issue squarely in his Easter homily and offer a frank apology, but can Catholic laity be assured that such abuse can be prevented in future? Meanwhile, the elephant in the room in this debate is celibacy. Celibacy can be a gift, liberating an individual to devote his or her life to God and good works, but many believe there is a link between enforced celibacy and the psychological problems of paedophile priests. Against the backdrop of a crisis in vocations in the west, it is foolish to treat this subject as taboo.
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