SCOTLAND
Scotsman
“IF IT were done when ’tis done, then ’twere well, it were done quickly.” So speaks Macbeth of the murder of the king, but the words might well be self-applied by someone who finds themselves in the situation faced by Cardinal Keith O’Brien, when he learned of the news stories reporting accusations against him of inappropriate behaviour.
The circumstances could hardly be more dramatic: on Thursday the Pope abdicates and the process of electing a successor begins shortly thereafter. The situation is unprecedented (medieval “resignations” were entirely different) and the Church and the world have still not worked out quite what it means. At the same time, there is speculation about possible scandals within the Vatican itself, and complaints about the attendance at the Conclave of figures accused of failure in dealing with sexual abuse cases. Under these circumstances, to have the leading serving churchman from the British Isles turn up in Rome beneath a dark and heavy cloud would intensify the storm.
To his credit, the cardinal has understood all of this, no doubt feeling the deep irony of the fact of his imminent retirement, and in circumstances of ill-health, and he has done the right thing. Whether this is what the publicisers of the accusations hoped for in reporting the allegations now, and whether they will feel satisfied at the outcome I do not know, but it is hard not to ask, with the Romans, cui bono – who benefits?
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