VATICAN CITY (VATICAN CITY)
Liars and Saints - Daniel Barrett Blog [New York NY]
April 21, 2025
By Daniel Barrett
It’s frustrating for me to hear Bergoglio described as “the less awful pope”–because awful is still awful. I think I get fixated on ideas of purity, which can be juvenile, but putting that aside, here are some things that Bergoglio could have done and did not. (I’m quoting from a survivor of sexual abuse at the hands of the Church.)
- He could levy the harshest penalty, excommunication, against a dozen or more of the most egregious abuse enabling church officials. (He’s done this to no enablers, or predators for that matter.)
- He could insist that every diocese and religious order turn over every record they have about suspected and known abusers to law enforcement.
- Francis could order every prelate on the planet to post on his diocesan website the names of every proven, admitted and credibly accused child molesting cleric. (Imagine how much safer children would be if police, prosecutors, parents and the public knew the identities of these potentially dangerous men.)
- He could demote at least a dozen or more Vatican bureaucrats and four or five dozen bishops who are or have concealed known or suspected child sex crimes and openly denounce them and lay out their complicity. (In recent years, public outrage has forced Francis to take action against a handful of bishops. But he perpetuates a long-standing pontifical pattern of quietly letting an embattled bishop “retire” or “resign,” either deceptively citing “health reasons” or saying nothing at all while letting these bad bishops keep their titles and pensions while they live lavishly and attend important church functions and while most of their flock and their colleagues act as though no wrong was done.)
Rather than dwell on Bergoglio, I’d like to think about Mitchell Garabedian today. This man was the first in his family to attend college. He worked tirelessly to shed light on the Church’s sex abuse scandal, including through cases against Paul Shanley, John Geoghan, and the Archdiocese of Boston. His efforts helped to bring down Stan Rosenberg, member of the Massachusetts Senate, whose husband had sexually assaulted a young man. He gave his time and attention to seven victims of the Irish Christian Brothers from Bergen Catholic in Oradell, New Jersey.
If Church leaders had more of a moral compass, they would be devoting their thoughts–and their gratitude–to Garabedian today.
Signing off–with thanks for various examples of decency in the world.