By Steve Lopez
"In Philadelphia
last week, a child sex-abuse trial involving Catholic clergy led to a bombshell
— a bishop from West Virginia was accused of abuse.
In Kansas City, a Catholic bishop goes on trial in September, accused of failing to report suspected child abuse.
In Kansas City, a Catholic bishop goes on trial in September, accused of failing to report suspected child abuse.
Last year church
officials paid $144 million to settle abuse allegations and cover legal bills,
and although many of the cases went back decades, church auditors have warned of
"growing complacency" about protecting children today.
So who's in trouble with the Vatican?
Nuns.
You know, the thousands of women who took vows of poverty to work with the poor, the sick and disabled.
Why?
They're just not toeing the line, says the Holy See. Instead of frittering away so much time on "issues of social justice," they should be speaking out against contraception and homosexuality. They should also muzzle themselves on the ordination of women and other "radical feminist themes."
When I first heard about this "doctrinal assessment" of the nuns, I thought it might be someone's idea of satire. You know, a parody of the out-of-touch Vatican patriarchy.
But holy jumping Jehoshaphat, they're dead serious, which would be funny except for the effect it's having on American nuns. The ones I spoke to were shaken. They felt insulted and demoralized, too, even though the Vatican briefly acknowledged their good works before rapping them hard on the knuckles with a ruler"
"This is the same church that ignored people who were being pedophiles," said Sister Jo'Ann De Quattro, who, as a Los Angeles nun for more than 50 years, has worked as a teacher and advocate for peace and justice. Cracking down on nuns, said De Quattro, was a convenient way of shifting the focus away from the church's ongoing abuse scandal. "We really know why they're focusing on the women. It's all about control. It's all about exercising authority..."
So who's in trouble with the Vatican?
Nuns.
You know, the thousands of women who took vows of poverty to work with the poor, the sick and disabled.
Why?
They're just not toeing the line, says the Holy See. Instead of frittering away so much time on "issues of social justice," they should be speaking out against contraception and homosexuality. They should also muzzle themselves on the ordination of women and other "radical feminist themes."
When I first heard about this "doctrinal assessment" of the nuns, I thought it might be someone's idea of satire. You know, a parody of the out-of-touch Vatican patriarchy.
But holy jumping Jehoshaphat, they're dead serious, which would be funny except for the effect it's having on American nuns. The ones I spoke to were shaken. They felt insulted and demoralized, too, even though the Vatican briefly acknowledged their good works before rapping them hard on the knuckles with a ruler"
"This is the same church that ignored people who were being pedophiles," said Sister Jo'Ann De Quattro, who, as a Los Angeles nun for more than 50 years, has worked as a teacher and advocate for peace and justice. Cracking down on nuns, said De Quattro, was a convenient way of shifting the focus away from the church's ongoing abuse scandal. "We really know why they're focusing on the women. It's all about control. It's all about exercising authority..."
1 comment:
Heck, why don't they just toss all of these nuns out in the street?
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