Dark Shadow of Scandal
Title: The dark shadow of scandal still lurks four years after the Royal Commission findings
Author: Francis Sullivan
Publisher: John Menadue – Pearls and Irritations
Date: 08OCT2021
Unless all the implications of the sex abuse scandal are faced head-on, the Church will struggle to be identified for anything else.
Thursday at the Plenary Council was very powerful. In a special plenary focused on those who had been abused and hurt by our Church we were led through a lamentation session and on into serious reflection and discussion. The atmosphere was solemn, the burden far from light.This was an important session. Confronting the shameful history of abuse is vital. That history is alive today. It is something we carry as a Church, and it must shape us as a Church.Unless all the implications of the sex abuse scandal are faced head-on, I fear the Church will struggle to be identified for anything else in my lifetime. Of course, there are many fine works conducted in the name of the Church.I am involved in both the social service and health ministries. But the dark shadow of the scandal lurks. It will continue to for as long as the Church appears not to have fully atoned for the crimes and the cover-ups. It will continue until the Church comes to terms with itself.
Thursday at the Plenary Council was very powerful. In a special plenary focused on those who had been abused and hurt by our Church we were led through a lamentation session and on into serious reflection and discussion. The atmosphere was solemn, the burden far from light.This was an important session. Confronting the shameful history of abuse is vital. That history is alive today. It is something we carry as a Church, and it must shape us as a Church.Unless all the implications of the sex abuse scandal are faced head-on, I fear the Church will struggle to be identified for anything else in my lifetime. Of course, there are many fine works conducted in the name of the Church.I am involved in both the social service and health ministries. But the dark shadow of the scandal lurks. It will continue to for as long as the Church appears not to have fully atoned for the crimes and the cover-ups. It will continue until the Church comes to terms with itself.
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