To Whom Shall We Go?
The Catholic Church has recently been dragged further down into the depths of the hellish sexual abuse scandal. As if the scandal of 2002 coming to light wasn’t enough, new depths have been reached in the horrific exposure of the filth.
Ex-Cardinal Theodore ‘Uncle Ted’ McCarrick was recently exposed for having sexually abused many young men, seminarians, priests, and some children. There have been more and more allegations made these last couple weeks against the past archbishop of Washington DC, who has recently submitted his withdrawal from the college of cardinals, which Pope Francis accepted.
The thought of someone that high in the hierarchy of the Church having played a huge role of the scandal at large is unprecedented. Unfortunately, that isn’t all that has come to the surface recently.
The Pennsylvania Grand Jury report was also released and includes utterly gruesome detail of the abuse that has taken place in the past several decades. Still yet, there is something else that tops these prior revelations.
A couple days ago, Italian Cardinal Carlo Maria Viganò dropped an absolute bomb on the Catholic Church.
According to him, Pope Francis knew of the scandals of the Ex-Cardinal, helped cover for him, and repealed sanctions placed on the predatory McCarrick by Pope Emeritus XVI to stay out of the public eye and public ministry.
The 11-page letter penned by Viganò outlines many different things, calls out other in the college of cardinals for their involvement in such scandals, and provides very specific dates and instances that seem to be very credible. The accusations in the letter need to be investigated to determine the credibility of the claims. Having read many articles on and about the Italian ex-nuncio, it appears that the man is highly credible and trustworthy.
The contents of the letter have plenty of pieces spilling ink already. This is not the intention here. No, my intention is to call on my fellow Catholic brethren to stay the course and fight the good fight.
How divinely providential was our Gospel reading of this past weekend; the conclusion of the magnificent Bread of Life discourse.
“After this, many of his disciples went back to their old ways, and walked no more in his company. Whereupon Jesus said to the twelve, “Would you, too, go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of everlasting life; we have learned to believe, and are assured that you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
The words given to us by the Beloved Apostle reverberate loud and clear, especially in our current times and situation. Brothers, allow me to highlight a couple of critical points and expand on them.
The Bread of Life discourse starts with many droves of disciples following our Blessed Lord, and after hearing His words, that number dwindled down to His apostles. Our Lord does not make light of His demands, and they are seemingly difficult to bear. But Our Lord would not ask of us something that we cannot do without Him. That is the key; that we are called to meet the demands on His terms, and with Him.
The Church in our current times is going through a trial of purging. We need to rid ourselves of the sinful rot and regain our sanctity. We need to repent. We need to pray and fast. Benedict XVI commented in the past that the Church would need to get smaller before we can grow. We must regain our holiness to evangelize. We need not be solely concerned with numbers, per se, but to increase in holiness.
Another point I’d like to highlight from our Gospel reading is what our first and beloved Pope, St. Peter, said in response to our Heavenly King. “Lord, to whom shall go?” This is the very motto that we Catholics should embrace during these times.
There is no truth outside of Christ and His Church. The Catholic Church is the fullness of Truth, and was given to us by our Blessed Lord. We cannot run away from it, as there is nowhere to run to embrace the Logos in such a way as can be done in the Catholic Faith.
The tendency is to flee from these situations. Emotions run high, understandably so, and at times, can lead to unintelligent decisions that were not fully, not to mention prayerfully, considered to their extent. Droves will leave the beloved Faith and do so wrongly. Have there been lives utterly shattered and destroyed because of this tragedy? Yes. There is no denying that. Does it warrant and justify leaving Truth? No.
Let us echo our beloved St. Peter and stay at Our Blessed Lord’s side as He and His Holy Spirit guide His Bride, the Catholic Church, through this purging. This scandal is good news, as God begins the purification of the darkness that has been running rampant.
A final note – as men created in the image and likeness of God, let us use this travesty as an opportunity to live the mercy of Christ and extend our hearts and love to those negatively impacted. If you know a Catholic who is on the fence of leaving the Faith because of this, reach out to them! Give tirelessly of yourself to save the sheep of the Lord's flock.
If someone wants to vent to you and make accusations, turn your face and offer your other cheek. Meet their anger and wrath with love and embrace those afflicted. Always listen first. Do not jump to hasty conclusions (as at times I do in an effort to defend my beloved Catholic Faith). Listen to the hurt, to the confusion, and to the pain. Reach out to the spiritually marginalized and offer love and compassion. Only then can we convert hearts in the midst of the storm.
Above all, let us pray for the Church, let us fast in repentance for all of those hurt, those who inflicted the evil, and of course, that God may use us as He wills in this time of trial.
My God bless us all.
