Editorial

Many Catholics find themselves struggling to deal with revelations of sexual abuse of minors by priests and the church's response to these tragic scandals.

We are torn by feelings of sorrow for the victims and their families as well as for the priest-perpetrators. Some parish communities have suffered tremendously, their trust in the church damaged because authorities have not dealt forthrightly with cases of abuse.

Lack of understanding. Although we cannot exonerate the Catholic Church for its past faults, we can point to lack of understanding of pedophilia as one reason for poor handling of sexual abuse cases.

It was thought that pedophiles could be rehabilitated with counseling, but experience has shown an extremely high degree of recidivism. This has led to calls of "zero tolerance" for sexual abusers, not only among priests, but also among clergy of other denominations, teachers, doctors, and others in society accused of molesting children.

Dealing with abuse. In more recent years, the Catholic Church has dealt much more forcefully with the issue of clergy sexual abuse. Both the Vatican and the U.S. bishops have studied the matter extensively, issuing norms for handling sexual abuse cases.

U.S. dioceses have developed comprehensive policies. In Madison, Bishop William H. Bullock published diocesan policies in July of 1993 (reprinted in last week's Catholic Herald). The policies address the problem for the victim and family, priest, and community.

Showing support, talking. In these difficult times, Catholics throughout the country are showing support for their priests, even those accused of sexual abuse. In Palm Beach, Fla., where Bishop Anthony J. O'Connell submitted his resignation for sexual misconduct, a pastor reminded his parishioners that Bishop O'Connell is a human being who has admitted his sinfulness and human frailty and had apologized to his victims. Said Fr. John Kasparek, "It is also important for us as individuals and as a church to talk about things like this. Talking with each other helps us to gain a better perspective."

A Florida parishioner noted that most priests are "wonderful, hard-working, dedicated holy men." This opinion is supported by a recent survey published in St. Anthony Messenger magazine. It showed Catholics nationwide have high praise for their parish priests.

Part of family. As Catholics, we are part of a family, united in our common faith in God. Members of families can suffer from problems, but we do not abandon each other in times of crisis.

We must continue to examine clergy sexual abuse, being careful not to confuse it with other issues such as celibacy. We should deal justly with accused abusers and compassionately with victims. We must help heal families and communities affected by these tragedies.

Above all, let us pray that God will guide all members of our church to follow his teachings in their personal lives and lead others to be faithful disciples.

Mary C. Uhler, editor

Mailbag

To the editor:

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Fr. Daly apparently does not understand a couple of very simple facts about families:

• When children are not taken to church as youngsters, they will not go when they get older. No children in church therefore equals no one in church in the future.

• Church and related activities are some of the best forms of family action and interaction available. If I were a member of Fr. Daly's parish, I'd join another parish rather than having my husband and I attend separate Masses so we could leave our children at home. His is a very self-defeating attitude.

• We encountered a similar attitude from a parish member -- not the pastor -- when my sons were small. Our priest suggested that if people could be so distracted by a child during the Mass, they probably were not praying well enough and needed to concentrate on their prayers and not on the child.

Jo Ann Steigerwald, Baraboo