The brief visit of Pope Francis to Ireland to attend the World Meeting of Families may be judged a qualified success, in that it did not make things worse for the Catholic Church and may even have started to make them better. Many of those alienated from the Church were willing to view Francis warmly on a personal level, even if they insist, reasonably, he has not done nearly enough to confront the scandal of child abuse in the Church. The best prospects for the Irish Catholic Church, therefore, may lie in its ability to remodel itself in the humble, warm and open style that he himself embodies – provided he can also restore trust in the Church’s ability to guarantee the safety of children.
29 August 2018, The Tablet
Think of the victims, not the politics
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User Comments (2)
I do not recollect that Our Lord taught us to plot and machinate against other Christians. It would seem we have a battalion of eminences who are prepared to do just that. My despair deepens. Our Church seems struck through with rot. Heretofore it was the sale of indulgences, now it is child abuse. The Church needs reform; perhaps even a Luther.