Abuse by Priests
Abuse by Priests:
I am a protestant (small p) in that I am married to a Catholic and attend Mass with my spouse.
I have more than my share of comments from my spouse about the abuses by Priests.
I must begin by saying it is abhorrent and evil that these Priests abused adults and children. I am somewhat perplexed though by my spouse who is a person deeply steeped in her faith and very loyal to the church.
What perplexes me?
I am perplexed by how my spouse can be so deep in her faith, attend Mass daily, follow an outline of spiritual exercises on an hour by hour basis and be so angry at the Pope, some Cardinals and some Bishops. I understand the anger over such inhumanity to parishioners by the priests who abused them. The Pope should get them all out of the church and be a holy Christian warrior and faithful human leader to his flock. But this is not the case and I see the faithful shaken to their cores, their faith rocked by such evil.
And this is perplexing because, as I counsel my wife continually, parishioners attend Mass, pray and believe to practice a faith in Jesus the Savior of the world from its sin. This daily faithful interaction with Jesus continues for my spouse, but the quality of relationship does not appear to be the same.
I remind her that even if the Pope is evil, her duty as a Christian is to Jesus. Her faith is in Jesus. That is the entire and sole purpose of the Mass and of the church. She agrees. But somehow I think she is still troubled by the lack of faith, the sinfulness and abhorrent evil abiding within the Catholic Church.
And so, I continue to talk with her about faithfulness, trust in Jesus, commitment to Jesus, fellowship with Jesus in each Mass and in her daily spiritual life. I hope that this support will be enough to help her to continue and for the wounds of abusive Priests to heal, so that she can practice her faith in Jesus in greater purity and love, so that she can do so without the sins of the Priests hanging heavy on her contemplation and prayers.
My thoughts as a small p protestant spouse.
I am a protestant (small p) in that I am married to a Catholic and attend Mass with my spouse.
I have more than my share of comments from my spouse about the abuses by Priests.
I must begin by saying it is abhorrent and evil that these Priests abused adults and children. I am somewhat perplexed though by my spouse who is a person deeply steeped in her faith and very loyal to the church.
What perplexes me?
I am perplexed by how my spouse can be so deep in her faith, attend Mass daily, follow an outline of spiritual exercises on an hour by hour basis and be so angry at the Pope, some Cardinals and some Bishops. I understand the anger over such inhumanity to parishioners by the priests who abused them. The Pope should get them all out of the church and be a holy Christian warrior and faithful human leader to his flock. But this is not the case and I see the faithful shaken to their cores, their faith rocked by such evil.
And this is perplexing because, as I counsel my wife continually, parishioners attend Mass, pray and believe to practice a faith in Jesus the Savior of the world from its sin. This daily faithful interaction with Jesus continues for my spouse, but the quality of relationship does not appear to be the same.
I remind her that even if the Pope is evil, her duty as a Christian is to Jesus. Her faith is in Jesus. That is the entire and sole purpose of the Mass and of the church. She agrees. But somehow I think she is still troubled by the lack of faith, the sinfulness and abhorrent evil abiding within the Catholic Church.
And so, I continue to talk with her about faithfulness, trust in Jesus, commitment to Jesus, fellowship with Jesus in each Mass and in her daily spiritual life. I hope that this support will be enough to help her to continue and for the wounds of abusive Priests to heal, so that she can practice her faith in Jesus in greater purity and love, so that she can do so without the sins of the Priests hanging heavy on her contemplation and prayers.
My thoughts as a small p protestant spouse.
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