Blessed is the servant of God who has confidence in priests who live according to the laws of the holy Roman Church. Woe to those who despise them. Even if they fall into sin, no one should pass judgement on them, for God has reserved judgement on them to Himself. They are in a privileged position because they have charge of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which they receive and which they alone administer to others, and so anyone who sins against them commits a greater crime than if he sinned against anyone else in the whole world.
Saint Francis of Assisi
The Admonitions
Admonition XXVI
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Lets get this straight, none of us should condemn anyone but I hope you are not suggesting we should turn a 'blind eye'if a priest is suspected of some offence. Hasn't that been the problem, of late. Be careful here ! I understand what you are trying to say but remember there are people out there terribly hurt. Yes, I know priests have been hurt by false accusations but many have hidden under the privilege of the priesthood.
ReplyDeleteYes, Deacon, we had an individual here locally who "miraculously remembered" he was violated as a child, some 20 years after the priest had died. There is no way to prove one way or the other, so what do you do?
ReplyDeleteWhat St. Francis was saying here is that we should not become the trumpets sounding the alarm when a priest falls. It is up to the Church to correct the priest. If they fail to do so, then we have seen the results as many dioceses have been forced into bankruptcy for not doing the right thing immediately as it occurred. Also, by failing to live up tho their responsibilities, it invited more and more abuse because people knew they would be protected by the heirarchy's silence. that has all come back to haunt them, and rightfully so.
My problem is with women religious who despise the clergy and you can just hear the contempt roll off their tongues as they spew the invective, "male dominated heirarchy," or "male dominated society." Their contemptuousness alone would prevent anyone from wanting them to wear the Roman Collar!