XENITH

In an age where criticism of the Catholic Church is commonplace, it can be difficult to make a serious point really sink in. I have no doubt this difficulty is well understood by prominent Atheists such as Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins. Heralds of the so-called “New Atheists” movement, they have attracted attention by calling for the arrest of the Pope on his visit to the United Kingdom in September.

The campaign is not without controversy and has drawn criticisms from all sides. Dawkins in particular appears to have pushed one button too many and faces the accusation that he is merely seeking publicity. Unfortunately in a world where opposition to the Church flows so freely, a stunt such as this is perhaps the only way of calling attention to a point deserving a little more focus.

The impetus for the campaign stems from the Church’s undying sexual abuse scandal that has already seen the last of the Church’s good reputation torn to shreds. Unfortunately for the Vatican, the whole sordid affair has continued to unravel before a public who will soon lose the capacity to be surprised at the disgraces unfurling. What began as a tragic case of child abuse in the church soon revealed itself to be a larger than life conspiracy in which institutional collusion protected, relocated and disguised priests incapable of occupying a position of trust. Many of those priests systematically hidden by the Church would soon take advantage of their newfound anonymity, leaving behind a trail of wounded children sworn to secrecy.

Taking the politically sound option, the Vatican has always distanced itself from what it claims are isolated cases and rogue elements, a position it has maintained despite the revelations of the last few months. In 1985, a priest in the United States found to be assaulting two young boys was saved by the timely intervention of Joseph Ratzinger, the Man who would be Pope.  A signed letter from Ratzinger argues pragmatically that defrocking the abuser and protecting the children is not as important as the “good of the universal church.” And so the Pope surrenders any claim to innocence in the matter and we see where Mother Church’s priorities stack up.  That the Pope has always denied knowledge of the church’s institutional abuse of children should come as no surprise, however it illustrates more clearly the reluctance of the church to confront its own disease in any meaningful way. The silence from the Vatican remains constant, though as ever it is less concerning than the silence from the rank and file Catholics themselves who continue to ignore the rot in their midst.

It is clear, perhaps more so than ever before, that the Catholic Church is a failing institution. From the top down the church has failed to follow one of the simplest and most universal of all society’s laws, that of protecting our children. In doing so, the Pope and the institution he represents exist in opposition to the most basic of moral consensus. The actions of the Catholic Church should offend us all and as such we should take pride in calling attention to them through any means. When the Pope arrives in Britain this September I will (proudly) be among those seeking to see him held to account.