Open Season

Why is it that anyone and everyone is allowed to insult Catholics without any repercussions whatsoever?  And if we defend ourselves, why is it apparently nothing more than a regurgitation of the ‘lies’ we’ve been told our entire lives?

I bring this up because I recently saw an episode of Penn & Teller’s show, Bullshit (truer words were never spoken), in which they focused on the Vatican.  Now, you ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you that I am not easily offended, but this show was nothing short of vile.  The majority of what they were saying was, if not flat out false, grossly distorted information.  If one can even use the term ‘information’ to describe the filth.

What is it about us that riles so many people up?  I know the abuse issue is what many reference, but it almost seems to be a symptom.  Most people point to it and say ‘see, this is what we’ve been saying all along,’ or something to that effect.  I read something that someone had written today about all priests being inherently evil and they used the sex abuse scandal as evidence.  As if every priest that ever was has been a pedophile or some kind of sexual deviant and that there is something intrinsic in the nature of a priest that would make him so, and that the scandal only proved their point.

Well you know what?  I take offense to that.  I am not a priest – obviously enough – but I am offended on behalf of all of the priests I know.  I take offense because they are all good men whose task is hard enough without every other idiot accusing them of child molestation or rape or whatever else it is they can come up with.  I honestly don’t know how they (priests, that is) do it.  The obligations of the priesthood aside, the way they are treated in the media, history, and in popular culture broadly would be enough to send me running.  Honestly, can you imagine someone hating you just because of the job you do?  And I don’t mean jokingly (lawyers come to mind), but real, vivid hatred.  Can you imagine that someone would automatically think you a pedophile if you told them you worked at a bank?  I’m sure there have been bankers who have been pedophiles.  I’m sure there have been doctors and lawyers and bakers and candlestick makers.  But no one tells you not to buy bread anymore.

So why?  Is it religion?  Protestant ministers have been found guilty of child molestation, why are Catholic priests different?  Is it the celibacy thing?  Are those who are celibate perceived to be predisposed to sexual deviancy?  Or is it because they are all priests of the same Church?  Or some combination thereof?  I’ve heard both argued quite fervently.  The former is preposterous if one has any knowledge of the way pedophilia works, and the latter, well, I think that is truly the heart of the problem.

The Catholic Church is a global organization.  Some might go so far (and be so ill-informed) as to say a multi­-national corporation.  People like to talk about how rich the Church is and how greedy all of her priests are.  Those same people might not have seen that the Vatican City State is running on a $1 million dollar deficit this year, but that’s beside the point.  They point to all the churches and vestments and other ecclesial accoutrements and ask why we don’t just sell them all and give all the money to the poor.  Well, how about we sell the White House?  Buckingham Palace?  The Crown Jewels?  This is, essentially, what is being suggested.  ‘Liquidate all assets and stop being a hypocrite.’  That’s the message I’m getting, at least.

And here’s why we can’t just throw up a For Sale sign in St. Peter’s Square.  It isn’t owned by anyone.  Well, that’s not entirely right.  It’s owned by the whole Church.  His Holiness can’t get up one morning, ring up Century 21, and make them an offer they can’t refuse.  These things make up the patrimony of our faith.  They are physical representations of the continuity of the Church and they are owned by all Catholics, both living and deceased.  And they are not for sale.

Here’s the thing, though, I’m not even bothered that the Church has her detractors.  It is unsurprising that she and her faithful would be hated.  It is the public and unapologetic nature of the pronouncement of that hatred that gets me.  Not that I think that bigotry in any sense is right, but were anyone were to go out and say the same things about Jews or Muslims that are said about Catholics, they would be ostracized.  Quickly.  And why is that?  This is what I don’t get.  Is it history?  Mankind is flawed and people make mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes are tragic.  Am I to be held accountable for what people did 500 years ago that I had no control of?  Or for what a priest I don’t even know may have done?  Life is not fair, no one need remind me of that, but how do people get off scot free from public defamation of character with only what amounts to folklore to back up what are oftentimes absurd claims?  It boggles the mind.

There is a lot more to say here.  I could talk about how sick I am of men (Catholic or non-Catholic) questioning how a woman could be a member of a faith that supposedly oppresses women, or how I’m going to scream at the next person who calls the Holy Father a Nazi, or how tired I am of people who call themselves Catholic though they clearly disagree with or even hate most of being Catholic really means.  But I won’t.  I really just want some answers.  Why are honest, decent, caring, devoted, holy men like my priests objects of scorn and derision?  Why am I, as a single woman, to be pitied for being duped into a religion that allegedly sees me as worthless in my current state?  And, finally, why is there a perpetual open season on my Church? 

~ by jhoffacker on October 1, 2009.