Struggling with Shifts in Truth and Trust

I remember in early 2001 my wife and I were new members of an organization of Catholic professionals and were invited to a reception at the Apostolic Nunciature to the Holy See on Massachusetts Avenue in D.C. We parked the car on the street and while walking to the reception joined other members of the organization who were also invited. As we all walked, we passed a man carrying a large sign stating, "Priests Abuse Children." One of our group said, "I would like to go any place without this man and others like him spoiling the evening." That was his reaction, and some of the others agreed, writing him off as a crackpot. In 2002, the journalistic efforts of the Boston Globe and Boston Phoenix revealed incidents of sexual abuse by Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Boston and coverups of that abuse. Investigations of abuse in other dioceses around the country quickly followed.

On June 23, 2018, Ross Douthat, after the announcement about Cardinal McCarrick was issued, wrote an opinion column for the New York Times in which he described how in the early 2000s he was confronted by a man at a conference complaining of corruption in the Catholic clergy and specifically of allegations that Cardinal McCarrick had slept with seminarians. He wrote that he brushed the man off but soon found that what the man had alleged had been reported by priests to their supervisors. 

Douthat and I had similar encounters almost 20 years ago, but I never heard specific allegations against Cardinal McCarrick. We met him a number of times. We were privileged to hear several of his inspiring homilies and interviews he gave on television. It was a delight to read accounts about his going to Irish pubs in the area and discussing theology with young adults. He was genial and outgoing. People we knew who knew him well respected and loved him. We were, therefore, surprised that the resignation he submitted in 2006 when he reached the retirement age was immediately accepted by the Vatican. We had heard of  a number of instances in which archbishops, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 75, had been allowed to stay in office a few years more.

When we were met by the man outside the Apostolic Nunciate in 2001, I really had very little familiarity with his accusations, and, perhaps those we were with hadn't either. I was often asked after the priest scandal broke whether I had any such experiences or knew anyone who had. After all, I had gone to a Catholic School from first grade through eighth, served as an altar boy, went to a Catholic minor seminary for my high school, and received degrees from a Catholic college. Except for a lay teacher who was immediately fired from my high school (BAM and he was gone), I could truthfully tell them I had no such encounters, nor did I know of anyone who had. And yet these things happened to others, just not in my school, or in those my family members and friends attended.

Investigations into the allegations against Cardinal McCarrick are continuing. He denies them and has filed an appeal through the canonical process. But the Archdiocese of New York relieved him of his ministry while the process continues because the one accusation concerning a child was "credible and substantiated." The Archdiocese of Newark has acknowledged that it reached two settlements with adults concerning accusations against Cardinal McCarrick. Journalists like Douthat and others have written that they heard of accusations made against the cardinal years ago and are aware of articles about the claims that were written and suppressed. Cardinal McCarrick headed the Archdiocese of Washington when the priest scandal broke and fathered substantial changes in how such accusations are handled.

Those growing up in the 1960s and 1970s went through the trauma of the Vietnam War and suddenly faced the shocking realization that those in charge of the government to which we had pledged allegiance with our hands on our chests were not always right, occasionally did things that were unethical, and sometimes concealed their mistakes and wrongdoing. This shock and dismay occurred again with the presidential scandals of Nixon and Clinton. Sexual predatory behavior and its concealment fit into that pattern.

I take pride in and express gratitude for the Catholic education I received and respect the noble acts and generous service performed by dedicated priests, brothers and nuns. As a Christian and Catholic, I pray for Cardinal McCarrick and for any abused by those who take advantage of their authoritative positions. And for all who follow us in this world, I pray that truth will once again be respected and that trust in those in authority will once again be earmed.

Copyright 2018 by John T. Aquino