Angry

This article makes me angry, as does the idea that Roman Catholic parishioners must do penance to pay for the ongoing exposure of the truth.

I have a lot of things to say. And I have a forum to say them, whether many are listening or not. Others have things to say too, some with a forum and some without. But position and power rule with threat and violence and fear and too often our voices stay silent.

This is not a Roman Catholic problem. I am not a Roman Catholic. In fact, I grew up in a denomination that preached that ALL Roman Catholics were going to hell and indeed stories like this served only to fuel the flame, while our leaders walked around with self-righteous pomp because they were indeed washed in the blood.

Abuse of power and position, sexual abuse of the body, and spiritual abuse of the soul leave wounds that never really heal. Survivors do just that - they survive. Some of us thrive. But nobody ever completely recovers. And blaming and silencing victims through shame, threats, and isolation only pulls open the wounds over and over and over again.

Are these leaders really SO powerful that we cannot stand up and speak? Potentially. Jesus found that out the hard way I think. Fear and silence or finding a voice and punishment - not a very good set of choices I think.