The problem of homosexuality in the priesthood, with its attendant evils of pædophilia and sexual abuse, is well known. It causes pain and suffering not only to those who have been molested by rogue priests, but to all Catholics who have to endure the scandals, not to mention the literal bankrupting of entire dioceses to settle court claims.
Pope Benedict XVI is well aware of the problem, as was his predecessor, and has spoken out against it. But somehow the idea has taken hold that this is a modern scandal. While it's true that homosexuality in the clergy has erupted and been exposed dramatically since the "reforms" of Vatican II, it is something that bedvilled the Church (pun intended) for centuries.
Speaking at his public audience on September 9, the Holy Father urged Christians "to create silence within ourselves in order to listen to the voice of God." He preached a reflection on the life and influence of St. Peter Damian (1007-1072), a champion of monastic life and of reform within the Church.
His Holiness pointed out that St. Peter Damian "was not afraid to denounce the state of corruption that existed in the monasteries and among the clergy." Although he didn't say so, Benedict appears to have been referring to the Book of Gomorrah, a savage attack on homosexuality in the priesthood.
Writing in Inside the Vatican, its editor, Robert Moynihan, pornounces himself "perplexed" by Pope Benedict's talk. Moynihan calls attention to the Holy Father's failure to specify the particular type of corruption St. Peter Damian denounced.
Moynihan wonders if the Pope deliberately skirted the issue. The Holy Father is extremely subtle and guarded in disclosing his intentions, so it seems more likely that he was dropping a hint, confident that knowledgeable Catholics will make the obvious connection.
The big question is, what is to be done? How are the homosexuals and pædophiles to be rooted out? How is this cancer to be excised from the Mystical Body of Christ? What does the Pope plan to do?
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