Federal Judiciary

Read between the lines and you will see a story of penance and perseverance, a story about an institution that challenges us to live differently than the gods of popular culture would have us live.

The AP article explained that, after receiving an allegation this month of abuse by a priest back in the 1970s, the archdiocese of Denver took ?swift and public? action against him. (The priest, now 74 years old, claims he is innocent.) Archbishop Charles J. Chaput removed the accused?s priestly faculties and withdrew him from active ministry in the Church -- despite the fact that the accused has, in Chaput?s words, ?been a popular and effective priest, respected by his brother priests and well-loved by many parishioners,? and that there had been ?no previous allegation of any sexual misconduct with a minor? in the priest?s long career. The AP piece explained that Chaput believed the move to be ?painful but necessary.? As he wrote in his letter to the faithful of parishes where the priest in question has served, ?It?s a necessary course to protect people?s trust in their parish and in the archdiocese.?

It?s horrendously painful for victims to have to relive abuse. It?s unjustly painful for an innocent priest to be accused. It?s painful for every member of every parish where he?s been. It?s painful for all priests, so many of whom live lives of sacrifice and love and integrity. But the Church is doing its due diligence, vigilantly and necessarily. The Denver police won?t be investigating, because the case falls outside the statute of limitations, but the archdiocese has no such luxury and the priest has no such protection.

The archdiocese is actively soliciting people to come forward, ?anyone who has concerns about the conduct of Father Thompson during his time of service at Christ the King Parish -- or any other clergy member, parish or school employee, or Church volunteer in the archdiocese who deals with minors.? Following the norms established by the national bishops? conference after the wave of scandals in Boston -- norms now in place throughout the United States -- the archdiocese is working to guarantee the protection of children, the beneficiaries of so many of the Church?s services.

The story of the accused priest in Denver provides a snapshot image of the way the Church operates now. As New York?s archbishop, Timothy Dolan, has put it, ?Just as the Catholic Church may have been a bleak example of how not to respond to this tragedy in the past, the Church is now a model of what to do.?

The Church had a grueling awakening, as everyone knows. And officials acted -- from Washington, D.C., to Rome. And while bishops in Europe clearly still have lessons to learn, Cardinal Ratzinger, now in his fifth year as pope, has been a hero in this story. Knowing the mission and heart of the Church, knowing the need to protect the most innocent among us, knowing right from wrong, confronted with ?filth,? he has led reform efforts. What once was tolerated is tolerated no longer. Because now we know.

That said, expect more stories -- legitimate ones. They?ll be shocking and sad. But remember to read critically. You may read in a newspaper that ?this is a church that deals in awful certainties when it comes to outright condemnations of divorce, abortion, contraception, and homosexuality between consenting adults, and these moral absolutists say that, for these offenses, there is no forgiveness.? If you do, know that it is nonsense or ignorance. There is forgiveness for all sinners who seek it.

All of the Catholic Church?s members and admirers will be deeply disappointed and even scandalized by the failings of Church officials. This is not, however, a reason to lose faith. Christ himself was betrayed by one of the Twelve Apostles. If you?re a believer, someone else?s fall -- whether it?s a priest?s, a bishop?s, or your spouse?s -- isn?t the end of the reason you live and breathe and have your being.

The Church, as John Paul II explained in 1980, endures ?not by the work of human beings, but through the power of Christ?s gift. To believe in the power of the Church does not mean believing in the power of the people who compose her, but believing in Christ?s gift: in that power that, as St. Paul says, ?is made perfect in weakness? (2 Cor 12:9).?

The Catholic Church is undergoing a painful but necessary renewal. If you know your history, you know the Church is not -- as some have hoped -- going away. She has stood athwart the culture of the times, and she will continue to. It?s still about the Cross and the Resurrection. This is true hope and change.

-- Kathryn Jean Lopez is editor-at-large of National Review Online.

Full post as published by Bench Memos - National Review Online on April 19, 2010 (boomark / email).