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On our debut episode of “Deliver Us,” Maggi Van Dorn asks: How can I stay in a church where so many children have been hurt? Not everyone does.
Melinda Henneberger, a journalist for The Kansas City Star, tells Maggi why the latest wave of sex abuse news pushed her to leave the Catholic Church—a community she had been a part of her whole life—last summer.
In the hopes of understanding what the church’s future might look like, Maggi also talks to Brian Flanagan, a theologian who puts the sex abuse crisis into historical perspective. The sex abuse crisis is a unique tragedy. But, it turns out, this isn’t the first time church leaders have let Catholics down. And it’s not the first time the church has had to figure out how to heal. Listen below:
Further reading:
Melinda Henneberger's USA Today article on why she left the church
Stumbling in Holiness by Brian Flanagan
Find all of America's coverage of the sex abuse crisis here.
You can find out more about the podcast here.
Tell them why one should be a Catholic. I have not seen one Jesuit or other author here give a reason why one should be a Catholic. This and a basic problem of belief has lead to a straying from Jesus's reason for coming and dying. The Church has become only a social institution to many including the hierarchy and consequently not primarily a path to salvation. The problem is that there are lots of good social institutions and the Catholic Church is just one of many. It’s main mission is not a social one.
If I may, I look at it this way.
First there was a man and he intrigued other men and women.
Signs and wonders followed him almost everywhere he went and some people were scandalised and set out to destroy him.
He was executed for being the promised messiah but failing to live up to the expectations of what was assumed the messiah would say and do.
He returned from the dead and taught and empowered faithful followers on how to announce his identity and instruct all others interested on how to join the fellowship of believers already keeping company so as to have eternal life by being in right relationship with God and fellow human beings.
The fellowship of believers eventually began to be called Church and it became possible to have faith in the Lord and his life, death and resurrection OR have faith in the crowd of followers.
Simple solution, maintain supernatural faith and hope and love towards the Lord and be humble enough not to aggrandise the Church and so elevate yourself but obey the Lord in being faithful to meetings or the fellowship for the breaking of the bread and the prayers.
Do not HAVE ABSOLUTE TRUST IN ANY fellow Christian as anything but a fellow sinner.
Treat those in office and those with ministries more as servants, not lords or ladies Good masters have always been able to treat their servants well.
Ditto!
Judging the Church by the fruits is tough these days. The dioceses of northern New Jersey released a list of accused predator priests. A friend of mine says she knew five of them including the one who performed her marriage. One proest she knew was not on the list. He only stole $200k. Phew. Even though she flipped over to another Christian denomination years ago, she was still upset.
My friend (https://www.blogonfinance.com/author/maisie/) love Deliver Us episode.