Hiding the facts about abuse seriously impedes the act of forgiveness

Every day that I open the paper and see a letter to the editor from someone “supporting” the Catholic Church and asking “what about this” when it comes to priests and their enablers covering up childhood sexual abuse, I am retraumatized. While all survivors are appreciative of the efforts to seek justice and hold pedophiles and their enablers accountable, it takes a toll to see any and all coverage of this (“Has The Baltimore Sun turned anti-Catholic?” May 16).

We are so appreciative of The Baltimore Sun’s ongoing efforts to bring these secrets to light and reveal everyone behind this cover-up.

However, when we read things like “maybe the enablers were granting an act of mercy” and were “hating the sin but loving the sinner,” it is infuriating and devastating. For someone to confess their sin, to seek forgiveness and treatment and then to go forth and sin no more in this way would be completely acceptable. If that meant never being near children again or never being a priest again, so be it.

That would be accepting responsibility, holding someone accountable and forgiveness would be possible. To repeatedly lie, to send people for “treatment” that was not treatment at all, and then to place them in another parish with children is unforgivable. People knew exactly what they were doing in the Catholic Church. How do we know? Read the Maryland Attorney General’s report which came from the Catholic Church’s own secret files.

We welcome any investigations into any religions, organizations, schools or groups that enabled childhood sexual abuse to take place. That the Catholic Church is one of the largest enablers of this illegal crime for years and years and that they kept extensive files on it is why there is an AG’s report and active investigation. An act of good faith would be for the Catholic Church to allow the AG report to be released with no redacted names and release all of their secret files.

Then true justice, healing and forgiveness would be possible.

— Betsy Schindler, Baltimore