“If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.” 
(Lev. 5:1)

I love movies! But honestly, who doesn’t?

Recently I had a discussion with a friend concerning some good movies they have recently watched, and they said to me, “Hey, you were raised in the Roman Catholic Church, have you seen the movie ‘Spotlight’? I think you would find it interesting?” I never heard of it so I asked them to describe for me the plot:

“Some hard-nosed reporters from the Boston Globe undercovered a major pedophilia problem in the Boston diocese and it depicts how they eventually were able to shine a light on years of sexual abuse within the Catholic church. Church officials covered up these sick actions by the priesthood for decades by shuffling alleged offenders among parishes. Their research and subsequent stories won them not only a Pulitzer Prize but many abusive priests were defrocked and even sent to prison.”

I decided to watch the trailer. It has some very famous actors portraying real-life reporters, and it seemed to be very well made. It definitely grabbed my interest. I then wanted to see how close to the truth the movie was so I did some research myself online. What I found is horrifying:

• Almost 250 priests in the Boston area had molested children over several decades (1960-1990).
• The Catholic Church was able to cover this up because they had tremendous political power in Boston and used that power to pressure institutions like The Boston Globe not to do research or publish any findings on clerical wrongdoing – – they wanted things kept hush, hush.
• Many of the real-life reporters, after finding out how deep the deceit and depravity went into the organization of the church, have hardened their heart toward faith and God.

The most distressing personal story for me centered on the deceased priest, Father John Geoghan. One article says, “Over a 30-year career in six parishes, Geoghan was accused of sexual abuse involving more than 130 boys, including rape, molestation, assault and battery.” The real tragedy in his case is that his superior, Cardinal Bernard Law, a Boston Archbishop, knew everything about this man and kept sending him to new parishes free to victimize more boys. One account says that after Father Geoghan received psychological treatment the counselor warned Cardinal Law that Geoghan was probably not fully cured and would more than likely abuse more boys. And yet, Cardinal Law once again had him reassigned to a new parish not telling a soul that a child predator was set loose to hunt down more innocents.

After all the findings and years of court proceedings, the case of Father John Geoghan cost the Boston Archdiocese over 10 million dollars to be paid in damages to 86 of Geoghan’s victims. What a horrific story.

One of the last articles that really caught my attention detailed the life of Cardinal Law after his recent passing in December of 2017. It is a strange article because for much of it Cardinal Law is praised:

• “For more than half a century, Law dedicated himself to the church.”
• “He promoted traditional Catholic doctrine and envisioned the church as a guarantor of social justice in the 20th century.”
• “He began his ministry in segregated Mississippi, where he used his authority as editor of a diocesan publication to denounce racism.”
• “Law’s theology transcended scripture to encompass affordable housing and literacy education. Poor countries, like poor parishes, he argued, at times deserved debt forgiveness from their creditors.”
• “He eventually resigned and later he was a chaplain at the Sisters of Mercy of Alma convent in Clinton, Md., and maintained posts on Vatican committees, including the one that nominates bishops.”

Near the end of the article was this quote: “There’s going to be a lot of good,” the historian said, “interred with his bones.”

And then the article said this, “Although not bearing sole responsibility for the wrongdoing, Law, had direct knowledge of the scope, duration and severity of the crisis experienced by children in the Archdiocese; he participated directly in crucial decisions concerning the assignment of abusive priests, decisions that typically increased the risk to children…the mistreatment of children was so massive and so prolonged that it borders on the unbelievable.”

How should we feel about Cardinal Law?

Does his goodness cancel out his penchant for turning a blind eye? Hey, he denounced racism, he was a social justice warrior, he dedicated himself to the church – – he did good! Yeah, but what if your son was one who was caught in Geoghan’s bedroom and Law knew about and said nothing? How would you feel about it?

Some people will see a person like Cardinal Law and conclude that people, in general, are all complicated. While he did allow some terrible things, at least he did some good in the world that we can celebrate. Don’t be so hard on the guy. Why focus on one aspect of his life when he did so much good for others, especially the marginalized and left behind? But again, ask yourself, what if your son was one who was caught in Geoghan’s bedroom because of Law’s silence? Hidden in the book of Leviticus is this startling statement, “If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.” (Lev. 5:1)

Here is my point: there are some crimes that cannot be considered morally equivalent. Some trespasses are so heinous that to try to downplay them or ignore them by citing equal acts of goodness and social justice is just plain sick. Allowing a man to continue abusing boys for his own pleasure must not be wiped away by saying, “I know Cardinal Law kept quiet, but at least he wasn’t a racist, or he tried to help the poor get some of their debt forgiven.” This to me is the problem with progressive thinking – – doing social good has been made equivalent and even more righteous than true righteousness.

Did you know it is easy to fight for the poor with your mouth? It is easy to say you are not a racist or make some cool stance for the transgendered. Yes, we should do what we can to make this world fair, equal and civil, but when you see a real evil and say nothing, you will be held responsible.

In my mind, murder is even worse than abuse and molestation. Abortion really is that bad. Let’s not downplay it because we want to win politically. It is sick. If you don’t think it is, how would you like to have your life terminated in the womb? Well, an unborn baby has no conscience, no ability to think, what is the big deal? That is like saying a young boy in the hands of a sick priest is just another altar boy fulfilling his service for the Lord. Try saying that to the boy’s mother. The problem with the unborn is the mother is often allowing the killing.

Our quest to win politics has snuffed out our outrage at true acts of sin. It should make us sick.