No More Patent Leather Shoes

I remember the days when growing up Catholic meant that you got to compare stories of nun "abuse" in grade school. Of course, the abuse consisted of things like a rap on the knuckles. Those stories and other tales of Catholic school life were also the grist of humorous novels, such as "Do Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?"

The Catholic Church in Philadelphia was taken to task in a scathing report issued yesterday by a Grand Jury investigating sexual abuse within the Church: An 'Immoral' Cover-up. The report details the years of abuse by a long list of priests and condemns the cover up by Church officials. "The grand jurors, who spent three years investigating, concluded that [former Cardinals] Krol and Bevilacqua were more concerned with protecting the reputation and legal and financial interests of the archdiocese than the children entrusted to its care."

The times, they sure have changed. Or not. Since this behavior has been going on for decades, I guess it existed then. We just didn't know about it.

The church's response? Now is not the time to play the "Blame Game." See Archdiocese Blasts Report. Current Cardinal Rigali said the report was "a vile, mean-spirited diatribe" driven by "unbridled cage-rattling and insidious pre-judgments about the Catholic Church," saying the Report is 'unfair'. What can you say in reply to something like that? Remember, cursing is a sin.

The Vatican also wants to deal with this scandal in its own inimitable manner. From the NYT: Vatican to Bar Gay Priests. Gay = pedophile, I guess, for the Church.

Will Bunch, who Blogs for the Philly Daily News, wonders how Rick Santorum will explain this little problem for the Church in Look what's in Rick Santorum's backyard.

UPDATE: John Baer, of the Daily News, wrote the perfect editorial on Friday, Stoke the flames. Normally, I'd only include an excerpt, but I'm going to make an exception here:

"KNOW what I hope?
I hope all those Catholic priests are right.
I hope there is a hell."