Secrecy in Religion and Government Have Bad Ends


I discussed recently an article in The New Yorker by a Catholic writer in one of the New York City Boroughs. Within a bicycle ride from his home are about 10 Catholic churches. Some are closed or about to close. Nearly all of them have been touched by the Catholic Church sex scandal.

The writer wondered, like other Catholics if things will be set right again. He worked on his article for months interviewing church members and high ranking clergy including New York City's Cardinal Doland. At the end of a long article the writer concludes that secrecy in the clergy will keep scandals alive without end.

The same is true in government. We just saw the U.S. Attorney go out of his way to make a significant part of the Special Council's Report secret. 

The late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan was perhaps unequaled in experience and wisdom. He had worked in government before becoming a high elected official. He said there must be a constant effort in break into the secrecy of the government bureaucracy. It will be the ruin of our country if we do not do this, he thought.

Secrecy is too big a topic cover entirely in this short piece. We all know there are issues of national security and human resources that need to be concealed. But, even these should be open to some group outside those with the most power.

If sexual violations by clergy had been made public from day one the scandal the church faces today would not be present. If there had been more transparency before the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq we might not today be facing the unending stories of brutality by the U.S. or its allies in questioning prisoners and the inability of closing the Guantanamo Prison.

Fresh air and sunlight are good for health, government and faith institutions.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Maybe the "Original Sin" Should be Reassigned

Image
We can all agree most Catholic priests are fine people and not guilty of sexual abuse. What Catholics must face, however, it that their church harbors executives who are dishonest . There is an incredible story about the Argentine Bishop Zanchetta. The Pope worked with him in Argentina and they are considered friends. Around 2015 Zanchetta sent nude pictures of himself and they began circulating world wide. He also was too friendly with young seminarians and some left because of him.  Three different officials say they made formal complaints to the Vatican about Zanchetta between 2015 and 2017. Yet, in 2018, the Vatican claimed it was unaware of any complaints about Zanchetta. This might be a good time to repeat the Catholic hierarchy claims to have the sole authority handed down from Jesus to what the faith stands for. It condemns as sinners those who practice birth control, have abortions and gay sexual relationships. Handing the hierarchy this responsibility would make som
Read more

The Religious Capitol Invaders May Yet Win

Image
So much about U.S. society and religion can be learned from the Civil War and what happened afterwards. After its defeat, the South started a myth about the unethical soldiers from the North. The South fought for principles of God and states rights. The North did not. It was the South, this propaganda told the country, that had the high moral ground.  The Capitol invaders, encouraged by Trump, swallowed the myth that Biden's election was stolen. Thus, they think they held and still hold the high moral ground. This was reinforced by the cross and prayers during the invasion. Even with Trump is gone, we will see political opportunists like Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley stroking crowds and feeding the same lies as Trump. Like "the South will rise again" these gullible followers will talk of victory over the unclean. After the Civil War the South rallied around the phrase, Lost Cause. For decades, and maybe to this day, there are ceremonies remembering fallen martyrs, Re
Read more

Father Frank Pavone, the Ultimate Crook

Image
Recently, the Vatican defrocked Frank Pavone. His diehard fans are outraged. This is because he cleverly manipulated his fans and the press all the while living well from donations and, apparently, abusing some women. By making abortion the "sin" of the century, and himself the main opposition to this one sin, he himself could get away with any sin he pleased.  As the link points out, Pavone was the perfect priest for the Trump era. Trump is so self-important laws have no role in his life. He felt accountable to no one. Women were there to be had. Pavone and Trump are interchangeable.  Pavone was very successful raising money. In his mind, abortion was so important in Catholic beliefs and he was so important in anti-abortion the money he raised opposing it was his to do with what he liked. The Catholic Church, the brand name he used to raise this money, thought the money belonged to it. When he gave the Vatican the bird, it gave him walking papers. With polls showing the majo
Read more