Forty Years of Neglect = Pedophile Explosion

by Christopher A. Ferrara

        It is hardly surprising that homosexual scandals are now erupting not only in every major diocese in North America (where lists of sexual predators in clerical garb are now being rushed to the police ahead of lawsuits and prosecutions for failure to report), but also in Poland, Spain, France, England, Australia and - well, just about the whole world. (Not to mention the sexual abuse of women by a number of sub-Saharan African priests who simply refuse to observe their vows of celibacy.)

        I say that this sudden emergence of hidden sex scandals - only the tip of the iceberg - is not surprising because the seminaries have been infested by homosexuals over the past forty years. Now Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls offers the timely opinion that, hey, maybe these men were never validly ordained in the first place because homosexuality is considered an impediment to ordination. As Navarro-Valls told The New York Times on March 2, 2002: "people with (homosexual) inclinations just cannot be ordained."

        No kidding.

        According to a recent report by John Thavis of CNS, "Vatican sources said that, in general, church leaders are pressing harder so that people of permanent homosexual orientation are screened out as candidates for the priesthood." (CNS March 6, 2002) Pressing harder? Wow! And it took only forty years!

        But so far, notes Thavis, "this has been handled through prudent local decisions rather than explicit orders issued from the Vatican." Prudent local decisions? You mean by the same bishops who hid these priestly perverts for decades, some of which bishops have had to resign themselves for molesting young men and boys?

        But not to worry. The need to do something about preventing all those homosexuals from being admitted to the seminary is "something Vatican officials have emphasized to bishops in recent discussions on priestly vocations and seminary programs." Emphasized. Well, it’s certainly good news that after only forty years, and thousands of victims, the Vatican has reached the point of emphasizing that the seminaries stop admitting disordered men to the priesthood.

        And there is even more good news: "A new document on the issue also is being considered." A new document is being considered. Well, the situation is obviously well in hand. And what will this document say? "A study on the question of homosexual candidates to the priesthood was completed last year at the Vatican's Congregation for Catholic Education, and sources said a set of guidelines for seminaries may follow."

        There may be a set of guidelines that seminaries may follow?

        But wait a minute. Thavis notes that in 1961 the Vatican published an instruction on seminaries stating that "Those affected by the perverse inclination to homosexuality or pederasty should be excluded from religious vows and ordination." What could be clearer? So, why do we need a new document and new "guidelines"? Why not simply follow the 1961 document the Vatican has neglected to enforce for more than forty years?

        Hell-OOOOO!!??

        As far as the real problems of the Church are concerned, the lights seem to be out at the Vatican. But when it comes to shutting down the Fatima apostolate of Father Nicholas Gruner, they are burning the midnight oil.