(S)he Who Is Without Sin

It's been many weeks since I meant to write this. This is a delicate topic, so how to start?

By telling you the good stuff. I have many friends who are Roman Catholic or who resonate with Catholic beliefs in some way. They are amazing folks who lead incredibly helpful and loving lives. Their doctrines guide them. They make the world a better place. They are the best possible example of how religion can be enriching to both individuals and society at large. They are the embodiment of all that is positive about Catholicism.

Weren't expecting that, we're you? I'm not anti-religion or anti-spirituality. I would never question how a person's religious beliefs can and do benefit them. It seems to me like everyone could use some sort of personal spirituality, be it meditating, taking a walk in nature, or going to church. But that being said...

How could this go on for so long? So many children. Priests sheltered. We all know the story. The Catholic church dropped the ball in absolutely the worst possible way. I'll throw in a little trigger warning before saying it: These priests raped, molested, and abused children. Children. Precious few things in this world could be more terrible.

The argument about whether or not the church should have to answer to police and other authorities is a tricky one, but no matter what your stance, this much can probably be agreed upon: these acts were in no way compatible with Catholic doctrine. Why did these men get shelter rather than being instantly defrocked and put into rehabilitation? Why didn't the church step up and try to help these children rather than ignoring their complaints?

And now, folks, we come to the reason these thoughts have been placed on a feminist forum. The church finally made an official policy to deal with child molesters. Then in the same breath, they redoubled their efforts to condemn females. Both raping children and ordaining women were classified as grave sins against the church. The punishment for attempting female priesthood for both ordainer and ordainee? Excommunication.

So let me get this straight. Child molesters get defrocked and forgiven but women get excommunicated? Hmmm. One group has sexual relations with children (outside the bonds of marriage, I hasten to add), wrecking lives at a very young age. The other group tries to get more deeply in touch with their spirituality and their God, and to give back to their spiritual community. Which one would you forgive? And which would you excommunicate?

Perhaps the Vatican is just using some extremely poor distraction tactics. Otherwise... well, they didn't quite come out and say that female = bad. But they have implied that men who are willing to assert their sexual dominance over children are more worthy of becoming priests than women. Could they have possibly chosen a distraction that wasn't completely offensive, hateful, and baseless? Almost anything else would do. Seriously.

What exactly makes men and women so spiritually different that one can inherently be a leader and one cannot? According to many religions, all people have souls, no matter what their gender. How can anatomy get in the way of the spiritual development of a person? How can reproductive organs and hormones limit one's capacity to lead a congregation?

And here come the onslaught of Bible verses, proof positive. Look, don't even think about quoting the Bible to me. I can do that, too. In fact, I'm willing to bet that you've worn mixed fabrics (Lev. 19:19) or eaten shellfish (Lev. 11:10). Maybe you even built a fire on Sunday (Exodus 35:3). I'll give you some leeway if you're a snake handler (Mark 16:17-18) but otherwise, enough of your picking and choosing. We wouldn't do many things in the Bible today: stone people to death, sell our daughters into slavery, or commit genocide. Why are women still being kept down?

One can only hope for a schism. The old church can continue to stand for corruption and sexism if it wants. I wait for a branch of Catholicism which recognizes the innate spiritual capacity of all people.