Catholic Register Editorial: Act now on Lahey (Post 132)

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An Editorial from The Catholic Register: Act now on Lahey

Catholic Register Editorial Tuesday, 10 May 2011

When Bishop Raymond Lahey pleaded guilty to importing child pornography, admitting in court to owning 588 images and 60 videos of boys as young as eight being abused by adults, his case went from a strictly criminal proceeding to an ecclesiastical matter to be adjudicated in the Vatican.

Speedy pronouncements are not a Vatican hallmark but the case of the disgraced bishop, now locked in jail at his own request pending a sentencing hearing, calls out to be an exception. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith should act without delay to defrock Lahey and impose any other sanctions allowed under canon law.

The most consistent criticism of the Vatican throughout the clergy sexual abuse scandals is that for many years Church leaders failed to acknowledge the gravity of crimes against children and subsequently failed to protect them. As the scandals unfolded, the Church offered heartfelt apologies, meetings with victims, financial settlements, reforms to Church procedures and repeated condemnation of abuse crimes. But the Vatican is still perceived as reluctant to severely punish abuser priests and bishops who cover up these crimes. For that reason, Lahey’s case has garnered international attention.

In many eyes, his guilty plea has become a test of the Vatican’s resolve to genuinely get tough on child abuse. Within hours of Lahey’s guilty plea, a Vatican statement reasserted its abhorrence of “sexual exploitation in all its forms, especially when perpetrated against minors.” But that has been said before. It’s what comes next that matters.
A bishop has never been laicized for sexual crimes involving children. Given his admission of guilt, the gravity of his crimes and the undisputed evidence, Lahey deserves to be the first. That’s not guaranteed, however. The Vatican could assign Lahey, 70, to a life of isolation, prayer and penance and let him remain a priest. But that would be an unfortunate outcome because, even if imposed with the best intentions of compassion and mercy, the decision would be widely interpreted inside and outside the Church as proof that the Vatican still does not take seriously the scourge of child abuse.

A year ago, several months after Lahey’s arrest, canon law was amended to make it a grave offence punishable by laicization to acquire, possess or distribute child pornography. Church leaders now have an opportunity to demonstrate by their actions that they are sincere about reform and intend to deal swiftly and harshly when children are violated.

Based on Lahey’s guilty plea, he should be defrocked immediately to give justice to his victims, to encourage the priesthood, to reassure Catholics whose faith is tested by Lahey and other clerical abusers, and as a small step towards restoring the moral authority of the Church in the eyes of world opinion.

Source: http://www.catholicregister.org/editorial/act-now-on-lahey