On Prizes, Scandals and Basketball
by Tom Roberts, editor of NCR
Congratulations to the Boston Globe on winning the Pulitzer Prize for its work
last year on the sex abuse scandal. There is some justice in the fact that the
paper on which an angry cardinal once called down the wrath of God is being
recognized for its work.
Only with full disclosure will
there be any chance of fixing the problem and bringing healing to the church.
And only with aggressive reporting, the kind that should have occurred at many
other major papers much earlier in this 18-year scandal, will that full
disclosure occur.
The Globe’s stories fanned the
flames anew because it was able to dig up documents that showed that all the
public protestations of church leaders were disingenuous at best, at worst,
lies.
The language of the chancery
was finally available to all, uncensored and unspun, and Catholics realized in
increasing numbers that this is a story that goes beyond individual acts of
sexual abuse. It is about systemic corruption.
It is widely recognized now
that real reform -- the kind that engages the judgment of lay people at
decision-making levels, that rips down the walls that have allowed church
leaders to operate in secrecy, that puts in place systems of accountability --
is essential to dealing with the problem.
Still, some resist. Some
leaders have refused to allow groups like Voice of the Faithful, lay reformers
who became associated after the latest round of scandal broke, to meet in
Catholic Church facilities. Some, like Los Angeles’ Cardinal Roger Mahoney, are
resisting releasing documents.
At the same time, changes are
occurring; many dioceses are reportedly cooperating with the national lay board
that is investigating the causes of the scandal; and some leaders have been open
to listening not only to the awful stories of abuse victims but also to their
suggestions about how to deal with the problem.
Recently Vatican officials
gathered experts to hear their reports (see John L. Allen Jr.’s story under the
Special Update button on the home page of this web site) on the role of
homosexuality in the current sex abuse scandal. Especially noteworthy is the
fact that most of the experts consulted are not Catholic and that Vatican
officials reportedly were receptive to information that goes against the grain
of assumptions in some Vatican offices. It is unlikely such a meeting would have
occurred without the intense interest of the press in the issue during the past
year. That’s progress.
**********
There is reason to pause in
this month’s provocations and to bypass, just for a minute, talk of war, of
scandal and other serious matters to say, “Rock Chalk Jayhawk!”
For the uninitiated, that’s the
cheer you hear around the University of Kansas’s Allen Fieldhouse, named for
legendary coach Forrest (Phog) Allen. It’s an old barn of a place that drips
with tradition and memories of incredible basketball.
Nine years ago, when my family
moved to Kansas from New Jersey, I lamented the loss of Big East basketball. I
missed the likes of the Hoyas and the Johnnies, the gritty feel of the game I
had grown up with. But after nearly a decade in Big 12 land (the former Big 8)
and several trips to Allen Fieldhouse -- a positively electric venue that
occasioned both my wife Sally’s conversion to basketball viewing and her
understanding, finally, of the peculiar behavior that overcomes me in March --
I’ve become a true Big 12 fan.
So, here’s a
tip of the hat to Jim Boeheim, the Big East and all the Orangemen, who beat
Kansas for the NCAA championship last night, and a wish that Roy Williams finds
a way to say no to the lure of North Carolina and take KU back to the final four
next year. |
