I just finished
watching the HBO Documentary, Mea Maxima
Culpa: Silence in the House of God.
Let me be clear from the start, this is a must view for all people of
faith, especially those who believe in keeping the deepest and darkest of sins
secret, but also for those who believe that wrongs should never be confronted
publicly and directly.
My own life of
abuse has been chronicled over the years via television, radio, a movie and my
book The Keystone Kid. I know all too well the reluctance of many, even within
the religious community to confront the sin of sexual abuse. Silence in the
House of God (SITHG) addresses sexual abuse within the Catholic Church and the
massive cover-up they present goes all of the way to the top. They chronicle abuse that
has gone on for going on 2,000 years among the papacy and yet, covered up. I
challenge from the outset, abuse within all religious organizations, not just the
Christian Church has been going on since the conception of religion and
unfortunately, has been covered up, and/or not spoken about or addressed within
those organizations since its origins. Unfortunately, that concept still
continues as it is my observation from research, and personal experience, not
just in the area of sexual abuse though, but in any area which has people from
within those religious organizations encouraging others to not speak up, to let
things be, and to let the sins of many go unpunished and dealt with
between the individual and God. What these people and the organizations that
have let this go on for so long have either forgotten about, or simply don’t
care about, is the lasting damage within the lives of those
impacted by sin. This is certainly true in the areas of sin that so drastically
impacts the lives of the innocents, such as sexual sin.
While this is not
per say intended as a review of SITHG, I will say this, this is a terrific
documentary and just as I begin to have some concerns with the twists of the
documentary, as to if it is showing ultimate compassion towards the victims, we
are hit with a hard hitting reality of the damages and impact on the victims in
a powerful conclusion. Neither though is this documentary an attack on all
religions, or even for that matter, The Roman Catholic Church. We see
throughout heroes who have taken to the cause of listening to, believing,
trying to help the victims, even within the church. We also see though a poison
within the hierarchy of the church which for many years tried to prevent the
knowledge of these abuses and refused to speak out for or understand the
victims of abuse. Just as within all religious groups, and frankly, all walks
of life even outside of religion, there are those who would prefer to keep ones
“dirty laundry,” (a term I have personally heard within my own family), within
their own inner circles. SITHG does a wonderful job at showing the heartfelt
impact of this mentality and the ultimate danger that comes about because of
this mentality.
One of the things
I often hear from those within faith circles is the need to deal with things in
a certain way, or to never address sinful acts face to face and head on, even
in a public way. In this regard, I will willingly admit there is a time and a place
to address sin. There are specifics within the church hierarchy of Christianity
as outlined in Matthew 25. It is debated though within many theological circles
as to how those directives apply and if they are in fact intended as a method of
addressing conflict between Christians and Non-Christians. In this regard I
will state that there should be little debate as to the need of the person
engaged in sinful activity to turn from their ways, to if you will, repent
which implies and requires a change of behavior, a 180 Degree turn. If that
does not take place then there are certainly actions which should not only take
place, but be done so in a public way.
One
of the people I love from a historical perspective is Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. I love him in part for many reasons but one of my great admiration's of him
was his willingness to accept the consequences of his actions, even if those
actions meant spending time in jail that he was just and right to stand up for,
even though it may have broken the laws of the day. We within the church and
society must be willing to understand, that consequences for actions should be
expected, even for those within the church or those presenting to be from the
church, even in some cases, where repentance may have been made. An example
here, which I write about passionately in my own book, is the consequences that
come about for sexual sin.
Unfortunately,
in our society, in many locations there is a statute of limitations on certain
aspects of sin, including sexual sin. This is sad to me because I know all too
well of the lasting impact of sexual sin on an individual. Even though I am
approaching 60 years of age now, the impact of the sins perpetuated against me
in my very young life still linger. They
will linger in all likelihood for the duration of my life. Unfortunately, and
ignorantly, many Christians say God will deliver me from those nightmares,
those confusions and pains, it is my experience, that in many a God loving,
fearing, and faithful people that does not happen in most cases. Yes, we get to
the place we can endure, and even thrive, but that doesn’t mean the pain
or memories mysteriously disappears. The thoughts and impacts on us are always there. Thus
a reason to make sure that we address the sin, straight on and without
compromise. I think this is one of the
reasons Jesus so strongly referenced his love for children. There will always be something that causes people to sin. But anyone who causes them to sin is in for trouble. A person who causes even one of my little followers to sin would be better off thrown into the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their neck. So be careful what you do. ~ Luke 17: 1–3a
So Jesus called the children over
to him and said, “Let the children come to me! Don’t try to stop them. People
who are like these children belong to God’s kingdom.
You will never get into God’s kingdom unless you enter it like a
child! Luke 18; 16,17
For me the question is simple;
will we as people of faith stand up for the victims of such things as sexual
sin? Or, will we let the sin continue giving ever justification as to why we
shouldn’t address the sin, meanwhile allowing the pain and suffering to
continue among the victims, even allowing the likelihood of additional victims? We can’t be afraid to call out sin! Yes, it must,
especially initially be done in a loving way with the intent to help, but our
first offer of help must be to the victim of sin. It doesn’t mean we don’t love
the perpetrator, but they must be, no matter what the circumstances be held
accountable for their actions, especially in issues such as sexual sin. Jesus
was about showing compassion in many ways, thankfully He shows the hurting, the
small ones, the outcast and I could go on and on, compassion when the religious
community turned their backs on those individuals. How easy it is to forget the
woman caught in adultery, the woman at the well, or even the multitudes around Him seeking to just touch Him. Jesus was all about compassion to the hurting,
for many of us, it is that compassion that drove us to His wide open arms,
unfortunately, many who say they love Him cast aside the hurting, and often
times the victims of abuse. I assure those victims, the rejection often felt by
many who say they love Jesus is not the act or heart of Jesus, He loves you, He cares,
and many who have chosen to follow Him, even in the hard things, feel the same
way. Just as in the movie SITHG, there are many of us who will huddle
with you, join hands and fight alongside you the injustice within our society
on this issue. We know, because we know and have experienced, that Jesus would
have no one cast aside that small child we all become, and remain, once abuse
has entered into our psyche and life. While there are those who would not
address the issue, would prefer to keep secrets, some of us know a loving and
caring Christ who would have us receive the glories of His love, and experience
the consequences of our actions. It is high time that many within the church,
realize, that being a supposed follower of Jesus does not give us the freedom
to escape the consequences of our actions, especially when they are criminal.
If we allow that mentality of not addressing and experiencing the consequences
of sin, then we will continue to allow perpetrators of sexual crime and sin to
continue to practice and continue in that behavior. God forgive those who would
do harm to a child by allowing this behavior to continue.
The following is my recent appearance on the television show Real People, Real Life where I discuss in part my own abuse and also with a guest, marital rape. Watch it and as always, feel free to share.
To see the video simply click on the vid, if the vid isn't working, click on the following link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjgccgAJ9iU
To see the video simply click on the vid, if the vid isn't working, click on the following link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjgccgAJ9iU
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