Spotlight: Diving Deep & Surfacing
Spotlight is the name of the team of Boston Globe reporters who investigated the Archdiocese of Boston in 2001 when the puzzle pieces began to fall into place surrounding the sexual abuse of children by priests. Their reporting yielded a Pulitzer Prize and finally blew the lid off the long-standing conspiracy of silence surrounding the protection of priest pedophiles in the Catholic Church. Spotlight, the film, is indeed a cautionary tale for us all. While non-Catholics might be tempted to walk away from the theater with just a tinge of self-righteousness, assuming that this is a Catholic problem, don't give into that temptation. And let us not spend time arguing (as some commentators have) over whether "the problem" is greater or lesser in our faith community. Neither will serve us well.
Spotlight is the name of the team of Boston Globe reporters who investigated the Archdiocese of Boston in 2001 when the puzzle pieces began to fall into place surrounding the sexual abuse of children by priests. Their reporting yielded a Pulitzer Prize and finally blew the lid off the long-standing conspiracy of silence surrounding the protection of priest pedophiles in the Catholic Church.
Spotlight, the film, is indeed a cautionary tale for us all. While non-Catholics might be tempted to walk away from the theater with just a tinge of self-righteousness, assuming that this is a Catholic problem, don't give into that temptation. And let us not spend time arguing (as some commentators have) over whether "the problem" is greater or lesser in our faith community. Neither will serve us well.
The fact is that sexual abuse of children, teens, and adults by those designated as faith leaders is a serious and disturbing reality in every faith community. No exceptions.
Spotlight dives deep into the dark recesses of the institution of the church which in this case was more interested in what it perceived as the protection of the institution itself than it was interested in the protection of its vulnerable members.
This of course is the great irony: in their efforts to "protect" the institution, its leaders in fact did great damage to individuals and families and great damage to the church as an institution.
The supposed “institutional protection agenda” is not only morally bankrupt, it just doesn't work. Whether hiding behind the charitable immunity limit of $20K or putting offending priests on “sick leave” and moving them on to the next parish or pressuring the Globe to back off its investigative reporting, all of it revealed that the default position was the preservation of the Cardinal and the status of the Catholic Church. The consequence was the betrayal not only of individual children and their families, but of the entire diocese. This hypocrisy brings us all to the edge of cynicism and despair.
The people of Boston lived through the reporting by the Globe and its impact not only on the church but also on the wider community. Now Spotlight brings this story to the rest of us.
This glimmer of justice that comes with truth-telling is welcome in this bleak midwinter. In Matthew we are reminded: “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.”
Let this be a lesson to us all and especially to faith leaders who are called to be stewards of our institutions.
What did you think of the film, Spotlight? Share your thoughts.
In upcoming blogs, I plan to address the calls for a U.S. national commission to investigate child sexual abuse, the persistent challenges for the church and legal system in responding to abuse by faith leaders, and the important role of laity in confronting and preventing abuse.
So stay tuned. And Happy New Year.
Rev. Dr. Marie M. Fortune
www.FaithTrustInstitute.org
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Excellent article
Thank you,
Nancy