Navel gazing

"There is no question, brothers, that these past few years have taken a great toll on us." So spoke Bishop William Skylstad of Spokane, Washington, to his fellow Catholic bishops, also lamenting the "avalanche of negative publicity" caused by a "handful of miscreants."

If I hear another bishop whine about his troubles relating to sex abuse in the U.S. Catholic church I'm going to lose my lunch. While I sympathize with the piles of good priests out there who have been affected by the sins of their (and our) brothers, the bishops will get no quarter from me. Individually and collectively, they are to blame for the repeat abuse that often occurred, and most still have yet to accept responsibility for their gross negligence. And let's be honest: 4,300 priests (4 percent) is more than a "handful."

The real victims are, of course, the abused themselves. Then their families. Then the whole people of God, who are now stuck with an astronomical $1 billion-and-counting financial bill, along with a loss of confidence in their leadership. (And don't give me the "no parish money" is being used. Every nickel any diocese has comes originally from some parish collection plate.)

And bully for Voice of the Faithful and the survivors' groups for keeping the heat on.