BishopAccountability.org
	Catholics' Faith Remains Strong in Face of Scandal By Susan Gamble The Expositor April 19, 2010 http://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2539840 Local Catholics may be reeling from the recent revelation of sex abuse scandals in the church, but they are not prepared to abandon their faith. Worshippers at St. Basil's Catholic Church on Palace Street said Sunday that they are working to view the acts of a few priests as aberrations instead of the norm. "It's just sickening," said Joe Bissonette as he left a mass at St. Basil's Sunday. "But our faith can't be in the priests. It's in God, even though we do expect holiness from our priests, too." Last month, Pope Benedict XVI formally apologized to the victims of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland. He expressed "shame and remorse" for the "sinful and criminal" acts committed by the members of the clergy there. Other abuse scandals involving Catholic dioceses, monasteries and other institutions have been reported across Europe. Closer to home, Bishop Anthony Tonnos of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Hamilton, issued a statement earlier this month saying that he had no knowledge of the sexual abuse of minors by Bernard Prince until the former Pembroke diocese priest was criminally charged in 2005. Bissonette said St. Basil's priest, Father Don Sanvido, addressed the issue head-on during his sermon last week. "He said people don't come to church because they love the priests and the priests don't do their work because they love the people. It's all because we love God." Sanvido acknowledged the recent scandals have been devastating and may have damaged the credibility of the church in the minds of some people. But, he added, Catholics remain very supportive of their local priests. "This involves a small number of priests," said Sanvido. "I don't think this is some kind of an epidemic." Mary Rowen of Brantford is a former Catholic who was attending a baptism service at St. Basil's Sunday. "I think this is a time to come clean and clean house," said Rowen. "My prayer for the church is that they'll accept what happened and not put the blame anywhere else. Admit it, ask God to forgive them and move on." One worshipper, who declined to give his name, said the problem has to be looked at as the work of individuals. "There's no difference between a priest and any other individual. There's good and bad everywhere and it doesn't have to affect your faith." John Stys, who attends Catholic churches in both Brantford and his home community of Burford, said the matter is complex. But, he said, his faith in the church remains strong. For Bissonette, who has seven children, pondering the sex abuse scandal has made him angry. "It makes me just grit my teeth. It's definitely a stumbling block and if people are looking for an excuse not to go to church, they've found one." Father Sanvido said he has no doubts about either Tonnos or the Pope, who has been accused by some of playing a role in covering up sex abuse matters when he was archbishop of Munich. "We do need to do a better job of screening and a cover-up of any degree is unacceptable. As priests, we want to see an end to it, 100%, not only by priests but by anybody. We're all happier when we live purer lives, but the bad things are going to keep surfacing until it's all clean."
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