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	Guest Column: Catholic Church Should Still Be Trusted By George Dimichele Advisor & Source Newspapers June 3, 2010 http://www.sourcenewspapers.com/articles/2010/06/03/opinion/doc4c0020d33d160107242100.txt Recently, many major news leaders have asked if ordinary Catholics continue to trust their church leaders in light of the recent sex abuse scandals and talk of a "cover-up" by Pope Benedict. Since I consider myself very ordinary, yes, of course I trust the church. Its present problems, while very serious, are being addressed with safeguards for the future. Clearly, some very bad wolves made their way into the flock and did great damage to many. Sadly, some church leaders were too slow to get rid of the bad priests. Nevertheless, the leadership is fast correcting this problem. Just because the Church, especially the Vatican leadership, is viewed as secretive does not mean that effective corrections are not taking place. I trust the Pope to fix the problem. It is very presumptuous for the news media to believe they are entitled to sit next to Pope Benedict and the leadership as they make the needed changes. As an organized body, the Catholic Church has existed since the time of Christ. It survived Roman persecution and many other persecutions to the present day. Its very existence, during the period following the fall of Rome, was the glue that held western civilization together throughout the dark ages. Let the world not forget the size of the church and the size of this issue. There are tens of thousands of good, decent, saintly priests serving a flock of perhaps a billion people worldwide. I have known dozens of priests during my lifetime and they have been good caring shepherds. The present problems are a fraction of the entire church. It is simply wrong to paint the majority of the Catholic Church, and its priests, with a broad brush. How quickly was forgotten all the good it has done worldwide. Catholic charities have helped tens of millions. Catholic hospitals have served many millions with the best health care available. My children were born at Catholic hospitals. Catholic education is outstanding. I am fortunate to hold a graduate degree from the University of Detroit Mercy, metro-Detroit's premier Catholic University. Helping the homeless, poor and sick, best embodied by the work of Mother Teresa in India, and by many parishes locally, has been the Church's calling card for many hundreds of years. Yet now, in a time of trouble, the faint of heart abandon the Church. How quickly we forget all the good done. How quickly we lose trust that the Church will correct the problem. I, for one, will not abandon her in her time of need. Yes, I do trust the Catholic Church and its leadership.
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