Part of Accountability is Naming Names

[Trigger warning for sexual violence; clergy abuse.]

The Catholic Church continues to insist (despite all evidence to the contrary) that it's interested in holding predatory priests accountable for their actions, but, in the latest round of wild misconduct—in which the Church has once again been exposed as having protected predatory priests—the Archdiocese won't even release the names of priests who have been suspended.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced Tuesday that it had suspended 21 priests from active ministry in connection with accusations that involved sexual abuse or otherwise inappropriate behavior with minors.

…The archdiocese's action follows a damning grand jury report issued Feb. 10 that accused the archdiocese of a widespread cover-up of predatory priests, stretching over decades, and said that as many as 37 priests remained active in the ministry despite credible accusations against them.

Of those 37 priests, 21 were suspended; three others already had been placed on administrative leave after the grand jury detailed accusations against them. Five others would have been suspended, the church said in a statement, but three are no longer active and two are no longer active in the Philadelphia Archdiocese. The church said that in eight cases, no further investigation was warranted.

The statement said the accusations against the 21 ranged from "sexual abuse of a minor to boundary issues with minors," but did not describe them further.

Nor did it name the 21 whom it suspended, drawing the fury of groups representing abuse victims. Many parishioners are likely to learn that their priest was accused when he fails to appear for Ash Wednesday services.

Nice.

Refusing to make the names public is quite evidently a strategy to contain the quantity of lawsuits the Archdiocese will be facing, which will cost millions of dollars in legal fees and payouts; if perpetrators aren't known, it limits the number of survivors who will come forward.

Priorities: The Catholic Church leadership has them. They are garbage.

If only the Church were half as interested in protecting children as it is in protecting its pocketbook.

[Commenting Guidelines: Please take the time to make sure your criticisms are clearly directed at the Catholic Church leadership and not at "Catholics," many of whom are themselves critical of the failures of Church leadership.]