Minorization, levity, cynicism, inconsequence, lack of clarity and lack of humanity. Lovelessness. If any minimally competent communication consultant knows that manifesting or expressing one of these first five sensations in a public conference can become “deadly” for a client in any area of activity, it is not necessary to be more or less Catholic, or even be it, to think the worst of those who consider themselves to be messengers of God when they manifest the last two. Unfortunately and after the earthquake that hit the Portuguese Catholic Church in recent weeks, D. José Ornelas revealed some lack of humanity and a tremendous lack of love for the victims at that press conference. And he failed miserably in terms of communication sensitivity.
Listening to some of his cynical tirades, a question assailed me that I can’t get rid of: who are these people?
I don’t know if D. José Ornelas is hostage to the pressure of any majority of bishops, but there is something that became unequivocal from his words and even from the contradictions demonstrated: the Church resisted until the last and never really wanted this investigation by the Independent Commission led by Pedro Strecht. Those who believed to the contrary in the weeks leading up to this press conference (there were quite a few), manifesting a kind of belief in the transformation that would reveal or in some way mitigate what had befallen the institution, did so out of naivety or excessive faith in a Church Portuguese that did not deserve to be given that benefit of the doubt.
In what were the public positions of some of the top of the hierarchy at the same time, the discomfort with the investigation was already understood. Worse is seeing how the anonymity of the witnesses now serves as an excuse for not immediately suspending active priests, when the institution itself already knew that it was impossible otherwise. An even more perverse line is taken when, by acting in this way, the work of specialty, courageous, serious and transversally praised is insulted, suggesting that people like Pedro Strecht and Daniel Sampaio would present these names of the approximately 100 active priests lightly or without further support of the crime and abuses through the testimonies. Nothing makes sense and it’s just too bad.
With this position that also suggests the absence of action regarding the cover-up, it is impossible to take seriously the role of the Episcopal Conference and the intended new life of the Portuguese church through the organization of World Youth Day in Lisbon. The “forgiveness” initiatives for the Church that D. José Ornelas announces must be seen with the same cynicism that he presented in that fateful press conference.
For my part, I can only ask: who are these people who are at the forefront of organizing World Youth Day in Lisbon? And Pope Francis, knowing all this and the Portuguese “episcopal” parchments, after the work of the Independent Commission, continues to bless them in the same way? In any case and even for the most Catholics, far from fanaticism, the Journeys in Lisbon could only have stopped making any and all sense.
This is another of the biggest signs given by the majority of Portuguese bishops last week.
Amen.
The author writes according to the new spelling agreement