The Sins of The Fathers

The Church in some areas is imploding for one reason. This reason may be labeled "teenage rebellion". A teen rebels for two main reasons. The first is that he realizes for the first time the sins of the father and mother. He becomes hyper-critical in his new view of the imperfections of his parents. He resolves never to be like them.

Secondly, in that resolution, he decides to be his own person and become an "ideal" adult.

These two factors of rebellion are natural and good stages in growth necessary for maturation. However, when the teen grows up and begins to blame his parents for all his own faults and failures, that becomes a serious psychological problem. I know people in their 60s who still blame their parents for unhappiness. As long as those people do not take responsibility for their own lives, they will remain psychological and spiritual teenagers. They have not moved on to the second step-resolving to be the ideal adult.

Growth demands a humility of one looking honestly at one's own faults and takes responsibility for changing those sins and failings. To concentrate on the sins of the father is not only self-deceit, but pride. Anger and hurt must be faced and healed for one to move on into holiness.

Today, across the Western world, bloggers and other media personages demonize the spiritual fathers in the Church. Over and over again, lay people recall the sins of the priests, whether sexual sins of a horrible nature, such as pedophilia, or liturgical abuses, or ideological disagreements with the Teaching Magisterium.

As long as the laity merely have temper tantrums against the sins of the fathers and do not take responsibility for their own sins, nothing will change. In fact, the Church will be destroyed by the rancor within. A person can be brought to hell by nursing hatreds and creating factions.

This is what St. Paul meant:

1 Corinthians 1:10

Douay-Rheims 

10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no schisms among you; but that you be perfect in the same mind, and in the same judgment.

Constantly demonizing certain clerics or keeping on about the sins of the fathers will not make one holy. I have written many posts on the spirit of division and judgment.

Remember, how you judge is how you will be judged.

Pray for the fathers, and stop blaming them for all the present problems. God can change hearts overnight. The laity avoid the work men and women are called to do by concentrating on the faults of others.

The Church would be renewed by a holy laity. A holy laity would bring forth more vocations and saints who would change the world.

Complaining and whinging are the sins of the teen. When I face Christ in my particular judgement, I do not want Him to send me to hell, or even purgatory, for undermining the fathers by constantly repeating their sins.

Christ did correct the Sadducees and Pharisees, but He did much more. He healed and preached the Gospel. And, He is Perfect.

I think Christ's advice to the crowd who was determined to kill the adulterous woman may apply to those who continually refer to the sins of the fathers.