Letter from Zenit Editorial Director - Sexual Abuse and the Catholic Church

Dear Reader,

For weeks ZENIT has been reporting intensely on the response of the Holy See and the Pope to the painful scandal of sexual abuse committed by priests in several countries. It is terribly tragic news, which saddens us profoundly as children of the Church. After this news blitz, some readers are weary and, I admit, so are we. It seems to have become the only topic out there.

However, we cannot allow these atrocious crimes to make us forget the hundreds of thousands of men and women, the countless priests, men and women religious -- the great majority -- who day by day give their lives to God and to neighbor in so many hospitals, schools, parishes and missions. Today many of them are associated with the scandals because of superficial reporting. But ZENIT will not abandon them. We will continue to report unwaveringly on the Church's attitude in response to the abuses, but we will not fail in our commitment to give a global and objective picture -- a picture concealed by some media in their reporting on the priesthood.

We believe that our mission at this precise moment is more necessary than ever. We believe it is ever more urgent for lay professionals to continue to give keys to information from an independent news agency, so that the truth is better understood, since only the truth will make us free.

We were profoundly inspired by the prayer Benedict XVI raised before the statue of the Immaculate Conception in the center of Rome on Dec. 8. The Pope prayed thus: "Every day, in fact, in the newspapers, on television and on the radio bad news is broadcast, repeated, amplified, so that we become used to the most terrible things and inured to them, and in a certain way poisoned, since the negative effect is never completely eliminated but accumulates day after day."

The Pope paid homage "to all those who in silence, not with words but with deeds, strive to practice this evangelical law of love that propels the world forward. There are so many of them even here in Rome and they rarely hit the headlines. They are men and women of all ages, who have realized that it is not worth condemning, complaining or accusing; that it is better to respond to evil by doing good. This changes things; or rather it changes people, and hence improves society."

ZENIT wants to continue to report on these men and women so that they will also make the news, but we will not be able to do so without your help.

Greetings from Rome!

Jesús Colina,
Editorial Director

Zenit

Pray for ALL of our priests!