Peggy Noonan's Poorly Aimed Shot at the Church

In a recent column in the Wall Street Journal (April 17), Peggy Noonan, who is usually fairly levelheaded on most issues, goes on the attack, charging the Catholic Church with complacency in dealing with the sexual abuse scandal. When I first read the column I was dismayed that Noonan could have misread and overlooked what the Church has done since the scope of the abuse first became public. I thought about responding to her charges here, but then came across a column by John M. Haas, President of the National Catholic Bioethics Center, that specifically addressed Noonan's errors...and does so much better than I ever could. Haas' column appeared on The American Spectator's website on April 23. It is well worth reading and describes in sufficient detail the steps the Church has taken in recent years, steps that have been conveniently ignored by most secular media outlets.

I have long admired Peggy Noonan and, as I mentioned above, usually find myself agreeing with her. But increasingly her thought, and consequently her writing, seems to reflect an elitist worldview. Maybe she's lived in New York City too long or simply spends too much time reading the New York Times Magazine on Sunday afternoons.

Pax et bonum...