Ousting Nuns for Clergy Settlement
Susan Jacoby reported in the Washington Post’s “Secular Corner” that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles is evicting three aging nuns. Tod Tamberg explained the decision to the LA times as follows:
The pain is being spread around. We’re losing our headquarters here, and none of the employees got a pay raise this year. This is just part of making it right with the victims, and we all have to share in the process even though none of us—the nuns, myself—harmed anybody. All of us as a church have to pay for the sins of a few people.
but Jacoby isn’t buying Tambergs arguments:
Ah, but the bishops and cardinal who worked at the archdiocesan headquarters on fashionable Wilshire Boulevard richly deserve to suffer pain, because they are the ones who covered up sexual abuse by priests for decades. Somehow, I doubt that these ecclesiastical poohbahs are being asked to leave their homes. One of the nuns being kicked out of her home is 69-year-old Sister Angela Escalera, a diabetic who uses a walker and has devoted her life to serving the poor.
A Washington Post story confirms that the bishop’s residence, worth about 2 million, is not up for sale while the sisters residence, estimated at maybe $98,000, is being sold.
Jacoby also brings up the issue of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) which allows for a tax-free sale of the buildings. (See also “Did Congress Make Religion Immune to Prison Regs?”)
Jacoby’s point is well taken here. We are subsidizing the payoff of the clergy abuse scandal with tax breaks to the church. In this case the church is using the subsidy to throw nuns out of their homes. Now, yes the nuns can find other homes, but really is this what we want to subsidize? Is it moral? If this is representative of the values that the religious right says we atheists can’t have without God, well then thank goodness we don’t.
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If I understand your post correctly, I share your moral outrage. But your closing comment was a bit disappointing, when you throw in “if this is representative of the values that the religious right says we atheists can’t have without God, well then thank goodness we don’t.” Who, in the ‘religious right’ is touting this particular case as an example of ‘morality’? I would fall into the group you categorize as the religious right, and I, too, am outraged at the cover up and the lack of severe consequences for those who committed AND covered up these crimes against children.
If there is someone in particular in the religious right that you know of who is defending this as ‘moral’, then say who it is so we can denounce it as wrong. If not, please don’t put words in our mouths and then attack us as if we said it ourselves.
On a side note, the more I have read (I did read “I Sold My Soul on Ebay” thanks to the review here) and conversed with atheists here and other places online, I have changed my opinion about atheists and morals. I have met a number of atheists who I have to say have definite moral/ethical standards, and sadly to me, a number of them have higher standards that many Christians. Obviously, it is the standard by which we establish or measure those values that we still disagree about.
You’re right Rob it was a cheap shot and I apologize. I was very angry when I was writing but that’s no excuse. I’m sure the majority of people of all creeds or no creed we’re outraged by that particular action. Thank you for calling me on it.
I’m glad you got to read “I Sold My Soul on Ebay” and that you either enjoyed it or it had an impact on you. I’ve read some of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Paul Tillich been moved by there writings and even some of your comments here. I know that I’m never right when I over generalize. I’m glad we keep moving the discussion along.
Lisa