My recent letter to the Editor of the New York Times

Interesting series of articles on the state of the Church and the papacy, and Pope Benedict XVI in particular. Being a graduate student, I had only to scan the articles to identify their obvious slant and move on to more news worthy issues. Although I am sure that many people still take you paper seriously, although one wonders why. Let us not forget that your primary purpose, as is all media's in the US, is to sell commodities such as dog and cat food, or if you prefer "High Fashion."

Of course attacking the Church that Jesus Christ personally founded and his successor as the leader of the kingdom of God/Heaven on earth serves your primary purpose well. So, shot from the hip freely. "We've got to move those refrigerators, we've got to sell those color TVs." to quote the old Dire Straits hit.

But pardon me for not getting all worked up. As some of my fellow Catholics are. You're not what you used to be. And as our founder taught us, we should should rejoice and be exceedingly glad whenever we are persecuted for His sake.

Having survived during our infancy the official persecution of the most powerful empire in the history of the world, I think we can survive a few slanted articles from an asterisk in history like the New York Times.

As a survivor of childhood sexual abuse by Catholics -- not clergy in fact it was a Catholic priest who initialy tried to help me -- I feel uniquely qualified to respond. The affects of child abuse are hideous and can be long term. However, why don't you go after people like Robin Norwood or groups like AA, who minimize the affects and bar people from receiving real help by using reductionist catch phrases like , "take personal responsibility," ... etc. Instead of taking on an institution and a Pope that has taken the lead in implementing progressive programs to not only prevent sexual abuse now and in the future, but to identify survivors no matter who is the perpetrator and get them help. Why not produce a series of articles looking into the reforms the Church has instituted in the particularly areas of prevention, identification, and counseling. The Church has spent a great deal of it's "vast gold reserves buried in those vaults under the Vatican." to take the lead in prevention, identification, and counseling with regard to this issue. I am proud to be Catholic.

Perhaps New York City, it's various secular and protestant organizations, where abuse continues to take place to a much greater degree than it ever has in the Church, might benefit from such a series of articles.

Of course this is too much to ask from an organization, who's primary purpose is to wrap stories around ads to sell commodities. "We've got to sell those refrigerators, we've got to move those digital TVs."

Again, we survived underground for 300 years the persecution by the Roman Empire, wow our period of persecution is longer than America's history let alone that of the New York Times. I think we can survive a few slanted articles from a paper upon which the sun seems to be setting.

Thank God for baseball season hey, I bet the Yankees opening day against the sox will sell more copies than this series of articles designed to prop up a fading media enterprise, by taking aim at a Pope and an insitution that is now on the leading edge of prevention, identification and healing of child abuse. Of course slanted articles are appropriate for baseaball, but not for "news."

copy right Fred Celio 2010