Where is justice?

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver has just published an informative and important article in First Things (Here) entitled “Suing the Church.” He addresses points made earlier by some MOJ contributors including the disparity of treatment of the Church versus other institutions in which child abuse has occurred. His article presents the legitimate and real concerns of a pastor who wonders if the Church, the People of God are being treated in a discriminatory manner. Some of us raised and developed a number of his points in the discussions from early this year and late last year about the denial of equal protection and other problems with legislative proposals to amend statutes of limitations. While there were others who adhered to what this court and that court said in some particular case, I just wonder if Catholic legal theory is prepared to go beyond the simply positivist approach to these cases. In other words, does Catholic legal theory have something to offer a better form of justice? The Archbishop indicates that one class seems to be doing well in abuse cases brought against the Church: personal injury lawyers. But, at what price? Who is being harmed? Is justice being served for all? Recalling Rick’s recent allusion to Don Altobello, to whom can the Body of Christ go for justice? How about Catholic legal theory and its suggestions for resolutions to the problems and legal predicaments that are surfacing more and more in abuse cases? Once again, changing statutes of limitations so they only affect the Church is unwise. It also casts a shadow on the notion of due process of law and equality before it. Maybe Don Corleone did have one thing to offer us for our consideration. When he spoke about revenge: “You talk about vengeance. Is vengeance going to bring your son back to you? Or my boy to me?” Revenge will do little to help the harmed in these cases, and, as the Archbishop indicates, it may be producing a new and much larger class of those harmed.   RJA sj