Catholics at a Crossroads: Coverup, Crisis, and Cure [Paperback]

Eileen P. Flynn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 17, 2003

IT IS THE GREATEST CRISIS EVER TO FACE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH-the sexual molestation of minors by priests and the way the church hierarchy tried to cover up the situation, endangering more children in the process. Once it became common knowledge in 2002, the ugly reality of a dysfunctional institution corrupted by the complicity of cardinals and bishops in the sins of a relatively small number of molesting priests has brought a powerful institution to disgrace. Unable to postpone coping with this tragic reality, its leaders have been forced to begin the recovery process. But will it go far enough? More than 60 million people in the U.S. are in a position to choose to let the church be or to demand changes. "Catholics at a Crossroads: Coverup, Crisis, and Cure" offers a penetrating analysis of how the unthinkable happened and what exactly the Catholic Church needs to do to remedy the situation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Flynn accurately highlights the importance of laity involvement in addressing problems within the Catholic Church." -- Kathleen McChesney, Director, Office for Child and Youth Protection, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

"Flynn builds on her impressive record as theologian and Catholic voice...a wide-ranging, thoughtful review of the recent crisis." -- Timothy E. O'Connell, professor of Christian ethics at Loyola University Chicago and author of

"Flynn exposes ... the complicity of the hierarchy. She diagnoses the problem and presents a plan for a cure." -- Theresa Padovano, President, Voice of the Faithful, New Jersey

"Flynn is asking hard questions... All theologians should be so brave." -- Jason Berry, author of "Lead Us Not Into Temptation"

"Flynn presents a sensitive account ...[and] makes the case for a more transparent church and a more vocal membership." -- Francis J. Butler, President, FADICA

"Flynn’s hard-hitting theological analysis offers the American bishops ... steps they will need to consider ... to regain moral leadership." -- Susan Secker, Seattle University

"[Flynn's] book is a call for a return to humility, a renewed piety, and joins the discussion ...[on our] faith." -- Frank Keating, former governor of Oklahoma and president of the US Catholic bishops panel on the sex abuse cases

About the Author

EILEEN P. FLYNN, Ph.D. has been a practicing Catholic her entire life. Married and the mother of four children, she received a doctorate in moral theology in 1982. Flynn, who lives on Long Beach Island, New Jersey, is a professor at Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City. She was awarded bene merenti status in 2001 in recognition of her outstanding service of twenty years.

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Paraview Press (March 17, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931044465
• ISBN-13: 978-1931044462
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,591,032 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book Ever for Helping the Church Renew Itself, August 19, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Catholics at a Crossroads: Coverup, Crisis, and Cure (Paperback)

Dr. Eileen Flynn has given us the most readable and by far the most intelligently reasoned book yet to help hierarchy, clergy and laity find their way back. She has not only done her homework and analyzed her findings with skills based on her dozen or more earlier books. She has also organized her approach so clearly that the reader follows her argument with ease and in some ways with pleasure and relief, however appalling the material has to be at certain inescapable points of that argument. She presents a calm, admirably positive prescription for recovery while there is still time. Flynn pulls no punches in setting forth her Rx to repair the catastrophic damage born of millennial practices of governance that little if anything to do with original intent. Her book gives us her special woman's interpretation of what Raymond Schroth, S.J., meant when he wrote, "Nowhere does Scripture have anything good to say about power and hanging onto power."

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Activism by Lay People Needed, August 1, 2003

By 

"ecresmer" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Catholics at a Crossroads: Coverup, Crisis, and Cure (Paperback)

Flynn's book brings the reader around to a not-so-easy solution to a horrifying problem. Lay Catholics must become involved and fully participate, as did Christians in the days following the time of Christ. Being a sheep is not what it's about. If you're a Catholic or anyone else who is upset and angry about the behavior of some priests, and even enraged about the cover-up by some bishops or archbishops, but don't know what to do about it, read this book. Changes can be made. Catholics at a Crossroads gives background on the facts of this problem, proposes a number of causes and finally offers the solution - activism by lay people.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How the Unthinkable Happened, June 19, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Catholics at a Crossroads: Coverup, Crisis, and Cure (Paperback)

The stories about sexual abuse by Catholic priests are still making headlines. As a Catholic, I am horrified by these news stories. Every time I read them, I ask myself why, how could this happen? Then a few months ago I received a manuscript in the mail from a Catholic theologian who had tackled this question directly and thoughtfully. I am the editor of Paraview Publishing and Eileen Flynn's manuscript answered the questions I had been asking myself ever since the crisis broke in 2002. Flynn's crystal clear analysis of the situation uncovers the underlying causes of the crisis: the inflexibility of Catholic sexual ethics, the theological issues of responsibility, and the reality of a dysfunctional institution. If you'll look at the "Editorial Reviews" section of this book page, you'll see that knowledgeable people agree that Flynn has hit the nail on the head. Frankly, it would all be quite depressing if not for the fact that Flynn is also able to offer a "cure," a way for the laity and the Church to work together, address the underlying problems, and finally set things straight.