The Brian Lehrer Show

Massimo Faggioli, professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University, and author of Catholicism and Citizenship: Political Cultures of the Church in the Twenty-First Century (Liturgical Press, 2017), and Natalia Imperatori-Lee, professor of religious studies at Manhattan College who focuses on feminist and Latinx theologies, discuss the steps the Catholic Church is taking to prevent sexual abuse by members of its clergy at a summit in Rome.

"Some good things came out of the [Vatican] summit, I think, the default position of blaming homosexuality… seemed to get no traction in Rome. A shift away from talking about abuse as a sin of chastity and more toward an abuse of power, was also a good sign," says @nimperatori.

— Brian Lehrer Show (@BrianLehrer) February 25, 2019

"The Vatican is a machine that was created 1,000 years ago," says theologian and historian @MassimoFaggioli. "I see more changes than things that are not changing. Honestly, the pace of change is slow but I think it’s undeniable that it’s happening."

— Brian Lehrer Show (@BrianLehrer) February 25, 2019

"The hypocrisy of having these zero tolerance policies for things like pro-choice political candidates but not being able to enunciate a zero tolerance policy for covering up the rape of children really undermines the Catholic Church’s moral authority," says @nimperatori.

— Brian Lehrer Show (@BrianLehrer) February 25, 2019

"The biggest problem is that the laypeople are the vast majority of the members of the Catholic Church and they have no representation. There is no national committee… where laypeople can be heard and express their voice," says @MassimoFaggioli.

— Brian Lehrer Show (@BrianLehrer) February 25, 2019