As a relatively new convert to Catholicism (Class of 2008), friends have asked me the following question, "How could you join such a scandal-plagued institution?"My answer has been something along the lines of what St. Peter said to Our Lord in the Gospel of John (6:67-69) when,
Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?" Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are The Holy One of God."
But the painting shown here speaks to me as well. It is entitled A Ship In Need In A Raging Storm and was painted by Willem Van de Velde II in 1707.
Throughout Her history, the Church has been depicted as a Ship. As a Marine, I have an affinity for all things nautical and love the jargon and the feel of all things naval. And I have written before that I read the entire Aubrey-Maturin series by Patrick O'Brien which, in a way, helped soften me up for Blaise Pascal's assault on my personal beachhead.
The Ship as metaphor for the Church works to answer the question above easily for me. When your ship is damaged, due to weather or as a result of action against an enemy, the command is "man the pumps, clear spars, frother a sail over the hull, beach the ship for repairs," etc.. The command is not "abandon ship."
As for the members of the crew who commit acts of treachery, criminal conduct etc? Yes, they must be dealt with internally within the ship (using the Articles of War) and externally through the powers of the state. But again, and consider that I am just an able-bodied seaman (nothing more) writing this, when crises like these erupt, the alarm given is "man overboard!" and a life-line is thrown or a launch put down in the water in order to effect a rescue if at all possible. Sometimes, due to weather for example, this is not possible. But the order is certainly not "scuttle the ship." Never.
Sometimes the orders and alarm occur simultaneously. And scandals will occur, as they always do. As Catholic Christians, we are called to man our battle stations and stay alert as members of the crew of His Majesty's Ship. The command is "Don't Give Up The Ship!"
Semper Fidelis
