By Chris Sagona
I felt instant foreboding when I ripped open an orange Fed Ex package two weeks ago and saw that the next book I was being asked to review was called “Losing My Religion.”
It wasn’t just the title and the cover’s obviously extinguished candle that gave me a queasy feeling. It was the author’s name; William Lobdell. He’s a former L.A. Times Reporter known for finding great stories, avoiding assumptions– and just telling things as they are. He’s the enthusiastic guy who convinced the L.A. Times to let him write a column called “Getting Religion,” while still working for the community news division, then was plucked from the local section to become the LA. Times full-time religion reporter.
I put off reading his book, fearing the inevitable; that he’d convince me to lose my religion, knowing all the while that it is a ridiculous fear. Now that I’ve read it, I have to confess: I’ve been thinking about his book for days. The non-stop kind of mulling that has you watching TV but not seeing a thing, and missing your exit sign on the highway.
In the weeks after the L.A. Times published Mr. Lobdell’s last article, a front page opinion piece explaining how he’d lost his religion, he received about 2,700 emailed comments.
I feel I have about that many questions, thoughts, frustrations that I’d like to tell him too. No, no, I mean that I’d want to shout at him, laugh with him about, congratulate him for, and then cry about. It’s that kind of book. Depending on your background, you could end up trying to convert him, or congratulating him on seeing the light of disbelief. It felt less like reading a book and more like looking around the back of your closet and everyone else’s closet with a flashlight.
Oh, the things you can find back there.
I’ll take my confession one step further; he made a dent in my faith.
I found myself trying to summon forth my faith by focusing on a misstep in his journey. If you follow Mr. Lobdell every step of the way, yes, he’ll lead you on a nail-biting journey that has as its logical conclusion that religion’s a bunch of hooey that can give religious leaders a job, sometimes fortune, and sadly, great opportunity to take advantage of people. He very effectively shows that religious organizations and even their unwitting members reject religious corruption stories, as simply mean attacks, as if there’s no good in shedding light on crime.
The misstep in our procession through religion with him is this: in November 2000, Jean Pasco, an L.A. Times reporter, “one of the most respected reporters in the news room,” says to Mr. Lobdell: “You ever hear of Father Michael Harris?”
He shakes his head.
So she tells him that Harris was principal at Mater Dei and Santa Margarita high schools in California and raised about $26 million to build Santa Margarita. And she tells him he was being named in a clergy sexual abuse lawsuit– and she has all the documents that have been leaked to her. No one else had them.
Now here he is, one of the top religion reporters in the country, at a major league newspaper, and he has been handed an incredible story, aching to be told, before it’s hit anyone else– and he ignores it.
He leaves her stack of papers on his desk, unread–for months.
The L.A.Times delved into the story when alerted that there’d just been a $5.2 million settlement and a press conference was about to take place.
He tells the reader about it, of course, to be honest.
He’s stating he’s flawed, as we all are. If during those crucial months of his reporting career and personal life, he’d read the court documents recounting the abuse, perhaps he wouldn’t have stepped innocently into Catholic Conversion classes, poised for a big fall off a big cliff. For it’s the experience of being one week away from Catholic conversion while uncovering the Catholic sex abuse scandal that has Mr. Lobdell’s head spinning, confused that if God is indeed leading spiritual leaders, and if some of the clergy who were adamantly protected by the church, were raping young children, then what does it say about God? It’s in finding out about support groups for women whose children were born by priests -and in witnessing a court case in which a priest holds himself to be untouchable by child support laws because of his vow of poverty–that Lobdell realizes that writing religion stories has become just too heart wrenching for him. He’s burned out and frustrated that instead of welcoming the disclosures, church members and some members of the public seem to protect the aggressors and hold disdain for the victims. His conclusion about God is that either he doesn’t exist, or worse, he is indeed leading these church members.
The interesting, irresistible nature of it though, is that Mr. Lobdell doesn’t cling to his new atheism.
He really isn’t sure at this point if there’s a God, and if so, what he’s like–or if most of the world is just being fooled by religion. His loose grip adds to the intrigue of “Losing My Religion.” It’s like a Rorschach test, with inkblots that everyone reads into in a different way.
The book’s been out for three weeks and is in its third printing. If you read the book, I promise you that you’ll end up wanting to email Mr. Lobdell with your admiration, or disdain, or personal experience, or frustration….or….or…
Chris Sagona has covered religion, crime and foreign news as reporter, managing editor, associate producer and foreign news editor for Fox News Channel, News12/CNN affiliate and Community Life, and has been published in The Herald News and The Record. She’s won Press Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Press Association for Best Feature Writing, Best Deadline Reporting, Best Breaking News Reporting and Excellence in Journalism for Distinguished Public Service.
posted April 14, 2009 at 11:31 am
omg love this.
posted April 14, 2009 at 2:34 pm
As a former “pre-ministerial” student who likewise “lost religion”, the process is not all that mysterious or unusual. Education, information, an inquiring mind, and the willingness to go where compelling evidence leads you is all it takes.
posted April 14, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Terrific article, and a terrific book…
posted April 14, 2009 at 4:41 pm
hmm what can I say
Pemiers
50+ years of coverup of the sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy across the globe. 7 years since the global acknowledgement of a coverup in a number of countries. In those 7 years the problem has been found to extend to every country on the planet where the church exists. The numbers of abused is estimated to be in the millions.
What happens to a country and a world which has been deceived for more than 50 years by those who supposedly lead the way. The country suffers from the problems which come from and continue to come from the activities undertaken during those past 50 years by the church in its covering up of the abuses.
The response of our government appears to have been to increase its involvements and workings with this socially dysfunctional church and appears to wish to continue in that way without seeking from the church a definitive point in time for the church to respond in an appropriate manner or to give the people of Australia their democratic right to say if they wish to continue to trade with a broken Catholic church.
Without proper intervention each Australian becomes disadvantaged as there is no policy set down as to how our country should deal with the fact that the Church is unable to provide a policy itself while we all understand that is the most basic of things we need from this church so that every Australian child will not have to find a path through the hypocritical life we provide to them whilst this matter remains unaddressed in our society.
When both Church and State fail us on this scale it is the children who suffer first and suffer the most.
The Church and the Government must take positive and appropriate action. It is both inappropriate and dysfunctional for Governments right across the country to continue to trade with this church until we have a clear understanding of how both the Government and the Church make it clear to us all just how they are going to resolve the matter of the sexual abuse of our children by so many priests of the worlds’ leading Christian Church.
We obviously see both Church and State repeatedly fail to act in the light of this understanding and in the knowledge of the harm this causes our world and the lives of each of us living it.
Set aside September 1st 2009 as the day the Government and the Catholic Church provide us all with a clear and appropriate set of policies making it clear to us how we can live our lives without these aberrant behaviours from both Church and Government.
Set aside September 1st 2009 as the last day we get to hear our Prime Minister utter the words “This is a matter for the Church” when he speaks of the children sexually abused by clergy.
As a State Premier of Australia we simply take your support for granted.
Dear Premiers,
On the the issues of childhood sexual abuse, domestic violence through to murder and rape, clergy abuse and its 50 or more years of coverup, the failure of the Catholic Church to appropriately respond; the impacts enforced on a society when its major religion has been found to be wanting and indeed actively working to cover up the existence of the sexual abuse of children by some clergy for an extended period of time.
Indeed it is a dilemma which many would prefer to see remain in the hands of the Church itself. That simply is not an option available to you each as the Premiers of our States; the people have entrusted their right to democracy into your care and your hands.
The options of patch it up or business as usual on this will be seen in the light of history as acts of betrayal blindly carried out by effectively deceived Premiers – “abusers want to make sure there is no action taken”. It is abhorrent to consider that we are expected in the light of all that was exposed in 2002 and subsequent to simply continue to go on as if all is well and fine. For 7 years now the Church has said but look at all the good work we do – if only we had more money from the government and the people as though that were some form of payment or justification for the abuses.
What is preposterous is that we are expected to go along with that.
The people of Australia are expected to consider that the Church which has guided our hands through the past how many years, the Church which has moulded our society and set moral standards for all those years hides the fact that its priests were provided access to the most vulnerable in our society for their sexual entertainment.
Kevin Rudd believes it is a matter for the Church and even his trained eye for justice and through his sworn oath to Australia fails to see how in only the most extreme instances there might be a smidgen of a notion that there was some intention in that and that some human rights or even legal rights might have been trodden on.
When it is made a matter for the Church as the Prime Minister has done should we expect that this body he hands us to will provide us with at the minimum a democratic process, a right of appeal and an open and transparent legal system with qualified legal representation based on our Australian principles of justice as well as our right to free speech and fair compensation. Surely our governments would see to that as they do when citizens fall into the hands of failed states across the globe.
Some of the problems emanating from this coverup are these:
Canada – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
Canada – Priests moved from parish to parish
Canada – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
Canada – Parishioners not informed
Canada – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
Canada – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
Canada – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
Canada – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
Canada – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
Canada – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
Canada – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones” A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
Canada – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
Canada – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
Canada – Unknown number of different policies in place
Canada – Genocide of up to 50,000 Native American Children
Canada – Property fraud against Native American people
Canada – Government contributes an initial $4bn for its part
Canada – 12,000 outstanding cases of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy
Canada – The abuses against Native people in British Columbia and other Canadian Provinces.
Canada – Truth Commission established
Canada – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
Canada – Payouts beyond $1bn
Canada – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
Canada – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
Ireland – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
Ireland – Priests moved from parish to parish
Ireland – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
Ireland – Parishioners not informed
Ireland – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
Ireland – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
Ireland – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
Ireland – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
Ireland – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
Ireland – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
Ireland – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones”. A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
Ireland – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
Ireland – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
Ireland – Unknown number of different policies in place
Ireland – Repeat investigations and commissions
Ireland – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
Ireland – Payouts amount to hundreds of millions
Ireland – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
Ireland – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
England and Wales – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
England and Wales – Priests moved from parish to parish
England and Wales – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
England and Wales – Parishioners not informed
England and Wales – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
England and Wales – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
England and Wales – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
England and Wales – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
England and Wales – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
England and Wales – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
England and Wales – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones” A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
England and Wales – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
England and Wales – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
England and Wales – Unknown number of different policies in place
England and Wales – Unknown number of different policies in place
England and Wales – Repeat investigations and commissions
England and Wales – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
England and Wales – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
England and Wales – Payouts amount to many millions
England and Wales – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
Australia – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
Australia – Priests moved from parish to parish
Australia – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
Australia – Parishioners not informed
Australia – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
Australia – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
Australia – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
Australia – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
Australia – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
Australia – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
Australia – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones” A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
Australia – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
Australia – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
Australia – Unknown number of different policies in place
Australia – Repeat investigations and commissions
Australia – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
Australia – Payouts amount to several millions
Australia – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
Australia – Internationally recognised as being particularly hard hit with clergy abuse
Australia – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
United States of America – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
United States of America – Priests moved from parish to parish
United States of America – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
United States of America – Parishioners not informed
United States of America – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
United States of America – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
United States of America – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
United States of America – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
United States of America – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
United States of America – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
United States of America – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones” A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
United States of America – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
United States of America – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
United States of America – Unknown number of different policies in place
United States of America – Repeat investigations and commissions
United States of America – Bishops deposed and publicly humiliated
United States of America – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
United States of America – Public pressure forces the removal of some statute of limitations regulations
United States of America – 5+ years to reach compliance to the minimum State set standards
United States of America – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
United States of America – Payouts amounts to $2+bn
United States of America – An estimated 32,000 cases awaiting their day in court
United States of America – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
New Zealand – 50+ year coverup of clergy sexual abuse
New Zealand – Priests moved from parish to parish
New Zealand – Sexually abusive priests moved Internationally
New Zealand – Parishioners not informed
New Zealand – Failure to report to Police or other authorities
New Zealand – 50+ years of use of its connections and relationships through its charity and care services to maintain the coverup
New Zealand – Repeated reports to Bishops, Church hierarchy, Church bodies
New Zealand – Establishment and maintenance of Statute of limitations laws directed at obstructing legitimate claims
New Zealand – 50+ year history of branding as evil, demonic, delusional and insane those attempting to speak out
New Zealand – 50+ year history of abuses of trust and authority, the authority of the Church and the authority of God
New Zealand – 1962 Received a copy of the document “Criminales Solicitaciones” A document authorised by the current Pope setting out the steps required to ensure secrecy in regards the sexual abuses
New Zealand – A verifiable history of the Church’s adherence to the instructions found in the document
New Zealand – Fail to appropriately respond to the sexual abuse issue
New Zealand – Unknown number of different policies in place
New Zealand – Public pressure forces the removal of some aspects of silence or secrecy agreements
New Zealand – Other religious groups remain largely silent on this issue – the majority continue to trade with the Catholic Church – none can offer a potential solution or starting point
New Zealand – Repeat investigations and commissions
New Zealand – Unable to implement a unified policy on the protection and safety of children
The continued trade of any kind by our governments with this organisation called a church does enable the continuation of these outrages to continue both in Australia and in each and every country where this problem exists. This trade by our governments makes each and every Australian by virtue complicit in the coverup and the continuation of the coverup of the sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy. This is a circumstance which Australians find abhorrent and undemocratic.
Few people support the current response to the clergy abuse issue by the Catholic Church.
2002 saw a global exposure and the beginning of actions in many countries. Australia argued and little but puff came from it. Just as in each of these other countries there are those among the church who have pleaded and wept in the face of their Bishops to no avail. We lived through the years of pontification and the disruption to our progress when the Church in its haste to keep all things sexual hidden it became outraged at the introduction of the Pill and it has repeatedly responded in a dysfunctional manner in regards many other aspects of our lives particularly in regards sexual matters and reproduction. We get to live in the result of 50 or more years of that and scant few politicians can see a problem with that – they struggle to see the human rights abuses in that – all that has mattered is that the Church gets it way by maintaining its coverup of its sickness and its obsessions. Obsessions driven into our society by a Church eventually unable to contain the scope of the problem and yet all we seem to have is the Kevin Rudd response of this is a matter for the Church. How wrong he is – this is a matter for the people – its is a matter for our Premiers to come together and lead else they be seen to be taking part.
Will you as Premier set a deadline for the Church to provide an Australia wide response?
Will you as Premier refuse to trade with Church entities beyond that deadline if they are in default?
Will you as Premier set the deadline date at September 1 2009?
Will you as Premier work together with our other Premiers and Federal counterparts to establish an Australia wide policy for the protection and safety of children in the same time frame set for the Church?
Will you as Premier enforce the same strictures on any religious authority or entity where sexual abuse by clergy occurs?
Will you as Premier stand down if you are unwilling to implement these protective measures for the safety of our children?
posted April 14, 2009 at 10:13 pm
It’s about time this is brought to light. This is not exclusively about abuse, by the way. There is a lot to this book and definitely worth the read. Good article. And I agree, it was a good book. Everyone should have to read it. Especially those who are really into religion. There is a lot to learn regarding accepting when media calls attention to something immoral or criminal within any given religion. It shouldn’t be considered attacking a religion to expose something unsavory going on. It is actually a service to point out what’s wrong. It certainly does not necessarily mean destroying religion. It could be exposing the flaws could be the very thing that could make it better. The book brings out a lot of things including the possibility that church leaders use people for personal gain and that we almost all play right into their hands. And that it may have happened, and may still be happening on a mass scale. These are certainly things worth thinking about. It made me want to pay closer attention to articles about religion, that’s for sure.
posted April 15, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Mr Lobdell didn’t lose a damned thing. In fact, he’s a BIG winner. He (as have a lot of others lagely) finally stopped drinking the Kool-Aid and began (Shudder!) to think for himself and realized how he had been sandbagged, manipulated, hoodwinded, lied to by that gang of arrogant, condescending, avaricious (EXTREMELY avaricious!), disconnected, entitled queens who have hijacked the institutional church to maintain their obscene lifestyle. Congratulations, Bill!
posted June 14, 2010 at 8:24 am
If only I had a dollar for every time I came to blog.beliefnet.com.. Amazing article!
posted May 23, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Well, one point to clear up from the comment written April 15, 2009 at 6:08 pm.
Reference to “gueens” seems to be stating the members of the clegy who engage in sex with children are homosexuals. Not true! They are pedophiles. Pedophiles have a sickness toward children.