When Your Father Abandons You
I am in tears as I write this. Pope Francis' homily today has taken the rusted knife already stabbed into my side from these sex scandals overhauling the Church and has twisted it, all while he begs relief from accusations and places yet another layer of blame on the victims. So today I ask myself, what do you do when your father abandons you? What do you do when the only earthly embodiment of a paternal figure you have ever had has turned on you, a sex assault victim, and has left you out in the cold? What do you do when the last safe place you had has turned into the very hell and nightmare you have fled? You scream. You curse. You demand better of God, because He is the only One Who can provide it. You flip Him off, shouting and sobbing until your lungs are sore that you can't take any more hurt. You can't take any more reminder that you are a burden on those who violated you, both by their actions and by their standing by and watching, simply because you are a ...