As "church" we are followers of Jesus. The "church" is not Jesus!

Acting through the will of Jesus, the Catholic Church as a community has done many good things. This is a testimony that Jesus is with us (his church). It is through Jesus that this good is being done. We cannot take the credit for ourselves. No woman and no man can say that they follow Jesus perfectly. This is because we are not perfect. It is arrogant to think that any human follows Jesus perfectly. This is why we must always be asking for Jesus help to guide our paths. We cannot we left to always do what is good on our own.
It is because we cannot rely upon our own goodness that we cannot turn a blind eye when the church (and we are the church, not only Rome) does or says things in contrast to the will of Jesus. Just as we must constantly look at our own motives and actions to see if we have done what is right in the eyes of God, so must we as the church.
Just remember how many times Jesus spoke harshly to the religious leaders of his own time.
The Catholic Church is not Jesus. The Catholic Church is us. We make mistakes. We sin. We fail to always do what is right. We fail to live up to the teachings of Jesus.
Therefore when it is apparent that we as the church of Jesus has done what is wrong or has said what is wrong, it is the duty of women and men of good conscience to speak about it, in order to change it. The freedom to speak out must always be allowed. We must always remember our example of how to live, what to do, what to say, and how to treat people is Jesus. No human can take his place. Humans can be in error. We can make mistakes. Therefore, the Catholic Church can be in error.
It is people of good faith, acting and speaking through the power of the Holy Spirit that can correct the error.
We must never be afraid to speak or to listen to the truth. We must never be afraid to admit our mistakes. We must always act and speak with love. We must always rely on Jesus to show us the way. Jesus is who we follow. The Catholic Church is just the imperfect community who tries to follow and sometimes fails. The real sin is in believing that we make no mistakes.

Peace and love,

Sue


"Then Jesus said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me". (Luke 9:23)