Scottish Catholic Observer

In many parishes in Scotland Sunday March 6, the fourth Sunday of Lent, will be designated SCIAF Sunday, with a second collection going to the aid agency’s Lenten campaign appeal.

The fourth Sunday of Lent shows how far we have come and how far we have still to go before the Easter Triduum. Last year the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund demonstrated how far it had come in the 50th year since its origin, however SCIAF Director Alistair Dutton also reflected on how much remains to be done. Both last year and this year’s Lenten Wee Box campaign has won UK Aid Matching, meaning every pound donated to the charity’s appeal focusing on Ethiopia this Lent will be double by the UK Government. An excellent opportunity in this Year of Mercy, SCIAF President Bishop Joseph Toal said.

This week the spotlight has also once again fallen on clerical abuse, with a US film of that name winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Spotlight (above) focuses on the Boston Globe newspaper’s exposé at the turn of the millennium of allegations of cover up by the Church over abuse cases in Boston Archdiocese. Upon receiving the award the filmmakers called on Pope Francis to ‘restore the Faith.’

In the 16 years since the Boston abuse crisis the Universal Church has learned a great deal, and continues to atone for, abuse and is working on safeguarding. Only abuse victims and survivors, and the minority of Catholic clergy they accuse, will ever know if justice has or can be done. However, if you must judge, judge by how far people and organisations have come. They themselves know how far they still have to go.