(LifeSiteNews) — In a heartfelt, searing social media post, Bishop Joseph Strickland expressed regret for not being “strong enough” six years ago when he addressed the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) concerning the Theodore McCarrick homosexual predation scandal, saying, “Too many of the bishops who share the mandate to guard the deposit of faith act as if they do not believe basic teachings of the Church & actively seek to change and undermine scripture & the Catechism.”
“Since that cold November day much evil has been unleashed in the world and the shepherds in that room have too often been silent in the face of these evils or complicit in allowing or even promoting atrocities against the faith,” Strickland wrote.
“The shepherds of the Church have too often forgotten that She exists for the salvation of souls,” the former Bishop of Tyler, Texas continued. “This spiritual amnesia or worse, this lack of supernatural faith, has allowed blasphemy, apostasy and heresy to go unopposed.”
Strickland was referring to the USCCB’s November 2018 meeting, the first gathering of U.S bishops after months of troubling bombshell reports calling attention to decades of rampant homosexual predation by Roman Catholic priests and prelates.
During the leadup to the 2018 gathering, the Church was rocked by grand jury reports and independent studies about the illicit activities of homosexual priests and prelates, as well as Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò’s explosive testimony revealing that Pope Francis had covered up then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick’s sexual abuse against young seminarians and priests.
At the USCCB gathering in Baltimore, Strickland was one of only five prelates who dared to speak out to their brother bishops, who appeared to be paralyzed when it came to openly discussing the problem of predatory homosexuality within the clergy.
Strickland challenged his brother bishops, wondering aloud how McCarrick could have continued to abuse boys and seminarians for decades while ascending to the cardinalate.
Almost six years ago I spoke at the USCCB meeting, I wasn’t strong enough.
In the years since that November day we have seen our beautiful Catholic faith and the truth Our Lord Jesus Christ suffered, died and rose to reveal to us go undefended, mocked…
— Bishop J. Strickland (@BishStrickland) April 24, 2024
As a sign of his singular courage among all U.S. bishops, at that 2018 meeting, Bishop Strickland was the sole bishop to step out of the security of the luxury hotel where the U.S. prelates were meeting to address the concerns of Catholic laity —frustrated and angered by the inaction of their bishops regarding priestly sexual predation — who had gathered outside near the resort hotel.
Here is Bishop Strickland’s X post in its entirety:
Almost six years ago I spoke at the USCCB meeting, I wasn’t strong enough.
In the years since that November day we have seen our beautiful Catholic faith and the truth Our Lord Jesus Christ suffered, died and rose to reveal to us go undefended, mocked and compromised.
Many have accused me of being divisive, disrespectful, disobedient, etc etc. but truly this is not about me, I am simply one sinful man trying to live his faith and too often failing to be Jesus strong. When I spoke to the bishops in that hotel ballroom in Baltimore I had no idea how many of those shepherds disagreed with me. Those who agreed that we can’t allow priests or anyone else to be welcomed to Catholic events as they deny Catholic teaching chose to remain silent and leave their flocks abandoned and confused.
Too many of the bishops who share the mandate to guard the deposit of faith act as if they do not believe basic teachings of the Church and actively seek to change and undermine scripture and the Catechism.
Since that cold November day much evil has been unleashed in the world and the shepherds in that room have too often been silent in the face of these evils or complicit in allowing or even promoting atrocities against the faith.
The shepherds of the Church have too often forgotten that She exists for the salvation of souls. This spiritual amnesia or worse, this lack of supernatural faith, has allowed blasphemy, apostasy and heresy to go unopposed.
The litany of the gospel of wolves that has flowed out of the Vatican and gone unchecked over these 5+ years has left many souls to wander in darkness and succumb to lies that destroy faith.
To name a few … who demanded a real accounting of the McCarrick scandal and discipline for those who allowed his attacks on the faith? Who spoke up when the pachamama idol was paraded in St. Peter’s basilica? Who resisted when fear of a disease allowed churches to be closed and the sacraments to be denied? Who demanded that our God given free will must be respected when mandates were issued by too many leaders? Who protested a synod on synodality that promoted an openness to blessing sin? Who has said no to the ongoing attack on the liturgy? Who has protested when faithful priests, bold enough to speak the truth, bold enough to care more about the salvation of souls than keeping their position, have been canceled or silenced?
I admit that my voice has not been strong enough but once again it isn’t about me. Instead it’s about living the commandments, it’s about supernatural faith, it’s about humbly following Jesus Christ, it’s about the salvation of souls.
We must continue to pray and cling to the Barque of Peter, it seems that the stranglehold of evil is about to overwhelm us but we cannot abandon hope. Instead let us stand strong in faith and pray that our shepherds in the Vatican, in our dioceses and around the world will join us.