Lost Moral Bearing

We as a nation seem to have lost our moral bearing. At best we no longer know which way is north and at worst we have decided that north is which ever way we want it to be. If things do not change soon we will collapse as a nation from interal rot rather than any external sources. At this rate the Islamic extremists that want to destroy us because of our unbelief and loose morals only need to sit back and watch us crumble. I had not planned on commenting on the Penn State issue again. I figured my two posts yesterday were enough. But then I heard about the threats against coach Mike McQueary. Apparently the threats are serious enough to prevent him from coaching in Saturday's Penn State game.

When I first heard the story I had no idea who Mike McQueary was. Turns out he is the witness. When he was a graduate assistant he saw Jerry Sandusky sodomizing a 10 year old boy in the showers at the Penn State football facility. He told Coach Joe Paterno who in turn told Athletic Director Timothy Curley. At that point the matter was "handled" internally and no one thought that it might be a good idea to contact the police. And this includes McQueary. And while this is extremely disturbing what I find even more so is the reaction by some people in this case.

While I do not know of the nature of these threats I am having a hard time believing that the threats are over the fact that McQueary failed to report the abuse in 2002. In light of the students rioting over the firing of Joe Paterno I am making an educated guess that the threats are because people are angry at McQueary for ruining the reputation of Paterno and seriously damaging the Penn State football program.

Let's be very clear here. Mike McQueary did not damage either Joe Paterno's reputation or the Penn State football program. Jerry Sandusky did not do these things either. Sandusky wasn't even on the football staff at the time.

Joe Paterno ruined Joe Paterno's reputation.

For all the good that he has done in running a clean football program from an NCAA rule standpoint, this one incident far and away exceeds all of that good. I would argue that Paterno didn't just cover up for a pedophile. I would also argue that he didn't just enable a pedophile. Rather Paterno in his decision to in effect turn a blind eye actually encouraged Jerry Sandusky to continue his behavior...just not on Penn State property.

Everyone that is saddened by the fact that Joe Paterno was forced out and not allowed to finish out the football season needs to take a very long and serious look at their moral compass. What we should be saddened by is the fact that Joe Paterno knew about a young boy being raped and basically did nothing about it.

Albert Mohler on Penn State

Albert Mohler, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote an excellent post on how the Penn State scandal should change the way that Christians and Christian organizations look at suspected child abuse.

Sometimes Christians are reluctant to report suspected sexual abuse because they do not feel that they know enough about the situation. They are afraid of making a false accusation. This is the wrong instinct. We do not have the ability to conduct the kind of investigation that is needed, nor is this assigned to the church. This is the function of government as instituted by God (Romans 13). Waiting for further information allows a predator to continue and puts children at risk. This is itself an immoral act that needs to be seen for what it is.

A Christian hearing a report of sexual abuse within a church, Christian organization, or Christian school, needs to act in exactly the same manner called for if the abuse is reported in any other context. The church and Christian organizations must not become safe places for abusers. These must be safe places for children, and for all. Any report of sexual abuse must lead immediately to action. That action cannot fall short of contacting law enforcement authorities. A clear lesson of the Penn State scandal is this: Internal reporting is simply not enough.

After law enforcement authorities have been notified, the church must conduct its own work of pastoral ministry, care, and church discipline. This is the church’s responsibility and charge. But these essential Christian ministries and responsibilities are not substitutes for the proper function of law enforcement authorities and the legal system. As Christians, we respect those authorities because we are commanded to do so.

We as Christians must remember that turning a blind eye to sin is itself a sin. And it is also part of the reason that I feel that we as Christians should take a proactive role in shaping the morality of the nation. While we may do this politically at times, we must do this as our natural way of living life.

Dr. Mohler's article is an excellent read.

See my previous post on Penn State: But what about the children?

Source: Justin Taylor

But what about the children?

The news of Joe Paterno's firing doesn't come as a surprise to me. I was more surprised when earlier in the day it was announced that he would retire after the end of the season. His last home game was to be this Saturday. But because of the great season that Penn State is having they would play in the Big Ten Championship Game and would surely get a Bowl Bid. So if he were to retire at the end of the season, he could have conceivably been around until January. That is a long time to be around with a scandal of this magnitude. But the Penn State Board of Trustees stepped in and fired Joe Paterno effective immediately.

But I don't want to rehash the entire saga.

Rather what I found most disturbing about this aspect of the scandal (nothing is more disturbing than the abuse of children) was the reaction of some of the Penn State students following the announcement of Paterno's firing. They took to the street and protested the Board of Trustees decision. According the the Chicago Tribune:

More than 1,000 students rioted and rallied at Old Main and on frat-house-lined Beaver Avenue. Riot cops, fire trucks and ambulances were on hand after midnight, amid reports that tear gas was being used to disperse the crowd.

Demonstrators overturned a TV news van, toppled street lights, shook stop signs and threw toilet paper. From rooftops and in the streets, they yelled "F -- Sandusky!" and "We Want JoePa!"

Joe Paterno was part of the coverup of child abuse. He had direct knowledge of what was happening when a witness told Paterno that they saw his former Defensive Coordinator Jerry Sandusky molest a child in the Penn State locker room and Paterno did the bare minimum to protect children.

Take a moment and let that sink in. Then recall all the fervor of the Catholic Church's child abuse scandal and how the Pope was accused:

According to the document filed by CCR (Center for Constitutional Rights), the pope, as head of the Catholic church, is ultimately responsible for the sexual abuse of children by priests and for the cover-ups of that abuse. The group argues that he and others have "direct and superior responsibility" for the crimes of those ranked below them, similar to a military chain of command.

Paterno had direct knowledge (far more than what the Pope had) of the incident and all he did was tell the Athletic Director. What was going through the mind of Paterno when nothing beyond a wrist slapping was given to Sandusky?

What about the children?

What is going through the minds of those college students that were protesting the firing of Joe Paterno?

What about the children?

I think that we would all agree that the true victims in this crime are the children. But what I am starting to think is that through all of the debate over who should lose their jobs and who should be convicted of what is that we start to lose sight of those victims. What are those involved in this crime–from Sandusky to Paterno to the University–going to do about those children?

What about the children?