Various Catholics outraged by the Irish abuse scandal are up in arms over the request that they help contribute to settlements. Certainly it doesn't seem fair that an innocent Catholic should have to pay for the misdeeds of members of the Church's hierarchy. However, the fact is that the money will have to come from somewhere. Given the vow of poverty taken by many of the individuals involved, it's unlikely that those who committed abuse personally have piles of money lying around to compensate their victims.
While we might hope dioceses have stacks of cash to pay victims, the truth is that much of their assets may be illiquid and those assets they do have may be insufficient to cover the huge damages, not to mention the heavy legal costs. Besides, whatever assets they do have were likely already funded by previous donations from the laity. Furthermore, if the diocesan assets are sold, worthy programs might suffer. So if the laity are unwilling to provide funds for settlements, it seems very likely that worthy programs will be cut or that parishes may be at risk. Even if one's own parish isn't lost, precious other churches and assets of the Church which have been handed down to us from our ancestors may not survive. And once these are lost, we will probably never recover them.
Sometimes it seems that a parish or Catholic school is lost every week... complete with painful consequences for those involved. Chances are those affected by the closures would be willing to donate at least some amount to get their beloved parish or school back. But at that point, it's probably too late. While we may not wish to donate hard earned money for abuse settlements, we could ultimately suffer similar consequences if we categorically refuse to help out. Perhaps if we were left in charge we could find a way to pay off settlements with the least amount of damage (e.g. by selling non-sacred assets which are most removed from parishioners and cutting only unworthy programs), but the reality is that the laity probably won't have much of a say in the final decision regarding the disposal of assets. So, holding one's nose and coughing up some cash might seem like a reasonable "insurance policy" for our beloved parishes If nothing else, it is a work of charity to assist those who have suffered from abuse. There's no guarantee, of course, that such donations will save any given parish, but will a faithful Catholic ever regret that he at least tried to save God's house? An can we not expect that God will reward us for our efforts even if we are not successful?
That's not to say it will be pleasant. Perhaps, therefore, it may be more meritorious.
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