But they didn't stop putting money in the collection basket. They didn't write letters to their bishop. They didn't alert the media or the police. They didn't speak out for justice. - WHY???

Because they did not realized the extent and seriousness of the problem, Smokey. I think many bishops didn't realize it, either. From 1950 to the present (60 years), my Sacramento diocese has had six presiding bishops, and 16 priests suspected of child abuse (some of those priests were exonerated). Child molestation was known to happen, but it was relatively rare. So, people (and many bishops) figured it was an unusual occurrence, and were unaware that there were thousands of cases.

The situation was quite different in Boston and in Ireland, but those places had bishops who covered up the crimes, allowing the problem to fester in secret.

If you want data, look at bishop-accountability.org. They try to keep track of every accused priest in the U.S.

And Smokey, why didn't you alert the media or the police? Why didn't you speak out for justice?

Because you didn't know the extent of the problem, right?

Same thing goes for Catholic lay people, and for many priests and bishops.

-Joe-