We are approaching the time of the first part of the tribulation (the lesser tribulation). The child sexual abuse (CSA) crisis in the Church is related to that event. A time of increased sinfulness in the world and in the Church precedes each part of the tribulation. The Church overcomes this problem, each time. But it will not be over soon. If the Church improves matters, by taking various measures, things will be better only for a period of time. Later, the problem will resume. Great sinfulness coincides with the tribulation because sinners often respond to suffering by sinning, they bury themselves in self-indulgent sins, rather than carry their crosses.

The first part of the tribulation is followed by a time of great holiness and peacefulness on earth. But after a time, the world begins to backslide into old sins. The Church remain holier for longer than the world. Yet, as the centuries pass, many members of the Church become more and more sinful. By the time of the second part of the tribulation, a few hundred years from now, the CSA crisis will resume, in a much worse form. It will affect more clergy, be addressed more poorly, and the abuse will be more severe. For the second part of the tribulation is worse than the first in every way.

by
Ronald L. Conte Jr.
Roman Catholic theologian and translator of the Catholic Public Domain Version of the Bible.