In the Margins: The Cry of Bartimaeus

On Sunday, the people of God lost an important voice with the death of Philip James Saviano, founder of the New England chapter of Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) and inspiration for the Oscar-winning Spotlight. Abused himself as a young boy, Mr. Saviano became a tireless advocate for those hurt not just by the abuse of one priest, but by a systemic disorder within the institution of the Church—a disorder rooted in clericalism and fear, in the failure of those charged with leadership to love, as Christ loved, those most easily wounded.

In the gospel story of Bartimaeus, we are told how the people seek to silence the injured beggar, to keep him from disturbing those gathered around Jesus. But it is only by yelling out, only by doing what the “respectable” people do not want, that the miracle Jesus longed to work comes to fruition.

We owe a great debt to the survivors of abuse, especially those who—like Philip Saviano—spoke out early. In their hurt and their righteous anger, they pierced the polite veneer that fear and privilege had created, and offered us all the chance to find the healing the Church needs. Without their voices, the Church might still be living a lie, and the message of Christ would remain incomplete. There is much we have left to do—as individuals and as a community—to heal those who have been hurt and to dismantle the structures that caused that hurt. These are the mountains to be made low, the valleys to be filled in, the crooked way to be made straight. Without this cry from Bartimaeus, without our sisters and brothers who came forward at great cost, we would never have begun. We should be grateful.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon him.

Pastoral Staff,

St. Ignatius Parish