Catholic Church Scandal!
I just wonder what drives a person to continue to be associated with an organization that aids and abets sexual predators of children; that's not their only crime, but I think that should be enough for a person with any sense of morality to denounce them and cut ties with them.
By the response, I take it you are Catholic. What makes you continue supporting them?
(Disclosure: I am not Catholic.)
I simply think it's human nature. It takes
A LOT for most people to disassociate from what they believe to have seen with their own eyes to be good or to bring them great joy and/or comfort. That gets to a personal level too. There's plenty of people that (understandably based on what we know about human brains) think their family member could never have murdered, raped, robbed, etc. We don't want to believe the bad about people/things that we've come to love and find comfort in. We've shared moments with these people. We've seen good in them many times. It's natural to think all the positive we've seen either outweighs the bad, or means the bad can't possibly be true.
I would venture that many/most people in any church find similar comfort. From the people they associate with if nothing else. "Breaking bread" with people is often a way to find peace. To steal a phrase from the late Anthony Bourdain, you learn a lot about people when you share a meal. Church is, in many ways, a literal and (trans)figurative meal for people. They find those they love, they learn about good deeds and morals, etc. Not much church is fire and brimstone these days. There's not, IMHO, much "fear of God" being preached, so much as a reminder of the good deeds/acts/laws/etc. So people see and feel the goodness being preached.
So I don't personally find it that odd that people associate with the church they love and know. They haven't seen the bad with their own two eyes in most cases. Their priest most likely hasn't been accused of anything. I think those that HAVE seen it, or were abused, etc are almost assuredly no longer associating with the church.
I'll put it in terms of the Saints. The Saints allegedly had a drug/Vicodin problem, which was allegedly covered up by Mickey Loomis and higher ups. They allegedly had some form of a bounty program. They had Darren Sharper in the building. The teams of the 80s had players with well-known cocaine problems. They've had stars arrested for violent crimes (Kamara), domestic violence (Will Smith), DUIs (numerous), etc. No, it's not exactly the same because it's not necessarily "institutional" and the Saints aren't a religion, but at the end of the day here we all are, supporting them because we love the team and that team makes us feel good (well, some days at least).