See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil

The case of the Delaware pediatrician accused of sexually abusing his patients bears striking similarities to the Roman Catholic abuse crisis. The doctor moved from one area to another, accusations of sexual abuse were brought before his governing medical board but dismissed, and because of the huge amount of complicity and denial in the community, Dr. Earl Bradley was able to rape and sexually assault more than 100 children.

The doctor photographed many of the children he molested, and authorities have asked the parents of Bradley's patients to provide family photos so they can identify the victims. Parents are understandably horrified and in shock. Less understandable is the apparent desire to be kept in the dark some parents are expressing.

"I don’t know what I’m going to gain from knowing that he had done something to one of my kids,” one mother told a reporter.

Well. It seems to me the more important question is not what the parent will gain by knowing, but what suffering the child will endure if the parent refuses to know. All too often parents refuse to see what is too painful to deal with, allowing their children to bear the burden alone. I've heard more than one story of Catholic abuse survivors who told their parents about being sexually assaulted and got punished for speaking out.

I'm glad at least one set of parents was willing to listen when their two-year-old girl told them the doctor had hurt her. Because they believed their child and came forward, Bradley won't have the chance to abuse any more kids.