First, the bishops are meeting, and John Allen is filing regular reports.

So far, the most animated discussion during the spring meeting of the U.S. bishops was sparked by the latest update on a John Jay College study of the causes and context of the sexual abuse crisis – with early indications suggesting that the crisis was driven to a large extent by broad social changes in the 1960s and 70s, as opposed to factors internal to the Catholic church.

Reaction during floor discussion appeared to suggest that many bishops don’t want to shoulder the burden of blame for the crisis by themselves, with several suggesting that researchers take into consideration the advice given at the time by mental health professionals. In some cases, bishops said, therapists advised that abusers could be returned to ministry following treatment.

The whole thing is fairly depressing.