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b'The Catholic world is reeling after a devastating month of sexual abuse revelations. At the beginning of August, a Pennsylvania grand jury reported that hundreds of priests abused at least 1,000 children since the 1940s and that dozens of church officials covered it up. Then, this past week, a prominent archbishop claimed that Pope Francis knew about\\u2014and covered up\\u2014the actions of Theodore McCarrick, a former cardinal who has been accused of sexually harassing adult seminarians and abusing a child. For lay Catholics, the litany of sex abuse stories has been devastating. \\u201cThe ultimate source of authority and power that the normal Catholic needs week to week is their priest,\\u201d said John Armstrong, the president of ACT3 Network, an organization which works to foster Christian unity. \\u201cIt\\u2019s not the Vatican, not the structure of the Vatican, not even the Pope, though he\\u2019s the Holy Father to Catholics.\\u201d Because of this close relationship, the church betraying their trust can feel even more intense. \\u201cWhen the priest is an abuser, it breaks all confidence and trust in the authority of the church, which extends all the way to the Vatican because this priest would not be ordained if had not gone up the chain of command and has ultimately the blessing of the Holy Father who is the pastor of pastors and the shepherd of the whole church,\\u201d he said. Armstrong joined associate digital media producer Morgan Lee and editor in chief Mark Galli to discuss the nature and extent of the abuse in the Catholic church, the Vatican\\u2019s historically contentious relationship with the media, the politics affecting the whole situation, and how it affects evangelical churches.\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices'