READ MORE: Pope Benedict rejects Irish bishop's resignation


RELATED STORY(s): (1) Irish Church relocated a known pedophile to California - (2) If abuse won't cost your job in the Church, what will?

So just imagine that corporation X has a problem. According to an independent report, two of its senior management have been involved in a cover up of child sex abuse within the company.

While the two have not been directly involved in abuse themselves, there is certainly the knowledge that they took part in meetings where the issue was discussed and covered-up , yet they did nothing to prevent that cover-up.

Headquarters in Rome sends over one of their top men to investigate this scandal about an issue so toxic that it beggars belief that it has not been exposed long before.

After lengthy deliberation the new man states that it is time to clean house, have anyone suspected of any malfeasance on this issue step aside and clean out the filthy stable for once and for all.

This is done, and two of the senior executives, after much sound and fury deliver their resignations to Rome. At last a sordid scandal appears to have been dealt with in a professional manner.

But now comes the news that the Big Boss back in Rome will not accept the resignations, that after all he doesn't think the child sex abuse cover-up charges were sufficiently damaging to warrant resignations. The two executives are reinstated. The man from headquarters sees his authority utterly undermined.

Imagine the outcry and imagine the renewed pain and suffering of the now adult children who were abused by members of this corporation in their childhood.

Imagine the public outrage at the amoral behavior of this corporation that clearly puts its own members' concerns way ahead that of the children.

Imagine and weep.

That is what has happened in Ireland this past twenty four hours with the news that two bishops who had handed in their resignations have now been reinstated.

It is a devastating blow not just to the victims but to the notion of transparency and accountability within the church.

We saw this before when Bernard Cardinal Law was promoted by the last pope despite overseeing an horrific series of cover ups of pedophile priests.

We are seeing it again now.

There is something deeply wrong with a system that sees Law promoted and Archbishop Diarmuid Martin essentially cast aside and his actions in trying to impose accountability destroyed.

It is an utter and complete disgrace.