A moral authority critiqued : Rethinking the role of the Roman Catholic Church during the Holocaust
Summary
My own explanation and the first part of my hypothesis is that the Catholic Church, as an institution that is involved in so much more than merely professing the Christian faith, has a double agenda. That is to say, as the largest single institution propagating the Christian faith, it is a spiritual 'world power', however, as an institution, this is supplemented with worldly, economic and political motivations that are prone to obstruct the execution of its role as moral arbitrator. Besides religion, the Catholic Church as an institution has many other interests. It strives to obtain as many followers as possible, (implicitly) aspiring to expand its authority; and tries to further the interests of the institution in a society. Therefore, the Catholic Church is more than just a spiritual institution. In a society where it exercises, or has the ability to exercise substantial power, it is nevertheless bound to other interests. Moreover, I would argue that the Catholic Church's moral obligation often succumbs to these institutional interests.