As a young man I was attracted to the beautiful themes spoken by Christ in the sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes were so profound that they became my beacon on how to lead a meaningful life. I never had any illusion that I could lead them perfectly but they were my guide posts.The institutional church has lost sight of those profound words and the scandals have blurred their true meaning . Church officials in many areas of the world placed the welfare of the institution ahead of the lives of children. Bishops ,cardinals and even popes swept under the rugs acts of depravity that harmed countless innocent children.Removed from the day to day lives of believers they coupled their crimes with deaf ears to the ongoing needs of the flock. Women were largely ignored and powerless ,and to this day have no real influence in the policies of the church.In light of these realities the beauty of the Beatitudes is still my harbor of safety. I am not sure that the institutional church has the courage to once again assume the leadership to model those profound guides.