Santorum on priest scandals

My attention was just drawn to an article that Rick Santorum had a couple of years ago in Catholic Online in which he bemoaned the recent clergy scandals and hoped that they would lead to a re-examination and revitalization of the faith. However, he also seemed rather comfortable placing the blame outside the church:

It is startling that those in the media and academia appear most disturbed by this aberrant behavior, since they have zealously promoted moral relativism by sanctioning "private" moral matters such as alternative lifestyles. Priests, like all of us, are affected by culture. When the culture is sick, every element in it becomes infected. While it is no excuse for this scandal, it is no surprise that Boston, a seat of academic, political and cultural liberalism in America, lies at the center of the storm.

In the end, he wants the Catholic church cleansed of its liberal thinkers and influences just like he'd like to see in the rest of the culture at large.

(via pal Bill H.)

(Updated to reflect actual publication date = past not future. A bit rusty, I guess!)

Update 2: the article may be old, but the controversy isn't -- Boston pols respond to Santorum's ad hominems.