LONDON — The Biblical advice "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's" is generally taken to mean that people should recognize the authority of the state in secular matters, but that is not necessarily what Jesus meant by it. It is certainly not the current practice of the Roman Catholic Church, although the rule in modern democracies is very clear: The law applies equally to everyone, even priests.

It has been more than two decades since evidence of widespread sexual abuse of children by Roman Catholic clergy began to surface in the United States, Canada and Ireland, and still the revelations continue. A tsunami of allegations of child abuse in Catholic schools and orphanages is spreading from Ireland across the rest of Europe. Meanwhile, the extent of the coverup is becoming clearer.

The priests who abused and raped the children were individuals, and such people exist in other walks of life too. But the decision to cover up their crimes was a greater crime, for it was made by men whose main concern was protecting the reputation of the large organization which they served, the Catholic Church. They were able to act as they did only because they genuinely believed, and still believe, that the church is above the law.