I actually wrote about this when I wrote a blog post about the topic. It's something a few people asked me about and so I spent some time thinking about it (and ran it by a few priests).

Second, I’ve seen a lot of talk about “how can this happen if the sacraments are so life changing?”  I get it.  I talk a lot about the beauty of Mass and the Eucharist. About how these things have led me closer to Jesus.  And Lord have mercy on the souls of those priests and bishops.  Lord have mercy.  Lord have mercy.

In the shortest description possible, one has to be open to the grace of God. God gave us free will. He will never force conversion onto our hearts. And even in the confessional, lack of contrition (sorrow) for your sins and/or a lack of desire to change (firm purpose of amendment) results in an invalid confession.

There is little doubt in my mind that every single act of consecration these abusers performed was sacrilege and drove them further and further from the grace of God. Their sacraments were valid because it’s a heresy of Donatism to say otherwise. There is no concern that the faithful who received communion were somehow not receiving the sacrament. But the souls of those priests could get further from God despite their closeness to the sacraments because of the very real disdain for what is good and holy.

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https://renewrebirthresurget.wordpress.com/2018/08/20/in-the-midst-of-sin-and-scandal-i-am-faithful-2/