I get these questions over and over from members of the Madison Catholic Diocese: Why do you always write bad things about our church, and why don 't you ever write about the good things?

Those are fair questions, so let 's take the second suggestion first.

There are many "good things " about the Roman Catholic Church, but here 's the most important: The church is the single most essential voice in the world today demanding respect for human life in all its forms. The church insists we respect human life from the moment of conception until the moment of physical death. It insists we respect the dignity of persons who are physically and mentally disabled. It insists we respect the dignity of the poor. It demands we respect the dignity of marriage and the dignity of families.

Many of us do not agree with those teachings in every respect. We may see things differently when it comes to abortion or to same-sex marriage. Few of us, Catholic or not, agree with the official church teachings on birth control.

No matter, the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, starting with the pope and spreading throughout the world through his bishops, present a clear moral standard by which other positions can be judged. Whatever my personal feelings, I have to justify them in relationship to that standard.

This is not a minor thing.

We live in a world where relative values slide easily into immoral practice. Our country learned just within the last couple of weeks that the highest authorities in the land, the vice president, the secretaries of state and defense, and the nation 's attorney general, actually discussed and approved torture techniques, all with the approval of the president.

I know there are those of you who feel torture of our enemies was justified in the immediate wake of the attacks on our country. How can I argue with you? Only by pointing to the need for respect for human dignity, even for the human dignity of those who are sworn to kill us. That 's the moral position the Catholic Church upholds.

So, the church provides moral teachings. It also provides moral examples.

During my younger years, when I was actually involved in working with the poor and downtrodden (today, I preach to them, which is a different matter altogether), I was struck by the numbers of priests and nuns who dedicated their lives to the inner city. I 've always been awed by Catholic laymen, such as Ralph Middlecamp of Madison 's St. Vincent de Paul Society, who give their lives and forfeit chances for personal fortune to serve the needy. The church inspires moral examples.

So why, then, attack the bishops?

Why do I chastise bishops who for decades were willing to cover-up crimes against children to protect deviant priests? I do so because their abdication of moral leadership undermined the moral authority the church needs if it is to give credible voice to its insistence on human dignity. When we see parishes and schools closing, good people unwilling to provide the funds needed to maintain missions and good people turning away from ordination, we see the price paid by the faithful for the failure of their leaders.

There are those who write me telling me I 'm wrong, that the real problem with the church is that the laity practice "cafeteria Catholicism " and only choose those parts of church teachings they like. Perhaps. But, when an institution breaks down, I tend to blame the leaders, not the followers.

This I do know. I do know the church is important to society. And I do think it has been let down by its leaders.

Contact Wineke at bwineke@madison.com or at 252-6146. Read Wineke 's blog at www.madison.com/wsj/blogs.