hey jem. when you throw money in the offering plate this sunday think about this question. are you aiding and abetting the rape of children by helping finance their abusers? How Is The Pope Different From Cardinal Law? A priest is discovered to have been actively molesting children. His superior is notified in 1980. One of the things he is told of is the priest's forcing an 11 year old boy to perform oral sex on him. The superior does not contact the police. He approves a transfer of the priest to a different city, where the priest is required to undergo therapy but is also subsequently able to resume his work with access to children. Six years later, the priest is again found guilty of abusing children. This time, he serves a sentence, but he is subsequently allowed to resume work as a priest, with the church authorities hiding his past from future parishes, and is only removed from his position three days ago. Joseph Ratzinger was the superior, he reviewed the man's files in 1980, and he was subsequently in charge of reviewing all sex abuse cases as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine Of The Faith in Rome. He was integral to the policy of hushing up as much of this as possible. Money quote: Hundreds of victims have come forward in recent months in Germany with accounts of sexual abuse from decades past. But no case has captured the attention of the nation like that of Father Hullermann, not only because of the involvement of the future pope, but also because of the impunity that allowed a child molester to continue to work with altar boys and girls for decades after his conviction. Benedict not only served as the archbishop of the diocese where the priest worked, but also later as the cardinal in charge of reviewing sexual abuse cases for the Vatican. Yet until the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising announced that Father Hullermann had been suspended on Monday, he continued to serve in a series of Bavarian parishes. In 1980, the future pope reviewed the case of Father Hullermann, who was accused of sexually abusing boys in the Diocese of Essen, including forcing an 11-year-old boy to perform oral sex. The future pope approved his transfer to Munich. We don't know what lies ahead in Germany but if the story follows the pattern in the US, Australia and Ireland, the number of victims will grow, and the church hierarchy will at first blame anti-Catholic media for attacking the church, and at some point, the whole grisly truth will come out. Except this time, the current Pope himself will be - and already is - at the center of the storm. If this person headed a secular organization, or if he were a politician, he would be forced to resign. Why are the standards for the Catholic church so much lower on tolerance of child abuse than the rest of society? On what grounds can this Pope reprimand bishops and priests in Ireland or the US when he seems deeply entangled in the same kind of cover-ups himself? When, in other words, will the real victims come first? And moral responsibility meaningfully taken? http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.c...-is-the-pope-different-from-cardinal-law.html
You are the one saying Catholics are 1 billion strong and Church now says Evolution is ok - therefore 50 % of Christians accept Evolution. It is reasonable to point out that your birdbrain comment must equally apply also to Catholics being 1 billion strong and Church says cover-up child sex abuse is ok - therefore 50 % of Christians accept pedophilia. I realize you've learned a new word, but as you are a Catholic and as that word is based on another which is 'abuse' , perhaps like the Church you should think twice before using it in thought and deed. The Catholic Church was burning books which said Evolution and the Bible are consistent. The Church was forcing it's own priests to withdraw publications which said exactly that, until of course like child abuse they were forced to recant, but unlike child abuse it didn't take the force of secular law to stop the Church's "teachings" on evolution.
first of all this child rape stuff pisses off every Catholic I know. Hopefully that outrage will cause significant change. Obviously the ranks of priests became filled with perverts, criminals and people looking for access and places to hide. It is truly disgusting and I it sure makes every thinking person wonder about who the hell is running the place at the moment. As for the rest of your stuff... I have no idea what you are talking about and since you made stuff up in the past I have no reason to believe you can back up your statements now. But give if a shot if you wish.
its not a question of change. its a question of you spending your life worshiping a god that would stand by silently as his represenatives on earth would do these things in his name. do you propose to change gods will? this is his will.(if he exists) any deity that has the power to stop evil but does not do so approves of that evil. think. free yourself from this tyrant.
And the fact that morality doesn't come from a book. Any book. It comes from empathy. As for the creator part, present day science suggests that, while a "creator" may or may not exist, such a creator was not required and is not in evidence. (This looks like a job for Occam.)
And if you did not have free will and you were offered a taste of it you would go for it.. You are a free thinker are you not. Your argument has been made for a few thousand years. It was dealt with at the beginning of the bible in the story of adam and eve. Whether you believe God authored the bible or not - you have to be impressed with the fact the creation account addressed your very challenge right off the bat. it was at least philosophical genius --- was it not? Man had a choice Gods protection or knowledge of Good and evil and the freedom to choose. What would you have picked free thinker?
There is zero evidence that a Creator was not required. There is speculation to that point - but no evidence. And there are Anthropic arguments which say there is evidence the Universe in which we live is designed.
It makes you wonder who the hell is running the place? Well perhaps you should be wondering why the hell you would follow those who are running the place until the law stops them and you. You're certainly not good at following an argument though.
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=39783 I think it helps with the media when you are a member of a politically correct union............