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I like the new Pope for the most part, but I am afraid he gets a grade F because he does not make it his first and primary job to openly address the horrific record by the Church and of previous popes when it comes to pedophile priests - and the bishops and cardinals and religious orders that protected them when they knew what they were doing.
I am truly surprised that there is not an outcry that this Pope will participate in the beatification of John Paul II. Here is why: John Paul II gave safe haven to Bernard Cardinal Law of Boston. Cardinal Law was basically run out of his own Archdiocese for having blatantly ignored pleas (in writing, shown in court) by parents whose children were being abused by the late John Goeghan and Paul Shanley.
I am upset because John Paul II and the last pope, Benedict, did precious little to speak out loudly (they should have been screaming!) about the travesty in the Church over hundreds of years.
I spoke stridently but feel that this inaction and barely audible outcry by Francis is extremely disturbing, and I find it mind boggling that he is willing to over look the actions of John Paul II to protect Cardinal Law.
Anyone from Boston knows exactly what I am talking about. Cardinal Law was a disgrace and Bostonians were outraged that John Paul II coddled and protected and befriended this Cardinal when in fact it should have been the opposite. John Paul II knew what he was doing and it is a disgrace.
As a non-catholic,
and at times anti-catholic,
I probably have no right commenting on this,
but I do think some thing needs to be done about it.
The primary reason I am anti-catholic is because I feel the church has lost touch with god and our Messiah and that it has been on a road of self-destruction,
It was Christ who said by the fruit of their ways you will know them and if the fruit of the church is pedophilia then there is some thing gravely wrong with the church.
If this new pope does some thing about this I won't convert but I will stop being anti-catholic.
A close friend of mine was rapped by a priest and impregnated and nothing was ever done about it, he got off free and was protected by them and it has left me distrusting that entire organization. Trust is a difficult thing to build up but can easily be broken with things such as this. If the pope takes action to change the church and to right the wrongs which she has done in the past, that trust may start to build again, until such time that church is spiritual dead to me.
"If anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea."
Is the church going to be a stumbling block or a paved road to walk on,
it's their choice and the Pope has the power to instill change.
As a non-catholic,
and at times anti-catholic,
I probably have no right commenting on this,
but I do think some thing needs to be done about it.
The primary reason I am anti-catholic is because I feel the church has lost touch with god and our Messiah and that it has been on a road of self-destruction,
It was Christ who said by the fruit of their ways you will know them and if the fruit of the church is pedophilia then there is some thing gravely wrong with the church.
If this new pope does some thing about this I won't convert but I will stop being anti-catholic.
A close friend of mine was rapped by a priest and impregnated and nothing was ever done about it, he got off free and was protected by them and it has left me distrusting that entire organization. Trust is a difficult thing to build up but can easily be broken with things such as this. If the pope takes action to change the church and to right the wrongs which she has done in the past, that trust may start to build again, until such time that church is spiritual dead to me.
"If anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea."
Is the church going to be a stumbling block or a paved road to walk on,
it's their choice and the Pope has the power to instill change.
Keep in mind that the Body of the Church is not the Pope or the clerics: It is US, the lay people. In other words, don't throw out the baby with the bathwater.
I am not religious, actually, although I sing in my Roman Catholic Church choir. (A few members know this. They also know I am not an atheist, either and that I do have hope that there is Master Plan by a loving God.) I feel as if the RCC is my home due to my very Catholic upbringing and education, so I feel especially interested in what is happening in the Church.
I do not feel that the late John Paul II ought to have been beatified and he most certainly should not be canonized. I explained all of this is much detail already and have shown how he protected someone who enabled sex predators. I am pretty much angry that the Church overlooks this and shocked at the amazing ability of believing Catholics to support the canonization of John Paul II. It is so hypocritical, in my judgement. What if your child had been raped by a priest who was protected by Cardinal Law, and then you learned that the late John Paul II had given him a job later on as rector of the most important basilica in the Vatican City? And yet this is what happened and I don't hear an outcry about the upcoming canonization. It is so perplexing to me!
Keep in mind that the Body of the Church is not the Pope or the clerics: It is US, the lay people. In other words, don't throw out the baby with the bathwater.
I am not religious, actually, although I sing in my Roman Catholic Church choir. (A few members know this. They also know I am not an atheist, either and that I do have hope that there is Master Plan by a loving God.) I feel as if the RCC is my home due to my very Catholic upbringing and education, so I feel especially interested in what is happening in the Church.
I do not feel that the late John Paul II ought to have been beatified and he most certainly should not be canonized. I explained all of this is much detail already and have shown how he protected someone who enabled sex predators. I am pretty much angry that the Church overlooks this and shocked at the amazing ability of believing Catholics to support the canonization of John Paul II. It is so hypocritical, in my judgement. What if your child had been raped by a priest who was protected by Cardinal Law, and then you learned that the late John Paul II had given him a job later on as rector of the most important basilica in the Vatican City? And yet this is what happened and I don't hear an outcry about the upcoming canonization. It is so perplexing to me!
Blame the bishops instead, especially those in the US who covered up and shuffled around
that 1-2% of priests who molested minors. Btw, it's not accurate to call them pedophile,
as well over 90% of those whom molested minors did so with teens who were well past
puberty. The correct word is pederast.
Rarely did word ever reach as high as the papacy. JP II was a busy man, defeating Communism
and all that.
Blame the bishops instead, especially those in the US who covered up and shuffled around
that 1-2% of priests who molested minors. Btw, it's not accurate to call them pedophile,
as well over 90% of those whom molested minors did so with teens who were well past
puberty. The correct word is pederast.
Rarely did word ever reach as high as the papacy. JP II was a busy man, defeating Communism
and all that.
Hi Snowball,
In social and organizational psychology, it is taught that the head of the corporation sets the tone. That is the Pope.
Also, you don't seem to be aware that sexual predator priests are found equally all over the world - not by any means in the U.S. only.
Finally, it is irrelevant (but I don't think you are even correct) whether the Pope knew about the predator priests: They have (3 Popes, now) been extremely aware for the past 12 years or so when the news exploded after The Boston Globe did a Spotlight report (for which they received a major award).
No, I am afraid that the Papacy has been inexcusably derilect in fulfulling it's responsibility as "head of the Church" as they tout themselves to be, and making this the Number One issue to be addressed, as they say in politics, and rightly so, with transparency. Shameful.
I know you agree with my main feelings about this issue, but maybe not the way it has been handled.
By the way, John Paul II, in his role for Poland, to help liberate the people from Communist rule, has nothing to do with his job as Pope and the boundaries between political savior and head of the Church are being blurred constantly, especially (sadly) by the Poles themselves.
Blame the bishops instead, especially those in the US who covered up and shuffled around
that 1-2% of priests who molested minors. Btw, it's not accurate to call them pedophile,
as well over 90% of those whom molested minors did so with teens who were well past
puberty. The correct word is pederast.
Rarely did word ever reach as high as the papacy. JP II was a busy man, defeating Communism
and all that.
Hi Snowball,
In social and organizational psychology, it is taught that the head of the corporation sets the tone. That is the Pope.
Also, you don't seem to be aware that sexual predator priests are found equally all over the world - not by any means in the U.S. only.
Finally, it is irrelevant (but I don't think you are even correct) whether the Pope knew about the predator priests: They have (3 Popes, now) been extremely aware for the past 12 years or so when the news exploded after The Boston Globe did a Spotlight report (for which they received a major award).
No, I am afraid that the Papacy has been inexcusably derilect in fulfulling it's responsibility as "head of the Church" as they tout themselves to be, and making this the Number One issue to be addressed, as they say in politics, and rightly so, with transparency. Shameful.
I know you agree with my main feelings about this issue, but maybe not the way it has been handled.
By the way, John Paul II, in his role for Poland, to help liberate the people from Communist rule, has nothing to do with his job as Pope and the boundaries between political savior and head of the Church are being blurred constantly. He became kind of a religious rock star and I also think that he liked it too much and should have stepped down when he became very ill -which makes me suspicious about his ego - but that is another subject.
By the way, John Paul II, in his role for Poland, to help liberate the people from Communist rule, has nothing to do with his job as Pope
He thought it did.
He absolutely believed he'd been called by the Holy Spirit and made Pope so he could, as Pope, work to free an oppressed people. It may not have been in the original "job description" at the time of his election but he certainly rewrote the job description and made it a part of his job. (Francis seems to be following his lead.)
As far as the description of a JPII as kind of rock star not wanting to quit his job....He told Jaruzelski, the Communist leader of Poland, that he'd resign as Pope and join Solidarity in the shipyards of Gdansk if he had to to make a statement to the world. Jaruzelski blinked. Rock stars with an ego don't do those kinds of things.
Last edited by DewDropInn; 11-13-2013 at 11:36 AM..
He absolutely believed he'd been called by the Holy Spirit and made Pope so he could, as Pope, work to free an oppressed people. It may not have been in the original "job description" at the time of his election but he certainly rewrote the job description and made it a part of his job. (Francis seems to be following his lead.)
As far as the description of a JPII as kind of rock star not wanting to quit his job....He told Jaruzelski, the Communist leader of Poland, that he'd resign as Pope and join Solidarity in the shipyards of Gdansk if he had to to make a statement to the world. Jaruzelski blinked. Rock stars with an ego don't do those kinds of things.
I see what you mean: He was kind of a Martin Luther King, Jr. for his people. But he had to learn not to apply the same methods in South America or Cuba.
I don't see how anyone can be a saint, JPII was a guy like any other, he covered up things too. Horrible things at that! He was still the boss of an organization that prides itself in abusing others. I say prides itself because why would anyone want to be proud to be a member, knowing what we all know? And it was not one single case! It's been going on through the centuries! I take the word saint extremely lightly. It's a figment of people's imagination that someone can be perfect anyway but to cover up such heinous things, is horrific! This pope can't undo things and is being told what to do by others, who only care about keeping the trillions of dollars business, going.
It's damage control, too little too late, for the thousands of victims worldwide, if he even adresses it.
The abuse is not only about pedophiles, brainwashing is also abuse, misleading to keep members is also abuse (of power).
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I don't see how anyone can be a saint, JPII was a guy like any other, he covered up things too. Horrible things at that! He was still the boss of an organization that prides itself in abusing others. I say prides itself because why would anyone want to be proud to be a member, knowing what we all know? And it was not one single case! It's been going on through the centuries! I take the word saint extremely lightly. It's a figment of people's imagination that someone can be perfect anyway but to cover up such heinous things, is horrific! This pope can't undo things and is being told what to do by others, who only care about keeping the trillions of dollars business, going.
It's damage control, too little too late, for the thousands of victims worldwide, if he even adresses it.
The abuse is not only about pedophiles, brainwashing is also abuse, misleading to keep members is also abuse (of power).
No one whats to stop or blame the whole football league for that child abuse? I see. You only want to shut the church down.
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