“There is also a decidedly nonsecular response to wrongdoing that paves the way for second and third chances — and serial abuse. In the secular world, the molestation of a child is labeled a crime, and a heartfelt apology for it doesn’t obviate jail time. In the Catholic Church, it is discussed as a sin, to be confessed and then, by the grace of God, forgiven. Penitence may well supplant punishment.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/28/weekinreview/28bruni.html?scp=3&sq=vatican&st=cse” target=”_blank”>At the Vatican, Up Against the World
Best Intentions
My plan to write a quick post on papal denial lies under a pile of links to the topic. The idea arose because the war with the NY Times sounded familiar. Indulgences are fine, Martin Luther (as was John Hus) is the problem. We were not against science, we didn’t like Galileo’s tone. Priests committing pedophilia over decades? LA LA LA LA, I can’t hear you. See I have my fingers in my ears. What pedophilia? Why must yu attack the Church?
Just Sayin’
Okay, I know better than to wage war with Catholics, but the Church proves so central to our history, a review can only help improve perspective.
Jan Huss and Martin Luther
Both turned into heretics in the Rome’s eyes. Both wanted to reform an overtly corrupt and out-of-touch institution. Huss’ reward? Burned at the stake. Martin Luther would have surely met the same fate had not his protectors been so vigilant.
The Reformation
The Hussite and Lutheran movements led to Reformation. Church response? The Counter-Reformation agreed some reform would help, but declared Protestants heretics, igniting the 80 and 30 Years Wars.
Kepler & Galileo
About the same time, Kepler and Galileo forwarded geocentric theories of planetary movement. This went against Scripture. Galileo refused to recant his findings and when, found guilty, submitted to long-term house arrest. The Church didn’t like his attitude ishttp://www.catholicleague.org/research/galileo.html” target=”_blank”> one defense offered.
Beyond Enlightenment
Growing secularism led to intellectuals bypassing the Church. Its denial of Kepler/Galileo made it seem the world was passing it by. The response? Deny. Deny. Deny.
A byproduct of this appeared in the Syllabus of Errors published in 1864, denouncing modernism. Condemned in the document:
‘ “human reason, without any reference whatsoever to God, is the sole arbiter of truth and falsehood, and of good and evil” (No. 3) “All the truths of religion proceed from the innate strength of human reason; hence reason is the ultimate standard by which man can and ought to arrive at the knowledge of all truths of every kind.” (No. 4)’
From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syllabus_of_Errors” target=”_blank”>Syllabus of Errors
The Holocaust
I really wish I didn’t have to go here, but I can only go where research takes me, not where I would prefer to go
Throughout the http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/holo.html“>Holocaust, Pius XII was consistently besieged with pleas for help on behalf of the Jews.
In the spring of http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/Chronology_1940.html“>1940, the Chief Rabbi of Palestine, http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/IHerzog.html“>Isaac Herzog, asked the papal Secretary of State, Cardinal Luigi Maglione to intercede to keep Jews in http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Spain.html“>Spain from being deported to http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Germanytoc.html“>Germany. He later made a similar request for Jews in http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/lithtoc.html“>Lithuania. The papacy did nothing.http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html#N_5_“>(5)
Within the Pope’s own church, Cardinal Theodor Innitzer of http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Vienna.html“>Vienna told Pius XII about Jewish deportations in 1941. In 1942, the Slovakian charge d’affaires, a position under the supervision of the Pope, reported to http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Rome.html“>Rome that http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/slovakiatoc.html“>Slovakian Jews were being systematically deported and sent to http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/ccpoltoc.html“>death camps.http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html#N_6_“>(6)
In October http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/Chronology_1941.html“>1941, the Assistant Chief of the U.S. delegation to the Vatican, Harold Tittman, asked the Pope to condemn the atrocities. The response came that the Holy See wanted to remain “neutral,” and that condemning the atrocities would have a negative influence on Catholics in German-held lands.http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html#N_7_“>(7)
In late August http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/Chronology_1942.html“>1942, after more than 200,000 Ukrainian Jews had been killed, Ukrainian Metropolitan Andrej Septyckyj wrote a long letter to the Pope, referring to the German government as a regime of terror and corruption, more diabolical than that of the Bolsheviks. The Pope replied by quoting verses from Psalms and advising Septyckyj to “bear adversity with serene patience.
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html ” target=”_blank”>Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/pius.html ” target=”_blank”> In light of this, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/03/world/europe/03church.html?ref=global-home” target=”_blank”>likening criticism about not making every effort to eliminate pedophilia to antisemitism can be best seen as a slap in the face.
Homosexuality
The latest tactic seems to blame homosexual priests and ‘post-pubescent’ boys.
“Johnny, sorry I raped you repeatedly over many years, but you shouldn’t have worn that (insert clothing item here) . You know I can’t help myself!”
If you have homosexual priests, should you not acknowledge the issue. I doubt homosexuality really is the issue, but either way the Church, by failing to deal with the reality that it exists does not help. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0226410439?ie=UTF8&tag=mundaneastrol-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0226410439">The Silence of Sodom: Homosexuality in Modern Catholicism</a><img src=” target=”_blank”>Silence of Sodom exposed the issue long ago, yet it still goes unaddressed. Again the Church response is to blame others.
Public Relations Lesson #1
Please stop insulting the public. Thousands of families deal with your ruinous policies on child abuse all over the world. Stop blaming others, like you have done throughout your history (the list above is very condensed). Yes, Catholics still do good works, but unless you poke your head out of the window and see how people really feel, the backlash could be terminable. Europeans have grown to mistrust your institution over the decades. You are only making it worse!
For the sake of all, acknowledge that the problem exists and commit every resource to end it. The current uproar comes from what we know. What happens when the next round of abuse surfaces? Blame no one but yourself Mr. Ratzinger–your behavior in this matter makes me feel calling you anything other than your real name is disingenuous–fire yourself if you have to. But as they say in politics: “The buck stops with you!”
