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PDF versionPapal silence on crisis troubles German Catholics
Mar. 16, 2010
Students practice for a Christmas concert at the Regensburger Domspatzen in Regensburg, Germany, last Nov. 27. The boarding school trains the elite boys' choir of the Regensburg Cathedral. Authorities were investigating claims of sexual abuse that may ha ve occurred decades ago at the school. (CNS photo/KNA-Bild)
BERLIN -- German Catholics have called on Pope Benedict XVI to speak out about a stream of sex abuse cases that have shocked the country and plunged the church into its biggest crisis in over six decades.
Pope Benedict has become personally embroiled in the affair, after it emerged that while he was archbishop of Munich and Freising in southern Germany in 1980, a priest accused of sexual abuse in another diocese had been transferred to the area, sent for therapy, and then placed in a parish where he went on to commit other acts of abuse.
The vicar general of the archdiocese from that era has assumed “full responsibility” for the decision, saying there were more than 1,000 priests in Munich at the time and that then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was not informed.
Those close to the pope say that dredging up the case now is the work of ‘vicious elements’ who have long wanted to find a connection between the pontiff and the sex abuse crisis. For example, Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, who heads the Pontifical Academy for Life in Rome, called attempts to “draw in” Benedict XVI to the crisis a “sign of violence and barbarity”.
As German Catholics ask to what extent the pope might have known about specific cases of abuse, the affair is likely to cast a shadow over celebrations next month to mark the fifth anniversary of the election of the first German to the papacy in 500 years.
On Monday, the priest who had been transferred into Munich on Ratzinger’s watch, named in media reports as Peter Hullermann, now 62, was suspended, after reports that he continued to work as a parish priest a full 25 years after a 1986 conviction for sexual abuse. The same day, an official of the Munich archdiocese with responsibility for priests’ assignments resigned over the affair. Monsignor Josef Obermaier said he had “failed in his duty”.
At Hullermann’s most recent parish in Bad Tölz, Bavaria, where he had served since 2008, the mood at last Sunday’s mass was one of disbelief, as churchgoers discovered for the first time that their priest was at the center of the row. During a sermon being given by an interim priest, a young man who was soon due to be married by Hullermann reportedly stormed the pulpit and shouted that he had just discovered the truth about the priest’s past.
Parishioners, who had not previously been informed, were in a visible state of shock. Some wept, while others left the building.
NCR: February 3-16, 2012
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See related story: Munich archdiocese official resigns
The anger has not been confined to Bad Tölz. The sex abuse scandal in Germany has affected 19 of the country’s 27 dioceses, with new accusations emerging daily from everyone from former school pupils of Catholic boarding schools to members of church choirs. Some have talked of abuse that went on for years, pointing fingers of accusation at teachers and priests. Among those who have broken their silence and come forward are German politicians, business people, writers, and composers.
A Berlin attorney hired by the Jesuit order in the German capital to handle complaints, has so far been contacted by 200 people with stories of abuse, while at the monastery school in Ettal, close to the world-famous passion play town of Oberammergau, 150 people have reported cases.
At a renowned boys’ choir in Regensburg, the Domspatzen, 15 former choir boys have come forward to allege various forms of abuse. That choir was directed for 30 years by the brother of Pope Benedict, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, who has conceded that he occasionally slapped choir boys in the face as part of the more robust physical discipline of the era.
Many German Catholics were expecting a response from Pope Benedict last Sunday during his Angelus prayers in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. His failure to address the issue was received with huge disappointment.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung, a Munich-based daily, noted: “The pope always finds words ahead of his weekly Angelus prayers to talk about current affairs. On this cool Lenten Sunday Benedict XVI spoke about the allegory of the Prodigal Son. But this time there was no mention from him about the abuse cases that are rocking his church.”
Dirk Tänzler, chairman of the Union of German Catholic Youth, called on the pope to make a statement.
“It is of great concern to people, whether they’re religious or not, and the Holy Father should speak out about this,” he said.
The clamor of voices urging Benedict to speak is becoming ever louder, and commentators are convinced the longer he remains silent, the more damaging the affair will be for the German Catholic church.
Tänzler added that the pope has an obligation to speak, not least because the affair has “plunged the German Catholic church, from where he himself comes, into its deepest crisis since 1945.” He was referring to the end of the Second World War, when the church was called to account for the role it played in trying to prevent the Holocaust.
This week a survey by the pollsters Enmid indicated that the fallout over the latest scandal could have widespread and long-lasting consequences. Seventy-one percent of Germans said that the cases had damaged the church’s credibility, while only 22 percent disagreed. Amongst Catholics, 67 percent were of the opinion their church has lost credibility.
The scandals have also sparked a perhaps inevitable, but passionate, debate in Germany about celibacy and the possibility of married priests.
Auxiliary Bishop Hans-Jochen Jaschke of Hamburg has been the first prominent German Catholic leader to speak out in favor of allowing both celibate and married priests, and said priests needed to develop a more relaxed attitude about sexuality.
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“You need to experience yourself as a sexual being,” Jaschke told Die Welt daily, adding his fears that “the celibate way of life can act as a pull for those who have a warped sexuality” to join the priesthood.
The president of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), the most important lay body in Germany, said the church found itself in a crisis and needed a “complete overhaul” in its thinking.
“The church needs to reflect whether it’s not something specific about its structure that has made abuse easier,” Alois Glück said.
Meanwhile experts in sexual abuse have recommended setting up a hotline for priests who want to discuss issues of sexuality, or who fear they have pedophile tendencies.
[Kate Connolly is the Berlin correspondent for the U.K.-based Guardian newspaper.]
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"plausible deniability" It's
"plausible deniability" It's what you expect from a corporate CEO - not the pope. OK - there was a time when you wouldn't expect it from the pope.
God did not create
God did not create celibacy... It is time to recognize such.
The Archbishop of Munich
The Archbishop of Munich didn't know? How much else did they keep from him? Now the clergy who were close to these issues are falling on their sword to keep any scandal from touching the Pope. As a cradle Catholic raised in the reign of Pope Pius XII it is hard to explain the place the Pope had in the minds of the people of that time. Untouchable, remote - I still have some of that feeling left and it is scary.
Germany may lead the 21st
Germany may lead the 21st Century Reformation!!! Get rid of Rome!!! Benedict must resign!!!
strong discipline like a slap
strong discipline like a slap in the face was common at that time especially in Germany which is so disciplined. that isn't worth reporting. the sexual abuse of priests is like the work of the devil,it gives us a sick feeling in our stomachs. Every Sunday we should be praying for the church that the Holy Spirit will guide us and also for the abused,those innocent children whose lives have been ruined.
"Those close to the pope say
"Those close to the pope say that dredging up the case now is the work of ‘vicious elements’ who have long wanted to find a connection between the pontiff and the sex abuse crisis. For example, Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, who heads the Pontifical Academy for Life in Rome, called attempts to “draw in” Benedict XVI to the crisis a “sign of violence and barbarity”." This quote sounds like an excellent excuse for doing nothing. When will the church begin to protect those who have been abused by those who should hypothetically never do such things.
The old boys in Rome are
The old boys in Rome are totally removed from reality, don't know how to deal with their self-created mess, and remain (as always) as arrogant and tone-deaf as ever.
One hell of a dysfunctional institutional Church of Rome!
And things won't begin to change for the better until these "orthodox", "traditionalist", authoritarian fellas are banished to a monastery.
A sick ecclesial culture cannot be changed with the old, senior leadership still in place.
TITHING = ENABLING
Catholic pewsitters need to stop enabling.
As has been mentioned in
As has been mentioned in comments here in the past, there is no doubt in anyone's mind who has the ability to think logically, Ratzinger is and has been complicit in this scandal for years.
The heirarchy of the church, the magesterium, the bulging bureacratic mess that purports to be "in charge" has never stood up like men. Hiding behind the "Oz"-like curtain of celibacy in medieval garb has to be dumped. It is unnatural. If it is such a sound policy why are the married Anglicans being welcomed with open arms?
The "catholic" scope of all of this is in plain sight. The USA, Ireland, Germany and now other countries in Europe and around the world "universally", are facing the facts. The elephant is standing in the middle of the living room and guess what? It really is an ELEPHANT. It is not something that is not there.
This is not a scandal of the laity, but the nightmare of the paternal, domineering, arrogant and ego filled clergy. The Germans are outraged, as are clear thinking people of God around the world. Get off your throne, vatican. Physically and philosophically.
Rome has to act like responible REAL men and deal openly and honestly with the victims of this horrible perversion. If you hadn't systematically shunned the other half of the human species for centuries this would not have happened. You'd be married and sexuality would be normal.
Fess up when you mess up boys. Fess up and pay up, and then you may possiibly have the right to shut up. But you can't shut up now and hide in silence like little girlie men hoping this will all just go away. The toothpaste is out of the tube, you can't put it back.
You better clean house and move into the 21st century along with the real members of the church, the laity. If you don't, we are moving forward without you. You could end up as a small club whose members are the only ones impressed with their membership. Wait. Hasn't that has happened already?
I don't think this whole giant mess was what Jesus had in mind.
The church in Europe was not
The church in Europe was not well attended before and the Pope lamented this. What will those who still found themselves in the pews think? Should they stay home on Sunday, too?
Or, will the bishops decide to meddle with the German language in the liturgy as they have in the United States?
I notify all who read this
I notify all who read this site that I OFFICIALLY cease to identify myself as a Catholic. I RENOUNCE my Catholic baptism, my Catholic first holy communion, my Catholic confirmation, my CATHOLIC marriage. I will return my membership certificates to the Knights of Columbus. I, nor my family will EVER set foot inside a Catholic Church again. I am so sick of the all the s**t that has gone on for so long and BY SO MANY within the Catholic Church.
I am done.
IrishBard
Good for you! I quit last
Good for you! I quit last November after being personally bullied by one of those "men of God." The hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church is diseased and the laity need to wake up and move on. By staying in the pews, you are supporting systemic evil. For those who stay for the sacraments, the traditions, the good being done by small groups of concerned laity -- I beg of you, go to an Episcopal church. There you can find healthy married men AND women presiding at the altar, vibrant charity, social justice ministries, and virtually the same form of liturgy ... and you can concentrate on following Jesus and bringing about the kingdom of God instead of having to follow the latest sex scandals involving your "shepherds." Good Catholic priests are out there -- you, too, can move on to the Episcopal Church and wean yourself from the charade that is the "Magisterium." What will it take for people to say ENOUGH?
The Church is the body of the
The Church is the body of the Faithful, not the Vatican and the bishops and their power-centric organization. Yes, stand up and walk away from (and stop contributing to) the institutional Catholic church of the Vatican and the bishops. But it isn't necessary to leave the body of the Catholic faithful for the Episcopal or Lutheran communities. Alternative communities of Catholic faithful true to the message of the Gospels and unaffiliated with the institutional church are springing up all over North American and Europe. I left the institutional Catholic church more than two years ago to join such a Catholic community. In some of them Eucharist is celebrated by Roman Catholic Women Priests (www.romancatholicwomenpriests.org), in others by male priests discarded by the institutional church because they married. Some communities rent or share worship space in Protestant churches; some are home churches as in the early days of the Church. These communities are reclaiming our Church from the small group of elitist old men who seem to be more interested in power, property and prestige than pastoral leadership.
Dear IrishBard, May you find
Dear IrishBard,
May you find peace in your spiritual journey.
You can walk away from the
You can walk away from the sore wounded mystical body of Christ which is the Church but you cannot undo the graces of your batism nor those that flowed from the other sacraments.
Instead of being overwhlemed by the evil of abuse remain focused on Jesus who suffered and died for you.Trust in Him He promised the ates of hell will never prevail against His Church but He also warned us that one day there would be wolves in sheep's clothing We are now living through those painful times.
The people who committed the abuse renounced their god do you really want to join them?
Take the burden of you anger sorrow disappointment and frustration to Jesus.
This is the defining moment
This is the defining moment of Benedict XVI's reign as pope. He must step up, take charge and do the right thing. If he continues on with business as usual, then he will abdicate his place as a moral leader. Issuing the usual "mistakes were made" and "sexual abuse is a grievous sin" doesn't cut it at this point.
Steve
No wonder the pope isn't
No wonder the pope isn't calling for or even accepting resignations of bishops involved the sex abuse scandal. He would have to resign!
To say that as archbishop he had no idea that a sex abuser was actively involved in ministry is just so very sad. If he didn't know, he should have. To say there were nearly a thousand priests in the diocese and he couldn't be responsiblejust doesn't make sense. At least he could have taken an interest in those priests who had been "treated" for sexually abusing children. Or were ther too many of them too!
Until the bishops, including the bishop of Rome, take resonsibility for this sorry mess they helped to create, there will be no healing.
Could someone please explain
Could someone please explain to me what is an "interim priest"? If that is the level of knowledge of the author then the whole article is riddle with possible errors. Clarification will be appreciated.
Happy St. Paddie's Day!
"Those close to the pope say
"Those close to the pope say that dredging up the case now is the work of ‘vicious elements’ who have long wanted to find a connection between the pontiff and the sex abuse crisis. For example, Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, who heads the Pontifical Academy for Life in Rome, called attempts to “draw in” Benedict XVI to the crisis a “sign of violence and barbarity”.
What a crock!!! More divisiveness against the People of God from the Vatican. The "vicious elements" are in the Vatican!!! The "sign of violence and barbarity" is the sexual molestation of our children and seminarians by priests!!!! Quit with the lies!!!
The violence and barbarity is the harboring of pedophiles and molesters by Bishops who got their orders from Ratzinger and who now cover up for him. The violence and barbarity has been against children for decades and not dealing with the problem in a Christian way towards the victims!! You treated the victims as if they were the problem!!
Now the Vatican abuses the People of God again with these words of violence against those who seek justice and truth and mercy for the abused and for the Church to rectify this, claim accountability for what they have done administratively in their direct authority, repent for what they have done, not continue with this song and dance of denial of any accountability of your reckless and irresponsible policies.
The Vatican needs to enter into REALITY and CONFESS and get out of its ivory tower of make believe and pretending you don't have any accountability for your acts! You need to come clean and get HONEST about your cruelty to children and confess to the crimes you committed against children for years and years!! You have caused great suffering by your acts! REPENT!!
Quit blaming others for violence and barbarity and look at yourself in the mirror!!
For too long the bishops have
For too long the bishops have been accountable to no one but themselves. They have also squandered the the faith and support of the laity in order to maintain their own authority. They have betrayed the mission of the Church.
How dare the Italian
How dare the Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, who heads the Pontifical Academy for Life in Rome, call attempts to “draw in” Benedict XVI to the crisis a “sign of violence and barbarity”. How dare he use that language when what the Church has done to these poor children only puts these attempts in perspective. The pope has acted in a violent and barbaric manner when he hides Cardinal Law in the Vatican and makes no apology for it. He acts in a violent and barbaric manner when he expresses "shock and dismay" over the sex abuse scandal as though he just recently heard of it. It is barbaric and violent to refuse to accept responsibility for what the Vatican and its bishops have done to children and their families. That is the true violence and barbarism, thank you very much. Get off your high horse, if they have such a thing in the primitive Vatican.
It is time for the Catholic
It is time for the Catholic Church to come back to the teachings of Jesus and the lifestyle Jesus professed for his disciples. Jesus did not call forth an institution; in fact, he had nothing but harsh warnings for the institutional players of his own day. Jesus called forth a way of living ~ one that ultimately includes giving up one's own life if that is what the integrity of a non violent witness calls forth ~
All of this other stuff...dogmas...rules...theoretical arguments...are damning distractions. By the fruits shall you know the tree...
The fruits:
Exclusion not inclusion
Phobias ~ lots of them
Dualistic thinking
Emphasis on external conformity
Loss of authentic sharing and breaking of the bread in favor of prescriptive liturgies...
Anxiety...anxiety...anxiety
Shame and condemnation!
Tolerance of systemic poverty in our midst.
Tolerance of lack of health care and food and shelter for others.
Tolerance of genocides, wars, military corporations.
Not looking very impressive. Let's see, in the parable Jesus gave the tree one more season to bear some good fruit...probably getting close...
"The scandals have also
"The scandals have also sparked a perhaps inevitable, but passionate, debate in Germany about celibacy and the possibility of married priests."
I can see the possibility of married priests in the Church as a step forward; but we should not look to it as a solution to the problem. Many children are molested by married men.
And they're surprised?
And they're surprised?
The Holy Father is a good,
The Holy Father is a good, decent,and deeply spiritual man, but he has been thrust into a job for which he is totally unqualified and through no fault of his own. He is a brilliant academic, but has lived in a bubble all of his adult life: first as a professor,then as an archbishop,and finally as a Vatican bureaucrat. His only pastoral experience was on a part-time basis for six months immediately following his priestly ordination.
He has never been "down in the trenches" dealing with the everyday hurts, pains, and personal tragedies which are experienced by the average Catholic and human being - and which every parish priest faces on a daily basis.
To date, even though he will be in the England in September, he has no plans to visit Ireland and attempt to reconcile and heal the terrible damage that the leadership of the Church as done in that country.
With his own country of Germany now reeling in the wake of yet another Church sexual scandal, he apparently sees no need to fly home and lead the effort to begin the healing process by meeting with the victims and their families.
I'm sure he is personally heartsick, but making a trip to these two countries is just too much for him. Unfortunately, perception is everything. As a convert, I wonder what the Irish and German cradle Catholics, the victims, and their families think when their Chief Shepherd fails to visit them and begin the healing process? For many non-Catholics, this will cause them to see us as an uncaring institutionalized bureaucracy. It's all very sad, because it doesn't have to be this way.
Please, James Ullman, give me
Please, James Ullman, give me a break. Benedict bullied his way into the papacy. What do you mean he is unqualified? He studied at the feet of the master JPII for 25 years before he shoved his way into his papal seat. He hides Cardinal Law in the Vatican. I believe is very savvy about what it takes to be pope, especially in this crisis.
Like other men who have been
Like other men who have been able to compartmentalized their wrongdoing, O.J. Simpson, Bill Clinton, and Richard Nixon come to mind, these men as a group, led by a wolf in shepherd's clothing, have compartmentalized decades and decades of egregious crimes, and now the pressure cooker is ready to blow. Blow, baby, blow!
If One church body is
If One church body is ingenuous in its practices and ethics, then those searching for a church home will believe that all Christianity is ingenuous. The repercussions of these secret sexual assaults are reeking havoc like a tsunami on innocent shores. I grieve. Yet the pontiff remains silent.
Sadly,The church crises in
Sadly,The church crises in Germany appears to be escalating.
Sad. I don't have the words
Sad. I don't have the words to describe this terrible situation. Our Parish Priest here in Ohio has a girlfriend and it's well known by many. He even keeps the dog for her while she works!
When is Rome going to wake up.
The following is cut/pasted
The following is cut/pasted from another news article. I am in disbelief of such arrogance. This is a textbook example of mental illness:
In Rome, the Vatican's No. 2 official brushed off any suggestion that rank-and-file Catholics were losing faith in their church as an institution.
"The church still has the great trust on the part of the faithful," Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Holy See's secretary of state and a close aide to Benedict, told reporters in the Italian capital. "It's just that someone is trying to undermine this trust, but the church has on its side a special help from high," the Italian prelate said with a slight smile.
END
My friends, the only way this is going to be fixed is for us all to stick together and DEMAND change from our Bishops. And I mean, DEMAND.
Yeah, DEIMAND change from the
Yeah, DEIMAND change from the bishops. That's worked really well in the past, hasn't it? At some point all Catholics need to face the reality that their church is a sick and structurally flawed institution that CANNOT be saved. No army of well-meaning laypeople is going to come in and force the hierarchy to change. These are power-obsessed, sick, small-minded men who will fight to the death for their charade empire. Leave them to their demise. If you stay, you are supporting the rape and abuse of children at their hands. Do you want to do that?
Eighty-two year old men
Eighty-two year old men should not have these problems, should not have these burdens in their twilight years. And the pope is eighty-two and he is making fundamental decisions bearing on the moral integrity of our church at age eighty-two. Did our cardinals understand that, that when they elected this old man he himself would become a crisis?
Do our cardinals realize we have neighbors? Do they realize we cannot be proud of our church? That we are embarrassed and if this silence and secrecy goes on they themselves become an embarrassment. When will an American cardinal speak openly and frankly to American Catholics?
Once again with church the
Once again with church the motivation to do the right thing appears to be for the wrong reason. Questionning celibacy as a response to sexual abuse of children and youth by clergy is itself sick. Whether it is simply wrong-headed or another ruse to deflect responsibility from institution and hierarchy, or both, is irrelevant.
So often it seems that one instance among the many is the key that unravels the larger mystery. One instance can somehow strip an issue of propaganda or politics, theology or canon law, revealing in its nakedness the stark humanity of the issue whether of beauty or horror. In doing so it raises each instance, otherwise anonymous, dimmed by numbers or shrouded in rhetoric and spin to multiples of singularity and elicits a call to act that cannot be resisted. Such may be the case of Father H.
Father H may be repentant and reformed. Though culpable and despite being scape-goated like the sick predator priests everywhere, his is the sub-plot here. His "anonymity" for over thirty years unravels with dispassionate clarity the responsibility of institution, hierarchy and hierarchical system in the scandal that is the sexual abuse of children and youth by the church. .
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger justified his censure of Hans Kung, and by implication the long list of theologians of good faith and probing minds, with these words: "The ordinary catholic is a simple person. It is the role of the bishop to protect the little people from the intellectuals". Is it not the role of bishops to protect the children? "Ignorance" cannot be equated with innocence; "case-load" or elevation of position cannot limit responsibility.
What's the shock? Cardinal
What's the shock? Cardinal Law is the Pope's buddy.. and living large in the
Vatican. The Roman Catholic Church hates children or otherwise wouldn't let
their employees (and that's what they are) rape and molest minors without
consequence.
Spin it, float it, twist it; the Pope, the Cardinals, the Bishops, the Priests
who know about this are also guilty... and they just don't care.
AND, neither does law enforcement throughout the world. What other group of men are allowed to molest children without police arresting them????
"Holiness befits your house,
"Holiness befits your house, O LORD, forevermore." Ps 93:5 Holiness is obtained from the indwelling of The Holy Spirit and by being led by God's Holy Sirit. Romans 8 tells us how to live above condemnation: walk according to the Spirit and not the flesh, and to put to death the deeds of the flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes Christianity can become a cultural thing rather than a deep born again experience as described by Jesus to Nicodemus in St. John's gospel chapter 3. In addition to the new birth experience Jesus also taught and admonished the disciples to wait until they were baptized in the Holy Spirit and fire, which occured initially on the day of Pentecost but is to be the experience of all believers. We are then to continuously walk and live in the Spirit so as to not fulfill the deeds or lusts of the flesh. I pray that the present situation facing the Roman Catholic Church concerning immorality will result in causing a time of great repentance and renewal throughout the RCC worldwide.
"Auxiliary Bishop Hans-Jochen
"Auxiliary Bishop Hans-Jochen Jaschke of Hamburg has been the first prominent German Catholic leader to speak out in favor of allowing both celibate and married priests, and said priests needed to develop a more relaxed attitude about sexuality."
http://www.welt.de/die-welt/vermischtes/hamburg/article6777736/Die-katho...
In my mind and heart, this is
In my mind and heart, this is even worse than the American and Irish scandals, horrendous as they are. This challenges the entire hierarchical structure of the church, from top to bottom. Oh. Then maybe it's not worse!
Papal silence = Papal
Papal silence = Papal GUILT!
RESIGN NOW, before even more FACTS become public.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2010/03/papal-ai...
http://www.queerty.com/the-side-business-of-pope-benedict-xvis-usher-gay...
I can't WAIT to read John Allen's SPIN on this one!!!
Kinda makes me wanna dust off and re -read Martin Luther's Babylonian Captivity.
http://www.manhattanrarebooks.com/luther.htm
Click on Number 12:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.o...
"The vicar general of the
"The vicar general of the archdiocese from that era has assumed “full responsibility” for the decision, saying there were more than 1,000 priests in Munich at the time and that then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was not informed."
So reassigning a priest, convicted of sexually abusing a child, to a parish is just everyday business that the bishop need not be concerned with? Sad to say, given the number of cases globally, this would appear to be the case. By allowing an abuser access to more victims, whether by direct knowledge or by failure to be aware of important personnel issues in his diocese, Ratzinger has abetted a criminal.
"Those close to the pope say that dredging up the case now is the work of ‘vicious elements’ who have long wanted to find a connection between the pontiff and the sex abuse crisis."
The only ‘vicious elements’ here are the people involved in concealing crimes against children. The Truth does not deserve to be hidden.
"Whoever welcomes one such child for my sake welcomes me. On the other hand, it would be better for anyone who leads astray one of these little ones who believe in me, to be drowned by a millstone around his neck, in the depths of the sea. What terrible things will come on the world through scandal." Matt 18.5-7
The heirarchy has created its own millstone and is now drowning in the embarrassment of its scandal. A public confession/apology with details on why these crimes were covered up and what steps will be taken to set up a system of checks and balances to ensure that we never have another crisis like this is long overdue.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella
Archbishop Rino Fisichella states that "vicious elements" are trying to “draw in” Benedict XVI to the clergy sex-abuse crisis now overtaking Germany. The revelations about Bishop Ratzinger being uncovered by the press are suggestive, and given the history of how this scandal has unfolded in one country after another--with a failure of honesty and transparancy on the part of the bishops--it's hard not to wonder where this might be leading. Archbishop Fisichella calls the distrust of the pope a “sign of violence and barbarity”.
Last month, when he met with the Irish bishops over the "grave crisis" there, the pope alluded to the “breakdown in trust in the church’s leadership.” In America and Ireland, the priest abusers have been outed and separated from the flock, but what about those shepherds who enabled the molestation and rape of children to build to catastrophic proportions? Their betrayal, and the far-reaching pain it has inflicted, was forced into the open by a scandal-hungry media and the criminal investigations those disclosures spawned. Only then did the hierarchy begin to face its malfeasance--reluctantly, often resentfully and not always without obstruction. By their lack of forthrightness, the bishops have created this deepening doubt about the integrity of authority at the highest levels. The bishops have EARNED the distrust of its flock; the laity is not inexplicibly calling into question the innocence of its leaders. Why should we believe them when they have given us all kinds of reasons not to? Seems to me more a matter of self-preservation on the part of parents trying to protect their children from the "violence and barbarity" of clergy predators--priests and bishops--who are not open and honest, and have a record of preying (and covering up) on the innocent.
In the face of a long string
In the face of a long string of scandals, one wonders whether repentance from our Church, reform, moral and social responsibility, courageous proclamation of the Gospel are possible? It is utterly naive to think that outrage by the laity will do it, neither will quoting the Scriptures, or calling on the Holy Spirit. Most sadly and unfortunately the only way to shock and get the attention of the Catholic Hierarchy is the wallet and the pocket book. A boycott of donations for a couples of months could open their eyes and ears if not their hearts.
The gigantic lies from the
The gigantic lies from the highest power holders in the hierarchy of Rome and Germany continue! This just points to the reason that the lay people have lost all trust and respect for these criminals. There is simply no other way to look at it and that is why we must DEMAND accountability from these people. They must pay for their crimes!
Having given my youth and
Having given my youth and best years in service to Jesus through His church,total 48 years,my mind is flooded with words. "Googie's" Mar. 16 post explains much of what I think. May we the laity continue to voice strongly our demand for truth...Jesus's truth!
Laity? We are members of the
Laity? We are members of the priesthood of all believers. You are a priest! The hierarchical power grab is ending.
Again, all that needs be done
Again, all that needs be done to clear up the question of Benedict's involvment is to provide for authentication by a neutral party the corresponence between presiding bishops by which Fr. Peter Hullermann was excardinated from the diocese of Essen and incardinated into the service of the archdiocese of Munich.
Whose signature is on the Munich side of that transaction?
That said information has not been provided is troubling.
The Pope is silent because if
The Pope is silent because if he speaks he knows that if he speaks only the real TRUTH mayl come out, and he will have to acknowledge the depth and extent of this unfathomable, mortally sinful tragedy.
The Vatican will make an
The Vatican will make an outstanding museum. As for the rest of it, perhaps these are the days of reformation again. The old hierarchical model is FINISHED in the 21st century. What's it going to take? BILLIONS in lawyers fees ( the world's second oldest profession. The Roman Catholic church has lost any veracity with regard to addressing critical issues. We are about to witness the stack of cards fall, the impetus will probably be a surprise. Bottom line for me is that I don't trust Ratzinger, period. How about Cardinal Law, he should be cleaning the urinals at Mary Major. It's Lent and I haven't bothered with it. Being a convert I wasn't socialized like most of the sheep. Trained to give away one's personal power to some fraud...too much...I'm tired of all of it.
I don't know if anyone in the
I don't know if anyone in the world will ever wade
through all these replies and get to my simple story but,
anyway, here goes.
I was brought up in a devout catholic family, and I
became a good catholic in my turn. I spent ten years in a
boarding school run by Jesuit priests, for my sins. I was a
'goodie goodie': I went to so-called voluntary mass at
7am on weekdays, and regular confession, and I became
a Knight of the Blessed Sacrament (no mean feat). All in
all, I acquired a decent education.
(Recently the school has been involved in a terrible
scandal concerning events of sexual abuse, some of
which had occurred while I was there, but I personally
never witnessed anything.)
When I was about 17, my father took me aside for a
chat. He said, "Have you ever thought of becoming a
priest? You should seriously think about it. To become a
priest is the highest profession a man can attain to." If I
had been some other way inclined I might have taken
him up. However, since my overwhelming desire at the
time was to find a girlfriend, I said "No, I don't want to
be a priest."
Then I went on to college at the other end of the country,
and, for the first time in my life, I was not surrounded by
catholics. Still, there was an active catholic chaplaincy
there, and I got involved. It was a great social centre,
apart from anything else.
I don't know how or why it happened, perhaps it was just
part of growing up, but while I was there I gradually, very
slowly, started to look at my beliefs from a different
point of view, and to question them one by one. It was a
very slow process. I guess for things that are so deeply
ingrained it has to be. I just began to look at it all from a wider
perspective and to wonder whether I needed to
have such ideas. And one by one the answer was always
"No".
It actually took several years but, in the end, I realised
that I had discarded everything. And I mean everything.
Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. So,
what do I believe now, you might ask, with all the
mumbo jumbo far, far behind me?
Well, I think that the highest profession I can attain to is
to be a good father to my two beautiful children (no
mean feat), and to be a good partner, friend, and
neighbour where appropriate (each also no mean feat). I
don't think I need to believe anything else.
And when I see pictures of priests, bishops or cardinals
dressed in those funny robes and silly hats, an old saying
pops into my mind: "But for the grace of God, there go I!"
- the God of Nature, that is.
Wonderful article. It’s
Wonderful article. It’s helpful facts. : 65100
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