(Sometimes I can’t resist a cheesy alliteration title.)
From France24:
Pope denounces American societal mores
“Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday berated US bishops for their poor handling of the child sex scandal that has rocked the Roman Catholic church, but laid part of the blame on the breakdown of values in US society.
Benedict told a gathering of bishops they had “sometimes very badly handled” the decades-old problem of pedophile priests. But he urged efforts “to address the sin of abuse within the wider context of sexual mores.”
“What does it mean to speak of child protection when pornography and violence can be viewed in so many homes through media widely available today?” the pontiff said on the first full day of his US visit.”
(snip)
“Describing clerics who sexually abuse children as “gravely immoral,” the octogenarian pope warned that the scourge of pedophilia “is found not only in your dioceses but in every sector of society.”
“It calls for a determined, collective response,” he said, but did not outline any firm action that the Vatican intended to take to purge the church of pedophile priests.”
(snip)
“In his speech Wednesday, the pope did not outline any concrete steps that would be taken, but urged the bishops to give more guidance to priests, who “have experienced shame over what has occurred.”"
—
Grrrr. Pope Benedict is at it again. So the problem of pedo priests is decades old but porn is partly to blame? But porn wasn’t as available decades ago as it is today. Maybe it’s the way the church addresses sexuality? Maybe it’s the Madonna/Whore complex? Maybe it’s the unrealistic vow of chastity that priests have to take? Maybe it’s treating priests as if they’re asexual beings? No, no, no. Clearly it’s the evils of porn and violence that is causing, no Forcing!, those poor, poor priests to molest the children.
Sigh.
And to top it off the Pope doesn’t urge the guilty priests to face justice. No, they need “more guidance” instead.
One of my close friends is a gay Catholic man. When I bring up enraging arguments/decisions/comments the new Pope makes he just sighs and says “I know. I know. He’s not the best Pope.” As irked as I am about the Pope’s actions at least he’s not my spiritual leader. It must be much more frustrating to be Catholic and to think Pope Benedict is wrong.
Posted by Vixen as Political Rants, News at 11:59 PM CDT