Singer Lauryn Hill Blasts Church at Vatican Concert

Reuters ^ | Dec 14, 2003 | Philip Pullella

[jern]

By Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - American singer Lauryn Hill, from a stage used by the Pope, shocked Catholic officials at a concert by telling them to "repent" and alluding to sexual abuse of children by U.S. priests.

The broadside came during the recording Saturday night of a Christmas concert attended by top Vatican (news - web sites) cardinals, bishops and many elite of Italian society, witnesses said.

Hill made her comments when taking the microphone to sing at the concert, held in the same huge hall and stage Pope John Paul (news - web sites) uses for his weekly general audiences and other events. The Pope was not present.

"I did not come here to celebrate the birth of Christ with you but to ask you why you are not in mourning for his death inside this place," she said according to a transcript of her statement run by the Rome newspaper La Repubblica.

A spokesman for Prime Time Productions, the concert's organizers, said the newspaper's quotes were accurate.

"God has been a witness to the corruption of his leadership, of the exploitation and abuses ... by the clergy," she said.

This was an apparent reference to the scandal in the United States last year over the sexual abuse of children by priests.

Hill told the crowd to seek blessings "from God not men" and said she did "not believe in representatives of God on earth."

A few feet away in the front row sat five cardinals, including Edmund Szoka, American governor of Vatican City.

Hill, 28, did not sing the song listed on the program but instead sang a song about social injustice.

Organizers said Hill's outburst and performance would most probably be cut from the show when it is aired on Christmas Eve.

Hill shot to fame in the mid-1990s with band The Fugees, whose album "The Score" sold 17 million copies, to become one of the biggest hip-hop chart successes of all time.

She went on to win five Grammy awards for her debut solo album, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." She has a son and daughter by Rohan Marley, the son of Reggae legend Bob Marley.

[ArrogantBustard]

That an underground group of homosexual priests

in some branches of Christianity, they aren't even underground anymore.

[DoughtyOne]

I have mixed emotions on this. I'm not big on accepting an invitation then attacking your host. On the other hand the church allowed certain policies to continue that contributed to further abuse of countless individuals, mostly children.

No church is free from a certain criminal element within it's ranks, even leadership. It is how those churches address issues of this sort when they arise, that is the measure of their adherance to Christ's teachings. On this one, the Catholic leadership failed miserably.

I will stress, the vast majority of Catholics are as shocked and angry about what has taken place at some of their leader's hands, as anyone else.

Perhaps this message needed to be conveyed in public, even by this messenger. I am not a Catholic and am not privy to all the corrective measures that have been taken by the Vatican, but my overall impression is that it still hasn't acknowledged the full extent of it's complicity and appologized as profusely as it should. I would be willing to accept that more corrective measures may have been taken than I am aware of.

The bottom line is that far too many children, their parents and the members of Catholic churches have been betrayed by their leadership than should have. When judgement day comes, there's going to be a lot of splainin' to do.

Here's to hoping this these types of activities never again occur within any organized religious organization.

[Goetz_von_Berlichingen]

Since FatBoy and Skeletor let the Smoke of Satan into the Roman Church with V-2, I am hardly surprised that the current management invites a practitioner of degenerate "art" to give a concert at the Corporate Headquarters.

The Catholic Church is so much better after having excommunicated Archbishop LeFebvre. So, when does Rome put up its Kwanzaa decorations?

[WackyKat]

Criticize all you want. There is a time and place for such. Is it appropriate for some bone-in-the-nose rasta to upbraid Church officials on an occasion like this? I think not.

Parents complained in private for decades that their sons were being raped. What did that get them?

Their complaints were either ignored, denied or covered up by the hierarchy, and the rapists were protected and coddled.

Given their past behavior , the hierarchy has waived its right to be approached with diplomatic subserviance on the issue

[Teacher317]

What has she done lately?

Perhaps you missed this: "She has a son and daughter by Rohan Marley, the son of Reggae legend Bob Marley." See? She had sex with the son of a famous person... at least TWICE!!! We HAVE to listen to her!!!

(Oddly enough, it does not mention her ever being wedded to him... but that doesn't mean anything, right? She a CELEBRITY!!!)

[ArrogantBustard]

I'm not particularly interested in apologies, profuse or otherwise.

I'm interested in concrete actions to remove from office those priests and bishops who have misused or abused their positions of authority, and to ensure that their ilk are not accepted into the seminaries in the first place.

[sinkspur]

Given their past behavior , the hierarchy has waived its right to be approached with diplomatic subserviance on the issue

To be upbraided by a voodoo practitioner?

I disagree, obviously. "In your face" blows up in the face of the blower, not the blowee.

Practice diplomacy, or be ignored. You think anybody's going to pay attention to this foolish woman?

[rogator]

"But I don't understand how some Catholics can continue to defend them and excuse them, and claim that any criticism of them is just "Catholic-bashing"

No good Catholic defends or excuses the evil done by fellow Catholics any more than a good Protestant or Jew would defend or excuse those of their faith who do evil.
One who accepts an invitation to go to the home of another and levy insults shows him or herself to be rude and ill bred. I would hope that those of her group would repudiate her and her behavior.
I will never in any way patronize any thing with which she is connected.

[WackyKat]

I don't listen to Hill's music and I'm not defending her manners

The problem is that many people, including many Catholics I know, feel that the Church still has not brought to account those responsible for past crimes against children and been honest about the widespread complicity that existed

Given that, its hard to sympathize with their complaints of the mere rudeness of confronting them with the issue.

[steplock]

I was raised Catholic and I believe what she did was righteous.

Even the Cardinals in the Vatican have succumed to political correctness and self-preservation a-la-clinton rejection of truth.

[sinkspur]

Given that, its hard to sympathize with their complaints of the mere rudeness of confronting them with the issue.

Rudeness is rudeness, and Hill's rant will draw sympathy for the Church, not for her views.

I have a feeling that, if there had been no pedophilia, she'd have found something else to bitch about.

[rogator]

The Catholics do not have a monopoly in the arena of child molestation. Although minimal attention by the press is given to other faiths, a quick visit to reformatiom.com will reveal names of hundreds or thousands of ministers from many protestant denominations who have been involved in this behavior.

[Valin]

This is what happens when you let Protestants speak around Catholics.

My nomination for stupid statement of the day.


Note: there is no cash prize for winning.

[DoughtyOne]

Although my exact words didn't my support for your view, I certainly do.

[Clemenza]

Haile Selassie was a truly great man, from a royal blood line that went back before the time of Christ. Its a shame the commies overthrew him. :-(

[Map Kernow]

Formerly known as "Lauryn Hill." Now known as "Over the Hill."

[Patrick Henry Returns]

I totally agree with you. As a lifelong Catholic, the inabilitiy of the Church's leadership to deal with this problem openly and honestly is astonishing.

The problem is rampant homosexuality in the priesthood, period.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

So, when does Rome put up its Kwanzaa decorations?

lol.. I shouldn't be laughing. It might happen.

[Skywalk]

Actually, that was an urban legend started about the Fugees that had its origins on the Howard Stern show. None of the Fugees ever said anything remotely like that.


But that doesn't excuse her bizarre beliefs or lashing out at her hosts or not even singing the song she told them she would.