Posted on 03/25/2010 1:29:03 PM PDT by NYer
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – The Vatican on Thursday angrily attacked the media over its reporting of sexual abuse of children by priests, saying there was an "ignoble attempt" to smear Pope Benedict "at any cost."
The editorial in a Vatican newspaper came on a day abuse victims protested near St Peter's Square to demand the pope open files on pedophile clerics and defrock "predator priests," and a cardinal spoke of a "conspiracy" against the church.
"The prevalent tendency in the media is to ignore the facts and stretch interpretations with the aim of spreading the picture of the Catholic Church as the only one responsible for sexual abuse, something which does not correspond to reality," the Vatican newspaper said.
There was "clearly an ignoble attempt to strike at Pope Benedict and his closest aides at any cost," it said.
The editorial challenged a New York Times report about the case of Rev. Lawrence Murphy, accused of sexually abusing up to 200 deaf boys in the United States from the 1950s to the 1970s.
Among 25 internal church documents the Times posted on its website was a 1996 letter about Murphy to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, then the Vatican's top doctrinal official and now Pope Benedict, showing he had been informed of the case.
Ratzinger's deputy first advised a secret disciplinary trial but reversed that in 1998 after Murphy appealed directly to Ratzinger for clemency. The priest died later that year.
The Vatican newspaper said: "There was no cover-up in the case of Father Murphy." The Vatican said earlier he was not disciplined because church laws do not require automatic punishment.
The report came amid mounting allegations of sexual abuse by priests in Europe and pressure on bishops, mostly in Ireland, to resign for failing to report cases to civil authorities.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Heck the media has nothing on a few bigots who post on the Religion Forum.
I could not agree more.
Yes, just as it has been throughout the centuries. After all, it was promised. :)
Hi, FRiend. :)
Helloz
“..they were in the hot seat, I was not”
I think there is some truth to this.
I remember a time when I was very disgruntled with things that the city council where I live either did or did not do. Then one day I found myself appointed to serve as one of two citizen advisory people to the council. I sat in on all the meetings for almost 2 years and was allowed to contribute to the discussions (just couldn’t vote).
It was the first time that I was able to have a first-hand experience of some of the knots and tangles and hurdles that governing a city can present. A lot of what we were able to consider depended a great deal on available good information, sound facts and reliable statistics.
I can only imagine what it is like to oversee the Church, even at the level of subsidiary.
I remember Archbishop Fulton Sheen telling about one of the times he met with Pope Paul VI. The Pope told Bishop Sheen that every night when he went to bed he put his head on a crown of thorns.
I have always found “being in charge” to be a very humbling, and often frightening, experience.
Well said.
I believe satan has used and is using all of the -ism tools in his toolbox. Modernism, humanism, marxism, etc. etc. Cultural marxism’s m.o. is to rot all things of good and beauty from within, finding that more effective than the iron fist of armed revolution. Those things of good and beauty include the Church, the priesthood, the family, art, music, literature, language, church architecture, and so on.
The media are Death Eaters. They don’t give a flying FReep about victims of sexual abuse: they think Intergenerational Same-Sex Intimacy is a natural right, and want people who say it’s wrong to be jailed. Their goal, which seems reasonable only to stupid people, is for the Church to say, “You’re right - adult-child sodomy is okay. What were we thinking all these years?”
Is it insane? Maybe. Maybe it’s simply demonic.
You got that right!
AB is right. Here in the Albany Diocese, one of the most progressive in the US, there are many sex abuse suits that had to be dropped because the priests (all ordained pre VCII) are now deceased.
This problem is not unique to the Catholic Church. There is plenty of blame to pass around. Unfortunately, as the only Church with a central authority figure, we are an easy target. Compound that with the strict and unshakable morals taught by the Church, and you have a willing audience of shooters. We need to pray for our Holy Father ... daily!
AB knows his stuff! I said a prayer for Pope benedict today, and plan to make that at least a daily commitment.
It’s the same line of reasoning, from the same filthy source, that’s used to attack the Boy Scouts: “The BSA has failed to prevent, completely, homosexual adults’ molesting boys. Therefore, they should stop trying and just turn the fags loose on the teens.
It’s stupid, it’s evil, and it’s absolutely infuriating. The people making these attacks *like* the behavior they’re using as a smokescreen. The hate the institution that stand in the way of universal acceptance of perversion.
I absolutely agree.
“Unfortunately, as the only Church with a central authority figure ... “
Huh?
Nope, not a word from “author” Rembert G. Weakland.
“Compound that with the strict and unshakable morals taught by the Church ... “
Huge falsity though when you have priests who don’t practice what they teach. Causes one to lose faith.
Who is the head of the Baptist church?
The Anglican Not-Exactly-Communion-Anymore has the Archbishop of Canterbury, of course, but since he’s pro-sodomy, it’s irrelevant. Nobody attacks him over it ... but they go after the Bishops in Africa who are Christian.
Only if one's faith is in men rather than in God.
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