Posted on 03/05/2010 9:49:59 AM PST by Cardhu
Vatican chorister sacked for allegedly procuring male prostitutes for papal gentleman-in-waiting.
The Vatican was today rocked by a sex scandal reaching into Pope Benedict's household after a chorister was sacked for allegedly procuring male prostitutes for a papal gentleman-in-waiting.
Angelo Balducci, a Gentleman of His Holiness, was caught by police on a wiretap allegedly negotiating with Thomas Chinedu Ehiem, a 29-year-old Vatican chorister, over the specific physical details of men he wanted brought to him. Transcripts in the possession of the Guardian suggest that numerous men may have been procured for Balducci, at least one of whom was studying for the priesthood.
The explosive claims about Balducci's private life have caused grave embarrassment to the Vatican, which has yet to publicly comment on the affair.
While Catholicism does not condemn homosexuality outright, its teaching is that homosexual acts "are intrinsically disordered". The Catechism of the Catholic church states unequivocally: "Under no circumstances can they be approved."
Balducci was arrested on 10 February, suspected of involvement in widespread corruption. A senior Italian government official, he is alleged to have to steered public works contracts towards favoured bidders. He has not been charged.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Catholicism has been a gay sex scandal for most of the past two millennia.
There you go. "Sin" consists in willingly engaging in an evil act, with the knowledge that it is evil. Homosexual acts are "intrinsically disordered ... contrary to the natural law" ..." That covers the "evil act" part. The Catechism is written to a Catholic audience, and should be interpreted from a Catholic POV. An action may be evil, disordered, even sinful ... but a specific instance of that action isn't an actual sin, unless the person who does it knows it's wrong and does it anyway. Lack of knowledge, and lack of consent may be mitigating factors in actual guilt.
From the Catechism:
2357 Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered." They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.
The Definition of Sin according to the Catechism:
1849 Sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature of man and injures human solidarity. It has been defined as "an utterance, a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law."
1850 Sin is an offense against God: "Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight." Sin sets itself against God's love for us and turns our hearts away from it. Like the first sin, it is disobedience, a revolt against God through the will to become "like gods," knowing and determining good and evil. Sin is thus "love of oneself even to contempt of God." In this proud self-exaltation, sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus, which achieves our salvation.
It comes down to the will. Man can do many things that are contrary to God's Will and Law... but to be sinful, the man must do it in knowing rebellion to or rejection of God. Therefore, an act--by itself--can be "disordered" and "against the natural law" but not necessarily sinful. The person committing the act makes it sinful by the participation of his will. Only God can judge the heart.
Well said.
Thank you. See also #42.
The definition of "gravely disordered" is a matter of common terminology used by moral theologians.
The Wikipedia article on the topic seems pretty complete and accurate to me.
BS! There are bad apples in every calling... but the Church has a high concentration of very good men and women united in their devotion to Christ. What you posted is a baseless slander.
Given that this story doesn't involve a priest, that would help in this case exactly how?
Perhaps Europeans should be allowed to marry. Oh...never mind.
Seriously, it is idiotic to think that homosexuals in the priesthood are sodomizing one another and others simply because they are forbidden to marry.
How do you explain public school teachers?
“It was during this investigation into corruption that wiretaps revealed his alleged sexual activity. In one conversation, Ehiem tells Balducci: “I saw your call when I was in the Vatican, because I was doing rehearsals … in the choir … in St Peter’s.” He then suggests Balducci meet a man who he describes is “two metres tall … 97 kilos … aged 33, completely active.”
Balducci is also a senior adviser to the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, the department that oversees the Roman Catholic church’s worldwide missionary activities.
Since 1995, he has been a member of one of the world’s most exclusive fraternities – the Gentlemen of His Holiness, or Papal Gentlemen, the ceremonial ushers of the papal household. In the words of a 1968 ordinance, they are expected to “distinguish themselves for the good of souls and the glory of the name of the Lord”.
“My sense is that enemies target with infiltration and embarrassment those groups that oppose them. Their hope is to: (1) be elevated to important positions from which they can change the policies of the organization, or (2) injure the organization.”
This is exactly how the sodomites and other leftists operate. The Catholics set the stage for trouble, however, with Vatican II.
All of the church, and not just the RC, needs to make it clear that homosexual acts, bestial acts, etc. are sin, what evils these deviants really are responsible for, and find them in our organizations and cast them out and make sure none slip back in.
Of course, many Catholics are in denial about this, although there are probably just as many who are disgusted, and want the "sisters" out of the Church.
I did not see that just an innocent reference to a Cardinal.
In January this year, the Carabinieri recorded an exchange in which Balducci and Ehiem discuss a seminarian, or student for the priesthood. Balducci is said to have asked: "Listen, have you spoken with the seminarian by any chance?" Ehiem says he is "probably at mass or something". On 11 January, Ehiem calls again to recommend "a colleague, a friend" of the seminarian because the latter is unavailable. He says the colleague is "better, taller, a bit taller than you". Later, Ehiem asks: "Can I send [him] around straight away?"
He asks where Balducci is. The adviser says: "Up at the seminary … where the cardinal lives." Ehiem replies: "He could get there within half an hour … the time it takes to catch a taxi and get there."
Boy from very religious families who didn't show a proclivity for women were/are often steered toward a priestly vocation. Many of these guys go in thinking that embracing the priesthood will cure them of their "urges." Once in the priesthood, the encounter others such as themselves, and the obvious happens.
Thanks, xzins. I think you are exactly right.
Of course, the Guardian is also entirely on the side of militant homosexuals and others who want to embarrass the Church, so they will make the most of something like this, as well.
Ironically, conservatives who seize on something like this to kick the church (Catholic or otherwise) are doing exactly what the secular left wants them to do.
Many of the replies to this thread read no different than if this article was posted on DU.
There have been sinners of every description in the Vatican for centuries.
In fact, I've heard that one of the worst sinners of all -- a guy Dante put at the bottom of hell, as the Devil's eternal chew-toy -- was sitting right there at the Last Supper, a few seats away from Jesus.
“An action may be evil, disordered, even sinful ... but a specific instance of that action isn't an actual sin, unless the person who does it knows it's wrong and does it anyway. Lack of knowledge, and lack of consent may be mitigating factors in actual guilt.”
It comes down to the will. Man can do many things that are contrary to God's Will and Law... but to be sinful, the man must do it in knowing rebellion to or rejection of God. Therefore, an act—by itself—can be “disordered” and “against the natural law” but not necessarily sinful. The person committing the act makes it sinful by the participation of his will. Only God can judge the heart.
Okay, I can buy that. Each of you are saying basically the same thing on this. Cool.
Do you think that all conservatives are smitten with religion?
Get out and about more - there is a big world out there.
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