Robin Williams Mocks Catholics Priests on Tonight Show

LifeSite ^ | June 19, 2007 | John Jalsevac

[NYer]

BURBANK, California, June 19, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) -  Last night on the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno," comedian Robin Williams plugged his upcoming movie, "License to Wed." In the film, Williams plays a Protestant minister who forces an engaged couple to go through a grueling marriage preparatory course. But last night Williams went off on Catholic priests, painting them as pedophiles.

Williams pretended to be playing a game where the pedophile is hidden under a cup, suggesting that this was an image of the Church's attitude towards dealing with "pedophile" priests. "Here we go. Find the priest, find the pedophile. Find the priest, find the pedophile. Here you go right now. Move 'em around, move 'em around. Oh, you found the pedophile."

Williams then put his hand over his groin, saying, "You have to realize that if you are a Catholic priest, you have retired this. That's it--no more sex." Then he took a shot at confession, saying "But they are going to put you in a small dark box and people are going to tell you the nastiest sexual stuff they have done."

This is not the only time that Williams has done this routine. In a MoviesOnline interview about his upcoming film, Williams launched into the same routine, also suggesting that the Church should repeal its teachings on priestly celibacy.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded to Williams' routine with outrage. "Isaiah Washington lashes out at one gay person in private, and he is banished from 'Grey's Anatomy.' Robin Williams lashes out against all priests in public, and he suffers no consequence," said Donahue. "To top it off, Williams suggests that most molesting priests are pedophiles, when in fact they are homosexuals. But to make a joke about gay priests could get him into trouble."

"One more thing," Donahue continued, "in an interview with MoviesOnline, Robin Williams recently said that 'you can't poke fun at certain religions,' noting that 'we just made major fun of the Catholic Church but hey, they don't blow you up.' So not only is Williams a bigot and a liar, he's a coward. No wonder he's so well received in Tinseltown."

In the lengthy MoviesOnline interview Williams was asked, "Have you had feedback from any religious groups about any of the religious jokes you've done in the past?"

He responded, "Oh yeah, you always do because organized religion, you can't poke fun at certain religions. Hence, right now [assumes Middle Eastern voice] if I was to dress you in a full Burka, someone would go, "What are you doing?" [normal voice] I mean it's difficult because you have to realize that we just made major fun of the Catholic church but hey, they don't blow you up. The Pope will just excommunicate and you know I haven't gotten a lot of communications originally from him so... "

[Aquinasfan]

By the close of Vatican II, the sex abuse was already in full throttle. If there’s a relationship between the post-Vatican reforms and an invasion of liberals or sexual deviants, the it’s that the deviants caused the post-Vatican reforms, and not the other way around.

I don't know. Who has numbers? Certainly, there are deviants in every profession, including ministers and teachers. The rate of sexual abuse by Catholic priests appears to be comparable.

Two things stand out about the most recent wave of publicity regarding sexual abuse of minors by Catholic priests; that the abused were overwhelmingly male teens, and that some bishops shuffled the abusers around.

I've read that the shuffling around of abusers dates back to the '40s and '50s, but I'm not aware of the magnitude of the practice. But homosexuals entering the priesthood seems to be fruit of the sexual revolution of the '60s. It would make sense, since nuns were rocked by feminism at about the same time.

I think Michael Rose traces the homosexual infiltration of the seminaries to the late '60s as well. Certainly, he emphasizes the use of psychological testing as a means of weeding out orthodox heterosexual seminarians by homosexual clergy. This didn't happen on a large scale until the 1970s, when modern psychology washed over society, and the seminaries.

[klossg]

why should this movie cause distress to a Catholic?

I didn't see the film. Just the coming attractions and I have heard about his Catholic riff. My bad.

I see the collar. I hear Robin's riff of shuffle-the-pediophile. I assume he is playing a Catholic priest in the movie. I can't be the only one. Heck, I'm sure you have also noticed that Catholic priests are the punch lines of most jokes today. But, I still am bummed that Robin takes the cheap shots at the Body of Christ (Protestant or Catholic) in the movie or not.

Are you upset that I might be bummed at this movie as a Catholic? Would my comments be okay if I were a Protestant? Are you checking ticket stubs? Hey ... Is that you mom?

[trisham]

Hey ... Is that you mom?

************

LOL! We should probably ask that question more often. :)

[Unam Sanctam]

He should go back to nanu-nanu...

[Eagle Eye]

Do you normally ask rhetorical questions?

[DTwistedSisterS]

It’s funny... my parents have never liked his comedy, and I was never too fond of him...

Yet another reason to dislike...

[MinuteGal]

I never liked him, either. There's something off-putting about Robin Williams. It's hard to warm up to him.

The last great comedian who could carry full movies of the kind Robin tries to make was Danny Kaye. Kaye had a special appeal that made you want to go to see all his movies.

That kind of talent doesn't exist any more, least of all in Williams.

Leni

[Eagle Eye]

Kaye could sing, dance, tell jokes and handle comedic sidekick roles. He was unique. 17621.

[condo_living_is_nice]

Pls add to my post, V. You’re 100% correct, in that I inadvertently-left those ‘traits’, out of Williams’ “attributes”, in my post.

Thanks.

[littlehouse36]

On a greater scale, I think self-sacrifice bothers those who are self-indulgent.

“Bring the troops home!” “Let the priests have sex!” Yeah, so the libs won’t feel so guilty.

[saradippity]

As long as man lives on earth,he will be tempted and, given his human nature,will often fall. It has happened since the beginning.

Different times and circumstances often mitigate,diminish and/or possibly eliminate certain sins from taking a hold in societies,institutions or nations. Nonetheless there have always been sinful behaviors among individuals that have gotten out of hand. The Church has not been immune to the effects of sin by its members;however,adherence to Christ's words,to Peter,to follow Him can produce a profound purity in those who choose Christ's way.

Clergy,who imitate Christ are incredible witnesses to Him. For that reason one of the goals of the enemy has always been to corrupt the clergy. One of the groups most dedicated to destroying the Body of Christ or the Catholic Church in the last century was communism.

One of the tactics that they used was to infiltrate the Church and place sympathizers or weak sisters in seminaries. Homosexuals were especially valuable because practicing homosexuals could be blackmailed and could also be used to create scandals which would place the Church in a position to be subject to public ridicule,disgust and opprobrium.

Efforts were made to recruit homosexuals,men who were able to go either way and also the weak sisters,who might be convinced,either to participate or be silent.

Bella Dodd who was vice chairman of the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) testified in the late forties that she had placed enough men in seminaries during the 30's to alter the entire Church by the seventies. (When she testified she had disavowed her party membership.)

So Dangus and Aquinas fan,you are both right but this last wave of homosexuality among the clergy (last century)probably started in earnest,shortly after our Lady's warning at Fatima in October of 1917,when she warned that the errors of Russia needed to be combated. It was very prophetic because shortly thereafter the Revolution came to Russia,the Tsar and his family were murdered and communism took hold which brought with it so many of the problems we are still facing.

With prayer and fasting this situation will resolve but we must always be on guard,to corrupt the clergy and get rid of the Pope are two lynch pins in the enemy's plan to destroy the Church. I always pray to God to help our priests and protect the Pope. Sorry this is so long but I wanted to put things into perspective,sometimes writing things out clears my head and reminds me of things I once saw clearly.

[dsc]

Can’t remember where I found it first, but here are two I just Googled.
http://www.coolnurse.com/consent.htm
http://teenadvice.about.com/library/weekly/qanda/blageofconsentchart.htm

(If you Google, watch out. One of the sites Google returns pops up hard-core imagages.)

[Nihil Obstat]

great point

[IrishBrigade]

Do you normally ask rhetorical questions?...

...I normally ask questions of those who make perceptibly dumb statements...

[Eagle Eye]

Don't start something that will get me suspended and you banned.

No other "Christian" organization has overseen the wholesale rape of countries as has the RC church.

Find an impoverished country loaded with corruption and you'll find the RC right in the "Christian" organization has seen more failures of morality within its own ranks as has the RC church. Read the RC Encyclopedia sometime.

So now that I know you're an apologist for this history and current activity, I'll just ensure you never get near me or my kids if I have anything to do about it.

Hey, have last word. Say what you want. No matter how badly you insult me, the truth about the RC is worse at least tenfold.

And be confident that I'll probably not even read your idiocy let alone respond to it.

[DustyRose59]

Thank you for the history lesson. I found that fascinating. Although, I am no longer a practicing catholic, I found most of the priests and nuns I came in contact with truly believed in the religion and did the best they could, given that they were still human. I have often thought that one of the reasons you hear of so many homosexuals in the priesthood is because these people were tortured souls that may have thought that going into the priesthood, where they had to take a vow of celibacy, would save them. They could turn their lives over to God and become something other than what they were. What they found is that they still had to fight their impulses and when they found they couldn’t, they may have realized that preying on these young boys might keep their secret safe. I don’t think in any way that Catholicism breeds homosexual behavior, I think it attracts the homosexuals trying to hide from themselves. A large number of them would probably be living “normal” (within the parameters of homosexuality)lives outside the secrecy of the priesthood. The fact that the Diosys protected them and hid the truth is an onus on the Diosys. But it’s not like we don’t see that exact same behavior in other fields. Doctors don’t report behaviors that could be potentially fatal to patients. Lawyers protect each other no matter how unethical the behavior. To single out the priesthood as abhorrent behavior to protect their own is unfair.

[logcabinman]

Just how the hell do you know this? Do you get a daily report from the 35000 separate denominations of Protestants? I am not criticizing my Christian brothers only those Catholic haters that know everything and try to confuse the issues by throwing grenades blindly into the crowd.

[ladyinred]

Not Catholic, but I find this so offensive! I am appalled that Leno would allow it actually. It is smut to begin with, and beyond despicable. I do not find Williams funny in the best of circumstances.

[ladyinred]

All Christians actually Saundra. Disgusting.