Holy Betrayal
- Rex Weyler
- | 07 Feb 2008
- | 21 comments
Journal of the mental environment
Photo: FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP/Getty Images
Dear Mr. Josef Ratzinger:
You are the Pope now and according to La Civilta Cattolica you are the “upholder of justice, and the protector of the oppressed.”
As leader of your institution, what you are doing to bring the serial molesters in your churches to justice? What are you doing to protect their victims?
What justice will you impose on Marcial Maciel Degollado offered his young seminarians absolution for their youthful sins, and claimed to possess a papal dispensation for his sordid sex games? His victims wrote to you and begged you to act. What comfort will you offer them?
Your silence betrays them and betrays Jesus, who said, “Be as a child.”
What justice will you recommend for the 63 pedophile priests and Cardinals Anthony Bevilacqua and John Krol in Philadelphia? What justice for those under your direction who covered up the crimes, and moved the molesters from parish to parish, to stalk new victims?
When Cardinal Bernard Law could not longer hide the pedophiles in his Boston archdiocese, you anointed him as archpriest at St. Mary Major Basilica in the Vatican. Is this your justice? What would dear Mary say? What will you do for the wounded casualties?
How will you compensate the victims of the Rev. Bruce Ritter in New York, military chaplain Robert Peebles in Texas, Archbishop Juliusz Paetz in Poland, Bishop Franziskus Eisenbach in Germany, and victims of sodomy rings run by the Christian Brothers in Canada and Australia?
Mr. Ratzinger, your flock awaits divine justice. You said you talked to God and he told you that people shouldn’t wear condoms when having sex. What did he say about your priests, bishops and Cardinals who have abused millions of innocents worldwide? Did God suggest recompense to the casualties? What justice for the perpetrators? What justice for those who covered up the crimes? What justice for you, who sits at the head of this ring of institutionalized child abuse?
You haven’t said a word to comfort these victims, and your silence erodes the faith of your flock. Can you imagine the embarrassment to your faithful priests whose vocation is devastated? Will you apologize to the honest Catholics whose religion has been mocked? Can you see how these crimes tarnish the name of Jesus for all Christian believers? Are you not aware of the horror of every single human whose sense of common decency is shattered by these crimes?
Humanity longs for a spirituality of justice and common decency. Jesus healed people, shared food, comforted the poor and gave hope to society’s outcasts. This is spirituality in practice. Justice here and now. This is the spirituality of Jesus, Francis of Assisi, Gandhi, Buddha and Aung San Suu Kyi. What can you offer the suffering of this world that truly honors the example of Jesus?
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Comments
This is an unfair letter. Every effort has been done in the United States to punish the guilty and to handle them to justice.
I am Christian, born and raised in America's heartland. I am not Catholic, or Lutheran, or Methodist, or any such denomination. Just Christian. I thank the author of this article for posting it. The fact is no one is perfect, but this does not offer a chance for people to commit such sick acts as these. I hope that all the atheists and anyone who is pointing their plastic finger realize this. It isn't the institution that is out of touch, it's the usurpers who warp it and give it a bad name. All of this aside, these men need to be punished. It doesnt matter if these men are the head of all Catholicism. They are not above the law.
The discussion, while necessary is both heartbreaking and frustrating. The Holy Father is one of God's greatest instruments for unholding justice. The cries of anguish of these victims breaks my heart. But the posts that put down Christianity the Church of God are also quite sad. Do not reject Christ and his church because of the sins of these priests. People use these awful sins as a excuse for pushing a God they already reject even further away. It is so sad to me that people think Catholics justify these actions when we do not. Gos is a righteous judge and He will make all this pain and suffering right, that is my firm hope. These preists are sinners but then again so I am. Let she who is without sins cast the first stone. taunia3web.com
The day that the spiritual, honest, God-fearing Christians get fed up with all of the corruption in their religion and stumble upon true Islam... this country and this world will change for the better.
The Catholic Church, as well as the entire Christian religion, is so out of touch with reality it's not funny. No wonder I went atheist.
I must say that this article is exceptional! The way you take on this subject is far different from those who point fingers. Instead you pose a question and await the answer while still bringing a sense of responsibility at the hands of the pope. I am an atheist who was raised in a Catholic home and have seen the good and bad of catholicism. Most believers are inherently good and do not take things literally. It is the people who do speak in literal terms that are dangerous. I believe Pope Benedict is one such person. If rape is condoned in the bible and then taken into literal context in the physical world it does not surprise me the Pope remains silent on this subject.
It truly is a shame that not all people can be sensible and see this as the crime it is.
Every organization has a certain percentage of problematic associates. To constantly bash and drag the Catholic Church through the media mud is tantamount to simply trying to sully a brand, like Coke or McDonalds. Perhaps you're a hater of this belief system? And you have a personal axe to grind?
2ndly, virtually all these abuses occured more than 40 years ago, yet they are served up in the media with headlines that scream as if they were happening today.
What does the Pope of today have to do with things that happened 40 years ago? The church is the people it is not the architecture. What do they have to do with things that happened 40 years ago?
Your tripe is just offensive hate speech cloaked as genuine concern.
One can also mention and remember the thousands of Native Amercian children in Quebec who were torn away from their families and systematically abused by the priests, who ran the boarding schools that the children were forced to attend. Their wounds have to yet healed and the Church has for long ignored their suffering.
Fortunatly, we have journalists such as Rex who are brave enough to put the truth out there. I for one am very grateful for his wisdom and ability to speak so well for so many of us!
Unfortunately, the one papal resolulion to come out of this scandal is to ban young gay men with a sincere and holy vocation from entering the priesthood, as if they are the ones to
blame.
I just want to say I agree with you and that I'm one of those faithful Catholics who feels betrayed.
i must disagree with maria. it is unfortunate that events such as this occur within such organisations, as well as society. a well written article that highlights unwanted minority occurences and the damning affect that they posses on an overall image. the sooner they are brought to light, the sooner they can be dealt with with approval from all, not just one.
Barry McD related this article to the same as 'bashing' a brand and as a cloaked hatred. Your view is sound in that a number of organisations have a dark factor, but the reason for the targeting of the church is not due to hate, but due primarily what the church is meant to represent. Its meant symbolise help and shelter, protection and support for the needy and the poor on various levels. This is why such horrific events are brought to light because it goes completely against expectations of the overall goal.Many other organisations due not play as sensitive a part in the lives of others, hence the reason for their more minor coverage, an another aspect i believe should be changed.
When you study the history of the church you can only end up hating it. The sheltering of sex offenders is only one of the many crimes the church is guilty.
I was born in Quebec, Canada and raised in a very strict Catholic family. Unfortunately because of the crimes that these priest's committed I no longer attend church, I have not baptized my daughter and will never do so. I am now losing my faith completely! If the Pope does not do something to these offending priest's I am sure they will lose members of churches everywhere! It sickens me to think that a priest, a person you are to wholly trust without question takes advantage of that trust and sexually assaults our children! What does the bible say an eye for an eye well I think justice should be served as an eye for an eye... How would they like to be on the receiving end? Put them in prison, in the general population and let the other prisoners deal out some justice for these children! I don't think the Pope intends to do anything about this other than shuffle these priests criminals around to other churches. And why let him get away with this?!! Don't we have a justice system? YES!! SO LET'S USE IT!! Lock them up!!
Why anyone here is defending the Vatican and the Pope in this instance is beyond me. These people raped and tortured children and some people have the audacity to say enough, leave the church alone. Essentially implying that those who have been hurt have no right to seek out justice. I don't know how being appointed to a post at the Vatican is justice for Cardinal Law. The Pope is just as much complicit for these acts because of his silent acceptance and refusal to address the situation. The victims have every right to justice. Further failure to address the situation by the Pope, however, will further erode people's faith in the church if there's any left at all, I became an atheist long ago after being raised Catholic.
Surely one hell of a mess!
Institutionalized religion must be abandoned if the leaders do not recognize the wrong in their actions. We do not seem to be able to achieve a God-like leadership.
Amen.
Ignorance is bliss, Thank you for thinking and asking questions. Why has the catholic church and it's missionaries been so successful at the genocide of peoples on every continent for the last 2000 years? No GOOD person would attempt to defend, justify, or sanctify these actions and blatent method of operation. To Maria and Barry We SEE THROUGH YOU and find you GUILTY. Ignorance is not an excuse that is accepted in any Court of Law.
Did you send it to anyone in the church, especially the pope, or just print it in Adbusters, something I doubt the vatican subscribes to.
i have always been scared to live up to something that was man made speaking about god and this is why. If someone told me i spoke to god and he told me to do this i wouldn't be able to believe that person. how can a man made object tell you what to do? this is sick. no one should take advantage of ANYONE because god told them they could. It's complete bullshit.