Surprised? The Vatican Denies Claims of Cover-Up in Ireland

www.guardian.co.uk...

It found the diocese then failed to report nine out of 15 complaints made against priests between 1996 and 2005 which "very clearly should have been reported". The findings encouraged Irish politicians, led by Kenny, to claim the Vatican's letter had effectively crippled the Irish church's efforts to tackle the abuse within its ranks.

While the response conceded that the Vatican viewed the bishops' guidelines on police reporting as a mere "study document" and not binding, it stated that this was because Irish bishops had described it as such. "The [Vatican] congregation for the clergy did express reservations about mandatory reporting," it said, adding that this was only because of concerns of clashing with the work of church tribunals in rooting out paedophile priests. Fears were also raised that the Irish guidelines would overlap with new powers handed to US bishops by the Vatican to stamp out abuse, which were extended to Irish bishops in 1996. "Meeting canonical requirements to ensure the correct administration of justice within the church in no way precluded cooperation with the civil authorities," the Vatican document said.

After everything which has happened concerning priests and abuse, in the Catholic Church, I'd love for the Vatican to stand up and take responsibility just once. Makes me sick.

Their only power comes from what what we give them, The wheel turns (slowly) but from somebody who has lived through Ireland's past catholic addiction, I see only decline for their unyielding stances, pity their ignorance and turn your back on them. The disgusting antics (nothing changes much since the inquisition) of this cancerous corporation only opens the eyes of the enlightened. The flock will always follow the shepherd, no matter how cruel he is. Accept the sickening reality as your wake up call, and grow spirituality as an independent soul. If you really want to be sickened, research the history of the papacy and the political depths that it has plumbed.

Since the Vatican is the head of the snake, no, I am not that surprised...

GM

Originally posted by Grey Magic
Since the Vatican is the head of the snake, no, I am not that surprised...

GM

Well put.
And a poisonous snake it is. ( Best said in a Yoda voice)

Having access to that kind of wealth is all you need. Who can't you payoff? Who can't you have coerced or compromised, with that kind of Vatican money. Power. Hypocrisy. It's really, really unfortunate.

the church is good at 4 things. raping childern, lying, hypocrisy, and conning people out of money. why anyone would want to associate themselfs with these low life p.o.s is beyond me.

The media is clearly anti-catholic. They don't reported abuses outside the catholic church or give much attention to them. I think the main reason is because the catholic church is orthodox and sticks with traditions, and so don't have woman priests, are not pro-gray, are not pro-contraception, and don't concede their beliefs to popular philosophies like protestants do. In fact protestants are still mad about the inquisition, so even they, along with the liberal secularists, have an axe to grind with the church. They may not even be aware that they are biased.

reply to post by 547000


The media is anti-Catholic because they report the hypocrisy and crimes surrounding their clergy? If there is bias, i'd call it the "hey, look...more legitimate scandal, let's cover it" kind of bias... No, the Catholic Church doesn't quite stick with traditions as you say, being as they are written and edited with a pencil and eraser. Don't worry, E.T.'s and Catholicism are bros now. Personally, I don't think it comes down to the differences between religions, it comes down to what people consider disturbing and morally depleted. There are so many legal cases regarding the church because there are so many acts of misconduct performed and reported. I think all the litigation misconduct has a lot to do with the heightened media coverage also. It's about the victims seeking justice I would think, and the public's support. I really can't speak on the clash between the Protestants & Catholics though. If there is more or just as much evil-doing going on with the Protestants, how do you know? Or is the media downplaying it? I admit, I have no idea. I wonder if the whole vow of celibacy has any bearings on a lot of the kind of people who accept it. Obviously, in this religious realm, celibacy would only involve sexual relations between a man and a woman, so I'm beyond certain many homosexual and or pedo-minded clergy wouldn't mind taking that plunge.

Bottom line is, abuse is abuse and no assailant should be protected from justice by any means... ESPECIALLY from institutions who claim to be holy and intrinsically good. I'm sure there are a lot of injustices in other sects going on, and I do wish they'd be equally examined.

reply to post by BernardShakey


Oh come on, you're on ATS where people discuss possible agendas and motivations, and you can't see the clear motivation progressives and protestants have against catholicism? You simply have to google a few things to see that the problem is not restricted to the catholic church, yet they're the ones who get all the flake, and you know why? Because they're orthodox and it pisses progressives off.

reply to post by 547000


You don't need to remind me what forum I'm on, thanks. Your reply might as well have consisted of just: "C'moooooon." Making the argument that Catholicism is being targeted because of their being orthodox is a little ironic, considering Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism separated one thousand years ago. I suppose you mean they are more orthodox than others, though. How about that little thing called "doctrinal development"?
Sounds progressive to me. Some doctrines not taken from the Bible: the decree of celibacy, praying with rosary beads, the kissing of the pope's foot, the profiteering of selling 'indulgences', the authorization of the inquisition of heretics, confession of sins to a priest instead of God. It's as if the RC Church was progressive in it's own kinda way, but certainly not the in the liberal sense. When religious order impedes on an individual's rights or morals, those consciously affected might have something to say. If it ever turns out Martin Luther's progeny is in charge of the media's direction, then I apologize. I don't simply dismiss what you say though, there are culprits in all denominations, and they do not receive equal coverage and disdain. If a priest is guilty: Bam! "Take that Catholic church!" If a minister is guilty, it's more like "hey look, one bad Protestant." I do get that. It's not good.
Frankly, it doesn't matter to me who is exposing the truth in this case, as long as it creates awareness and confronts the seriousness of sex crimes, especially when being committed and covered up by the veil of holiness, through money/power/influence. Like I said, I do agree with you on the fact that coverage of these happenings aren't inclusive of everything going on, and all the different sects in which the guilty individuals are representing. With all the gloaming directed mostly at the Vatican, their 'the best offense is a good defense' stance isn't exactly working, IMO. I really think ex-Catholics and those opposed to organized religion are more of a problem to Catholicism's reputation than progressives/Protestants. In any case, at least they'd be the least hypocrisy ridden. Alas, I am aware of the conflicts you speak of, and I don't dismiss them. Not being privy to the broad spectrum of abuses happening doesn't excuse the epicenter of such kind of reported scandal to go without it's criticisms, especially with how these incidents are handled.

What we really need is an equal-opportunity excommunication walk-of-shame reality show. A place where we watch the robes burn and "BEWARE: Sex Offender" signs get staked into their respective lawns.