This recent Vatican story is remarkable.
Here’s the lead:
VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI lashed out Sunday at what he called the “deplorable” raids carried out by Belgian police who detained bishops, confiscated computers, opened a crypt and took church documents as part of an investigation into priestly sex abuse.
Benedict made a rare personal entry into the escalating diplomatic dispute with Belgium, issuing a message of solidarity to the head of the Belgian bishops’ conference and other bishops who were detained in the June 24 raid.
He said justice must take its course, but also asserted the right of the Catholic Church to investigate clerical abuse alongside civil law enforcement authorities.
Now, I acknowldge I am more Southern Baptist than Catholic, and more a follower of the Vague Church of The Great Light After You Die than either, but how does the Pope think his priests are above the law? Does he think every church is like an Indian Reservation, with its own law for small matters and the Federal Government doesn’t care enough about the big matters?
In addition, police opened at least one tomb of a prelate — a violation that has particularly galled the Vatican.
I hope they’re going after DNA evidence. Seriously, with the Baptists, even the suggestion you were wanted for questioning from the cops would lose you your deaconship. If the Baptists ran the Vatican, we be more than happy to welcome those priests back into the fold AFTER they got those allegations cleared up, until then, Father Who?
One a related note, has anyone else missed Father Guido Sarducci as much as I have?
13 responses to “Let Me At the Pope, I Want to Smack Him.”
Thank you for the clip – loved it!
I know. I’ve missed him so…
I knew that man was trouble the moment I laid eyes on him. Specifically, on his eyes: you don’t get black rings like that by being pure.
Yeah, and what’s with the US armed forces doing their own court-martials, huh? Oh, those wicked, wicked people.
Big dot- I dunno, I have pretty dark rings and I am pure…
Becs – I think what I’m looking for is the thing the military police does well -punishment.
I’ve always thought of the Catholic church, as an institution, as “evil, with an eye towards world domination”. This does not make me well liked amongst Catholics. The thing is, see, it’s not the religion that I think is evil, it’s the people who wind up being in charge of it.
Trust me, I’m evil with an eye towards world domination. I recognize it when I see it.
Tami – well, that is harsh! Luckily, there are very few at the top of the hierarchy. I just think the pedophiles are evil, and anyone who aids and abets them. Again, a very small demographic of the whole.
I’ve eyed a pedophile or more, in my days as a prison educator. As my favorite prison guard put it, “They ain’t exactly the cream of the crop.”
Hattie – I think I was 40 before I learned about my great-uncle the pedophile who was incarcerated in the mental health hospital. And I would NEVER have known if another great-uncle hadn’t stopped by for a visit.
Looking at what I said, I’d like to point out that I do NOT think of the average Catholic person as evil. It’s the people who think that the Church has the right to investigate illegal matters without interference from the legal authorities, or that those authorities are obligated to inform the Pope about their investigations. That’s just not how it works.
Tami – what about the above average Catholic person?
Do you mean height?
Tami – GPA