I think it is tragic that this is all finally being brought into the light at a point when John Paul II is so old. I think his influence on the College of Cardinals now is that of an old man who no longer has the clarity to see the need for the church to do a very contrite mea culpa.
We live in the era of revelation of the pecadellos of all those who, by tradition, are supposed to be above all that. It is nothing new. All that is new is the revelation. We didn't use to want to know the unpleasant little details of the lives of our leaders; that FDR was crippled, that his mistress was with him when he died, that Ike had a long term affair with his driver (female), that JFK consorted with Marilyn in a closet in the White House, that J. Edgar was a cross dresser who bet on fixed horse races, that Jimmy Swaggart really has no taste at all, and on and on.
Was it Ibsen who said that we all have a vital lie? We are being stripped of our old vital lies and going through the discomfort of having to make up new ones. What gross naievite to believe that men put in the position of priests are all going to behave in a completely ethical manner. Make a thief a priest and you now have an inside man.
I live in a very heavily Catholic area. Since childhood I have heard that the priesthood was a sanctuary for homosexuals. Yet the only person of status in a church who ever tried to put the full press on me was a Baptist Deacon. (I am male.)
This is not intended as an anti-religous rant but, in light of another set of sad realities about the nature of it emerging, isn't it time to look at the idea of relgion in a more utilitarian manner? There were times in the early modern evolution of society that the church was a valuable vehicle for change that genuinely benefited some less than enfranchised groups. Does it now? What have religious denominations, sects, etc. become?
Depending on how you group them, there are about two dozen wars going on right now. (http://www.historyguy.com/new_and_recent_conflicts.html#newandrecentcurrent) How many involve groups with different religious beliefs? From the Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland to the Moslems and the Christians in New York City and Afghanistan, religion certain is keeping the world from becoming too dull a place.
Doesn't the bible teach that homosexuality is a sin?
c.i.
The command from God concerning homosexuality is found in Leviticus, which is in the Torah ( The five books of Moses). :wink:
They problem may run deeper than we suspect ...
timber
This the second time I'm posting this opinion, but I would think it would be a very good idea for the catholic church to change this glass window. c.i.
Yeah, I dropped it into the Cardinal Law thread ...
On a serious note, the whole thing is about abdication of responsibility, as far as I can see. No one in a position to do so has stood up and said "This must not be". The concentration, rather, has been "This must not be disclosed". Some change is afoot, but real meaningful action will require a younger, more vigorous Pope. That is surely not too far off. The "Question of The American Church" will occupy The Curia intensively following the coronation of JPII's successor..
timber
