General Chat

John it is not just the catholic church - all denominations are guilty. It is not the catholic church that is now under scrutiny but christianity in general and rightly so

and not just religious organisations, as has been demonstrated over the past months - it seems anywhere where someone has power or control over people - the BBC, military organisations, choirs, sports clubs, schools, the list is endless

I was just going to make same point, AnnC. Stole my thunder :-D

Well said. It is a maga mega problem that few of us realised. And I cannot see it getting much better in the near future frankly. :-( :-(

I think the sad part is that the church was an organisation many thought they could turn to and yet the church seems to be central to many allegations.
It will need to do some serious backpeddling now just to stay afloat and convince people that it is genuine and not a thinly veiled alibi for abuse.

Retirement and becoming a recluse! I should cocoa :-( The police should be in there PDQ and make sure his retirement isn't in the least enjoyable or private.

Amen to that

Detractors of the Catholic Church are having a field-day. And who could blame them!

Especially for JLC's information & amusement or any other reader faintly interested in this sort of thing:-

Saturday evenings were important as far as the Church was concerned. Catholics were encouraged or browbeaten into confessing their sins on a regular basis. Saturday afternoons or early evenings were set aside by the Priests for this particular purpose, in readiness for Sunday morning Mass.

In my young days, there would be a queue sitting on a bench outside the Confessional Box early Saturday evenings waiting their turn for the Priest’s individual attention. The only queues I see these days are at the local superstore or football ground turnstiles.

The Confessional Box was inside the Church - about the size of Dr Who’s Tardis but without all the technical equipment - dark inside too. It was divided into two sections - one where the Priest would sit ready to hear the awful sins while the penitent parishioner mustered up as much sorrow for his/her misdeeds which he/she was obliged to declare there & then in the dubious privacy of the Tardis - sorry, I meant Confessional Box.

You tell Priest you have been naughty. There are grades of naughtiness too - a top ten list, you might say. The Priest would absolve the sins with encouraging words in Latin - it could be double Dutch as far as we were concerned & for penance, he would ask for a few prayers to be recited privately.

And, another thing, you always hoped the priest would not detain you too long inside this contraption with a never ending stream of wordy advice. The longer you were held 'in custody', the more embarrassed you felt having to amble past all your mates nearby waiting their turn. Red faces all round!

This task of confessions seems to be an extraordinary event as far as some non-Catholics of my acquaintance were concerned. They just cannot understand the theory of admitting our faults & failings to another human being & receiving a pardon. It’s not easy to explain & mostly I don’t try.

So, I had a wry smile when I read in one of the daily newspapers not so long ago that Catholics may be allowed to confess their misdeeds using their iPhone. This might appeal to those in outlying country areas where getting to the church & the confessional might be a problem particularly during Lent when the pub opening hours were curtailed for the duration.

'Text me Father, for I have sinned'. Receiving an electronic absolution without the usual embarrassment of having to face a Priest - sometimes one who knows you & your family very well - sounds like the answer. But, I suppose we’d still have to watch out just in case WikiLeaks steals & publishes our sinful minefield. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the Confessional Box was not the subject of hacking by those awful reporters we keep hearing about & whose articles we diligently read every day.

It’s not April 1st yet - is it? Begorrah!

As many of these Christian leaders (and not only Roman Catholics) look likely to be banged up for a few years in their old age. And show business folk. And politicians.

Can I suggest that they build 3 prisons on Scottish remote islands where the inmates can work on policy documents to:
1. Stop people in religious positions of authority from behaving in a horrible way to young people (minors and young impressionable adults)
2. Stop the drug and sex culture of the pop world
3. Stop politicians taking advantage of people. Perhaps insist that they sleep in a single bed when they are staying away on public money.

And if all that fails, bring in sharia law for a short or long time.

What is so sickening to me is that this man has been so vitriolic and outspoken against gay marriage and homosexuality. He has said the most appalling things which I won't repeat here.

He needs to apoligise to the newspaper he threatened to sue for having it exactly right.

I hope the young men press charges against the old hypocrite but I'm afraid they will be told to keep silent by the catholic church, par for the course.

excellent Guinevere

Dermot, I had completely forgotten about the confession app, here is an explanation of one:

Description



Designed to be used in the confessional, this app is the perfect aid for every penitent. With a personalized examination of conscience for each user, password protected profiles, and a step-by-step guide to the sacrament, this app invites Catholics to prayerfully prepare for and participate in the Rite of Penance. Individuals who have been away from the sacrament for some time will find Confession: A Roman Catholic App to be a useful and inviting tool.
The text of this app was developed in collaboration with Rev. Thomas G. Weinandy, OFM, Executive Director of the Secretariat for Doctrine and Pastoral Practices of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Rev. Dan Scheidt, pastor of Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Mishawaka, IN. The app received an imprimatur from Bishop Kevin C. Rhodes of the Diocese of Fort Wayne – South Bend. It is the first known imprimatur to be given for an Android app.

- Custom examination of Conscience based upon age, sex, and vocation (single, married, priest, or religious)
- Multiple user support with password protected accounts
- Ability to add sins not listed in standard examination of conscience to specific categories
- Ability to edit and delete items in the standard examination of conscience with the ability to restore back to the defaults.
- Confession walkthrough including time of last confession in days, weeks, months, and years
- Choose from 6 different acts of contrition

Having read all this, I,ve come to the conclusion that what has happened is what used to be called "A Cardinal Sin" **M**. :-0

I think there's been something of an over reaction to this...a top clergyman has made passes at young men...I don't know what world other people live in but that's no great shock to me....there were always teachers and priests and bosses who were creepy and lecherous...something in life most of us have had to deal with.

He's a hypocrite which makes his behaviour worse but he's not a paedophile or a murderer just another dirty old man in my book.

and the pope was aware of it before he stepped down,,,,,,,,why didnt he suspend him on the spot till all enquiries had taken place.

Now questions are being asked,

Has he dont it before,,,,,,will new accusations come out the wood work.time will see.

bit of a shaky leaf at the moment..



Why dont these people ever learn from all walks,,,,,,your actions will come back chomping at your heels one day.......

So he may be a gay priest with faulty 'gadar', does that make him a criminal?

He has obviously struggled over the years with his sexuality & has publicly denounced it as a sin.

Although not Catholic myself, I do believe that even having sexual thoughts about anyone other than your spouse is thought to be a sin to be confessed.

Those young priests, all over the age of consent, who outed him may or may not be gay, only they know their reasons for doing so.

Whether he admitted to the 'sins', he speaks about, in a Confessional Box, or did penance is between him & the person who took his confession.

He is a human being.

If he made unwanted "advances" then surely yes, he is a criminal.

Odd that it's all young priests that have come forward....if his *gaydar* was faulty he certainly picked the ones least likely to say anything.

Abuse of authority maybe?

If the police start rounding up everyone who's made unwanted advances, they're going to be very busy

as a priest, then as an archbishop and then as a cardinal - so over a very long time - his own words