Catholics under pressure?

Just recently, we have had the Pope's butler imprisoned in the Vatican for leaking information about corruption in the Holy See, the Pope resigning amid the allegations that he swept reports of kiddy fiddling priests under the carpet, and now we have Cardinal Keith O'brian admitting his sexual conduct with other priests had at times "fallen beneath the standards expected of me".

Considering this man's stance on homosexuality, the hypocrisy beggars belief.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-21651568

My observations are that the powers that be in the Catholic faith cannot possibly instruct and advise their respective congregations with any moral compass or gravitas; that the recent glare of publicity has shown this mediaeval body is designed to control the many by a corrupt few and that the Catholic Church is now on such a decline as to never fully recover.

What say you?

Re: Catholics under pressure?

This morning I heard Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor being interviewed by John Humphrys on the Today programme and I was shocked at the Cardinals light hearted flippant attitude to all the questions that were put to him about the present troubles in the catholic church

This epitomised what seems to me to be the attitude of the catholic church, let's hush up any scandal and carry on as usual. They live a good life the catholic hierarchy and want for nothing, they don't want anything to change.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

I'm not that surprised at what goes on - people say that the Church doesn't move with the times but it certainly does. Churches, in medieval times, not only owned many brothels but, even with their celibacy regime, would often frequent the brothels and not pay because they owned them! They were quite happy, back then, to fund themselves from immoral earnings that they preached against.

It has always been about control and, sadly, the Church used to attract some men who needed to feel they had control over others - and they certainly exercised that need.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

The trouble with any organised religion IMO is they set themselves apart from the community they serve and set themselves unrealistic ideals to live up to. They forget the message in trying to execute the details.
Celibacy is great if you are a naturally celibate person, a nightmare that can lead to all sorts of problems if you are naturally so.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

Many years ago I worked for a lady who also employed a tiny catholic woman as her daily help, 'Mary' .

Mary was one of 12 children and had rickets as a child , consequently she was not very strong.
Mary only managed to produce one child and told me her priest had said if her husband couldn't do better he would have a go himself
I was shocked by the hypocracy of a priest pretending to be celibate.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

Being religious does not necessarily mean you're a good person .......and vice-versa.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

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And that applies to all the man made religions on the planet.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

The RC church hasn't moved on with the times we live in. My late Mum, who was a Catholic but changed her religion when she married my late Dad, always said it was a "dictatorship".

Priests should be allowed to marry - it isn't natural for the priests to be celebate all their lives.

That's my opinion though!

Re: Catholics under pressure?

The stricter the moral code a religion purports to impose, the more scope there is for hypocrisy. Just look at the appalling child abuse cases recently involving organised gangs of Muslims as well as the ongoing catholic scandals both historic and current. These religions are outdated relics of mediaeval ignorance and it is time they were consigned to history.

Re: Catholics under pressure?

No it's time they were encouraged by law if necessary to move forward into this century. Banning them will send them underground and if you think they are bad now just see what happens when that is done.