In different parts on the article Laicizing bishops;...a commenter wrote an article himself he was obliged to put in pieces in the comments. This is such a horrible and wicked issue in our nation today, something HAS to be done. The Lord created reasoning and logic and brought us peacefulness with secular laws and religious tolerance. Any religion that seeks power and money in ownership of our nation is to my understanding domestic-terrorism.
This is the Article: here
PAPAL STRATEGY&CHILD ABUSE-9
Submitted by Jerry Slevin (not verified) on Apr. 21, 2011.
PAPAL STRATEGY&CHILD ABUSE-9 --This continues and completes my 8 comments above on Papal Strategy. The current Papal Strategy, as indicated in my 8 comments above, is now evidentally clear, even though the Vatican so far has managed to keep its abusive priest files secret and to shield the pope and relevant Curial decision makers from direct questions from determined journalists. The Vatican press officer, Fr. Lombardi, gets his information only through Curial intermediaries. He does not speak directly to the pope. This evasionary approach is unheard of in other government and corporate press offices. Presumably, the pope's outside lawyers have cautioned him to avoid making any statements to anyone that may later be used in a criminal prosecution. Similarly, in the US most bishops avoid speaking to the press unless it is a carefully controlled interview with a "friendly" reporter who provides his questions in advance. This papal strategy is reinforced with doctrinal positions and liturgical approaches that emphasize the uniqueness and high status of clerics, the lower status of the laity and the purported mystical quality of the pope--almost a form of "popalatry". Ecumenical efforts are in effect at a standstill. They were in many ways victim of their own success. The more these efforts established that other religions offered valid modes of worship, the more they made it easier for disenchanted Catholics to switch to them. Ironically, the abuse scandal has enhanced the Vatican's control over clerics, especially bishops, since Benard Law showed it is the legal sanctuary of last resort. The papal strategy is now pretty evident. Move the Church steadily toward a smaller, tightly controlled, organization with a supreme papal monarch and elevated Curia, obedient clerics and a docile laity. Unlike for-profit corporations that need ever increasing revenues to increase their earnings per share and stock prices, the hierarchy just needs enough money to provide a comfortable lifestyle for bishops, basic support for priests and enough left over to pay their skyrocketing legal expenses. If cash is tight in a particular diocese, expenses can be reduced by closing parishes and schools and selling other non-essential Church property. Financially, this will work so long as docile Catholics keep contributing and legal expenses do not bankrupt too many dioceses. A significant portion of the hierarchy's funding comes from very wealthy Catholics who like to socialize with bishops. For example, Cardinal Levada will speak in a few weeks at Ave Maria University which is funded mainly by Pizza Hut's founder, a major financial supporter of the Vatican and American bishops. These wealthy Catholics to date have made few demands on the bishops to reform the Church and are unlikely to do so anytime soon. Many of them like the bishops' support for Republicans who keep these contributors' income taxes low. The Republicans then every four years make mostly unkept promises on social value issues that reinforce the bishops' rigid sexual doctrines. In return, these political leaders keep the prosecutors away from the bishops and reject laws that would increase civil liabilities or criminal penalties for sexually abusing children. Many Democrats have a similar approach, and will not stand up, to the bishops, even to protect defenseless children. Given the Democrats social values platform, the Democrats cannot ever hope to get the bishops' overt support, but do hope at least to avoid their public opposition. To date the abuse scandal mainly has cost the US Church over $10 billion dollars--$3 billion in legal and settlement costs and over $7 billion in lost contributions over time from the more than 30 million US Catholics that have left the Church. The more important statistic is the more than 100,000 Catholics personally suffering because of this rampant sexual abuse. This includes reported victims, projected unreported victims and their families and loved ones. Most of the victims were young children who were taught to view a priest as God on earth, to be completely trusted. Will the current papal stategy succeed? Certainly not. As the totalitarian regimes in Wojtyla's Poland and in Ratzinger's Germany failed, so will the papal monarchy. While the Vatican now is free of invasions by more powerful European monarchs and has at present complete control of its bishops, its current strategy will not survive the relentless rule of law that is increasingly moving in on the hierarchy and even on powerful priest abusers. In Philly, two Cardinals are at legal risk. In Belgium, the longest serving bishop is at legal risk. The pope is currently under charges before the prosecutor for the International Criminal Court. In Chile a powerful priest is under investigation and the prosecutor just seized all his lawyers' files, including records relating to recent canon law proceedings in Rome. In Ireland Judge Murphy's report through 2009 of the sexual abuses in Cloyne (Cork) is about to be released. The Cork bishop, John Magee, was a long time personal secretary to Montini and Wojtyla. After seven years of service, Wojtyla inexplicably exiled him to a minor Irish diocese. Magee spent twenty years on the papal staff working alongside Riglai. They both appear to have learned the Vatican's management style of secrecy and unaccountability. Rigali was Archbishop Dolan's episcopal mentor in St. Louis and presumably gave him some papal management lessons. Whether Magee will be the first Irish bishop to face a criminal prosecuton is uncertain. There is a new Irish government that does not appear hesitant to take on the Irish bishops. With this current papal strategy, what are Catholics' options? Catholics can continue with the Church, but cease contributions to bishops and keep close tabs on their young children. They can switch to safer Christian denominations as millions of other Catholics already have. They can try to take legal control of their parishes from their bishops as more and more Catholics are already doing. They can also ratchet up the pressure by public demonstrations against their bishops and personal protests to their local priests. If, as appears inevitable, some in the hierarchy are convicted and imprisoned in due course, some bishops may speak out since it will then become clear that not even unlimited funds for lawyers can protect them. That is it from me for now. As a cradle Catholic son of Irish immigrants, I have found writing these comments painful at times. With 16 years of Catholic school education before attending Harvard Law School, I knew some very good Sisters of St. Joseph, Christian Brothers and Dominican priests. I also knew some bad ones. The good ones need our continued respect and support, but they all must speak out forcefully and often as well. The high level of abuse could not have occurred without many, many other clerics taking notice of it and looking the other way. This too must end. I am now retired with six grandchildren, four in the Philly area. I want my grandchildren to be able to approach our God safely. I want abuse victims comforted, respected and compensated. I want criminal clerics fully prosecuted. I want good clerics supported. The Church must change and it will. The current papal strategy is doomed to fail. Have a blessed Easter and ask God's help to change our Church, to comfort victims and to forgive the contrite among us for our failures in letting this abuse debacle go on for so long. Pax.
This is the Article: here
PAPAL STRATEGY&CHILD ABUSE-9
Submitted by Jerry Slevin (not verified) on Apr. 21, 2011.
PAPAL STRATEGY&CHILD ABUSE-9 --This continues and completes my 8 comments above on Papal Strategy. The current Papal Strategy, as indicated in my 8 comments above, is now evidentally clear, even though the Vatican so far has managed to keep its abusive priest files secret and to shield the pope and relevant Curial decision makers from direct questions from determined journalists. The Vatican press officer, Fr. Lombardi, gets his information only through Curial intermediaries. He does not speak directly to the pope. This evasionary approach is unheard of in other government and corporate press offices. Presumably, the pope's outside lawyers have cautioned him to avoid making any statements to anyone that may later be used in a criminal prosecution. Similarly, in the US most bishops avoid speaking to the press unless it is a carefully controlled interview with a "friendly" reporter who provides his questions in advance. This papal strategy is reinforced with doctrinal positions and liturgical approaches that emphasize the uniqueness and high status of clerics, the lower status of the laity and the purported mystical quality of the pope--almost a form of "popalatry". Ecumenical efforts are in effect at a standstill. They were in many ways victim of their own success. The more these efforts established that other religions offered valid modes of worship, the more they made it easier for disenchanted Catholics to switch to them. Ironically, the abuse scandal has enhanced the Vatican's control over clerics, especially bishops, since Benard Law showed it is the legal sanctuary of last resort. The papal strategy is now pretty evident. Move the Church steadily toward a smaller, tightly controlled, organization with a supreme papal monarch and elevated Curia, obedient clerics and a docile laity. Unlike for-profit corporations that need ever increasing revenues to increase their earnings per share and stock prices, the hierarchy just needs enough money to provide a comfortable lifestyle for bishops, basic support for priests and enough left over to pay their skyrocketing legal expenses. If cash is tight in a particular diocese, expenses can be reduced by closing parishes and schools and selling other non-essential Church property. Financially, this will work so long as docile Catholics keep contributing and legal expenses do not bankrupt too many dioceses. A significant portion of the hierarchy's funding comes from very wealthy Catholics who like to socialize with bishops. For example, Cardinal Levada will speak in a few weeks at Ave Maria University which is funded mainly by Pizza Hut's founder, a major financial supporter of the Vatican and American bishops. These wealthy Catholics to date have made few demands on the bishops to reform the Church and are unlikely to do so anytime soon. Many of them like the bishops' support for Republicans who keep these contributors' income taxes low. The Republicans then every four years make mostly unkept promises on social value issues that reinforce the bishops' rigid sexual doctrines. In return, these political leaders keep the prosecutors away from the bishops and reject laws that would increase civil liabilities or criminal penalties for sexually abusing children. Many Democrats have a similar approach, and will not stand up, to the bishops, even to protect defenseless children. Given the Democrats social values platform, the Democrats cannot ever hope to get the bishops' overt support, but do hope at least to avoid their public opposition. To date the abuse scandal mainly has cost the US Church over $10 billion dollars--$3 billion in legal and settlement costs and over $7 billion in lost contributions over time from the more than 30 million US Catholics that have left the Church. The more important statistic is the more than 100,000 Catholics personally suffering because of this rampant sexual abuse. This includes reported victims, projected unreported victims and their families and loved ones. Most of the victims were young children who were taught to view a priest as God on earth, to be completely trusted. Will the current papal stategy succeed? Certainly not. As the totalitarian regimes in Wojtyla's Poland and in Ratzinger's Germany failed, so will the papal monarchy. While the Vatican now is free of invasions by more powerful European monarchs and has at present complete control of its bishops, its current strategy will not survive the relentless rule of law that is increasingly moving in on the hierarchy and even on powerful priest abusers. In Philly, two Cardinals are at legal risk. In Belgium, the longest serving bishop is at legal risk. The pope is currently under charges before the prosecutor for the International Criminal Court. In Chile a powerful priest is under investigation and the prosecutor just seized all his lawyers' files, including records relating to recent canon law proceedings in Rome. In Ireland Judge Murphy's report through 2009 of the sexual abuses in Cloyne (Cork) is about to be released. The Cork bishop, John Magee, was a long time personal secretary to Montini and Wojtyla. After seven years of service, Wojtyla inexplicably exiled him to a minor Irish diocese. Magee spent twenty years on the papal staff working alongside Riglai. They both appear to have learned the Vatican's management style of secrecy and unaccountability. Rigali was Archbishop Dolan's episcopal mentor in St. Louis and presumably gave him some papal management lessons. Whether Magee will be the first Irish bishop to face a criminal prosecuton is uncertain. There is a new Irish government that does not appear hesitant to take on the Irish bishops. With this current papal strategy, what are Catholics' options? Catholics can continue with the Church, but cease contributions to bishops and keep close tabs on their young children. They can switch to safer Christian denominations as millions of other Catholics already have. They can try to take legal control of their parishes from their bishops as more and more Catholics are already doing. They can also ratchet up the pressure by public demonstrations against their bishops and personal protests to their local priests. If, as appears inevitable, some in the hierarchy are convicted and imprisoned in due course, some bishops may speak out since it will then become clear that not even unlimited funds for lawyers can protect them. That is it from me for now. As a cradle Catholic son of Irish immigrants, I have found writing these comments painful at times. With 16 years of Catholic school education before attending Harvard Law School, I knew some very good Sisters of St. Joseph, Christian Brothers and Dominican priests. I also knew some bad ones. The good ones need our continued respect and support, but they all must speak out forcefully and often as well. The high level of abuse could not have occurred without many, many other clerics taking notice of it and looking the other way. This too must end. I am now retired with six grandchildren, four in the Philly area. I want my grandchildren to be able to approach our God safely. I want abuse victims comforted, respected and compensated. I want criminal clerics fully prosecuted. I want good clerics supported. The Church must change and it will. The current papal strategy is doomed to fail. Have a blessed Easter and ask God's help to change our Church, to comfort victims and to forgive the contrite among us for our failures in letting this abuse debacle go on for so long. Pax.
(I pray this issue is put to rest and justice reigns in GOD'S name once again in America.)
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