I suspect some readers of this blog tire of my focus on the Roman Catholic Church and it's sex abuse scandal that keeps on exploding across the globe. But in my view, given the Catholic Church's role in passage of Proposition 8, the repeal of marriage equality in Maine, opposition to marriage equality in Washington, D.C., and now support for reparative therapy in some U.S. dioceses, it is critical that the larger public be forced to face the fact that the Catholic Church has zero credibility on issues of morality and that instead of fawning over Pope Benedict XVI and the "princes of the Church" they ought to be calling for them to be prosecuted and jailed not only in Ireland, but also Canada, the USA, Australia and other countries where the patterns of abuse and cover up were identical. My other concern is also the fact that until the Church hierarchy is discredited, added generations of gay Catholics will be harmed by the Church's toxic anti-gay rhetoric. Here are some highlights from IrishCentral.com of one Irish priest who is blaming the Vatican for directing the world wide cover up efforts:*
One of Ireland's best-loved priests, Father Brian D'Arcy, has called for the resignation of clergy who knowingly covered up for child sex-abuse priests. Five bishops who once served in the Dublin Archdiocese when the abuse was taking place and took no action have faced resignation calls over the Murphy Report, which found child sex-abuse rampant.
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D'Arcy, a well-known media figure and commentator, said the findings of the Murphy Report were "absolutely sickening." And he said that when he served on the Council of Priests in Dublin during the 1990s, he never even "heard a hint" of accusations of abuse. "This is not just in the Diocese, this goes right to the top in Rome," he said.
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"I must have read about a dozen reports from all over the world, from Boston right through to the Ryan Report, the Ferns report, the Dublin report and reports from Australia, and they seem just the same," he told the the "Eamonn Keane Show" on Newstalk Radio
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Opposition leader Enda Kenny head of Fine Gael has already called on the Bishops to step down. "In my view, from the point of view of personal leadership, of Church integrity, to have any semblance of moral authority to lead, people who were in positions and are still in positions should not continue in those positions," said Kenny.
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Meanwhile, the Church continues to reel from the Murphy Report last week, which found child sex-abuse rampant in Dublin Archdiocese. Eighty new cases of alleged abuse by priests in Irish dioceses will be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions, it has been learned. The files have been sent by a new police team which is specializing in investigating clerical sex-abuse cases. The cases are said to be drawn from all over the country and to involve clergy at all levels.
One of Ireland's best-loved priests, Father Brian D'Arcy, has called for the resignation of clergy who knowingly covered up for child sex-abuse priests. Five bishops who once served in the Dublin Archdiocese when the abuse was taking place and took no action have faced resignation calls over the Murphy Report, which found child sex-abuse rampant.
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D'Arcy, a well-known media figure and commentator, said the findings of the Murphy Report were "absolutely sickening." And he said that when he served on the Council of Priests in Dublin during the 1990s, he never even "heard a hint" of accusations of abuse. "This is not just in the Diocese, this goes right to the top in Rome," he said.
*
"I must have read about a dozen reports from all over the world, from Boston right through to the Ryan Report, the Ferns report, the Dublin report and reports from Australia, and they seem just the same," he told the the "Eamonn Keane Show" on Newstalk Radio
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Opposition leader Enda Kenny head of Fine Gael has already called on the Bishops to step down. "In my view, from the point of view of personal leadership, of Church integrity, to have any semblance of moral authority to lead, people who were in positions and are still in positions should not continue in those positions," said Kenny.
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Meanwhile, the Church continues to reel from the Murphy Report last week, which found child sex-abuse rampant in Dublin Archdiocese. Eighty new cases of alleged abuse by priests in Irish dioceses will be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions, it has been learned. The files have been sent by a new police team which is specializing in investigating clerical sex-abuse cases. The cases are said to be drawn from all over the country and to involve clergy at all levels.
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Would that there were more American politicians willing to call for the resignation of the large numbers of U.S. bishops involved in the sex abuse scandal cover ups to resign. Or better yet, call for their criminal prosecution.
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