ARREST THE POPE?
Arrest the Pope?
As outrage mounted over the latest Catholic Church sex scandal, writer Christopher Hitchens called for the arrest of Pope Benedict XVI, and singer Sinead O’Connor said the pope should face a criminal investigation.
Protesters rallied outside the Vatican, angry that an office under his command had stopped the prosecution in 1996 of Wisconsin priest Lawrence Murphy, who admitted molesting 200 boys at a school for the deaf where he worked for 20 years…..Source: ABC News
Here we have the Archbishop Ratzinger (future Pope Benedict) that sends out a letter to Catholic Bishops asking for secrecy in claims of child sexual abuse cases.
See A ‘Pontifical Secret,’ Ratzinger’s 2001 Letter Ordered Bishops to be Quiet on Sex Abuse
Instead, these cases should have been reported to law enforcement and all of the documentation should have been turned over to the police. In the US we have strict laws in most states on child sexual abuse reporting.
….Every State, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories have statutes that identify persons who are required to report child maltreatment under specific circumstances.1 Approximately 26 States currently include members of the clergy among those professionals specifically mandated by law to report known or suspected instances of child abuse or neglect.2 In approximately 18 States and Puerto Rico, any person who suspects child abuse or neglect is required to report.3 …..Source: Child Welfare.gov
But Archbishop Ratzinger is into secrecy, even when tens of thousands of little children suffer.
Now that is not only christ like, it is immoral and illegal in most states not to report sexual abuse (even if you are a priest, counselor, psychologist, etc.) .
So the right thing for the Ratzinger and the Church was to follow most legal requirements and report suspected child sexual abuse.
But we also have a specific example of hundreds of boys being molested at a school for deaf students and it was reported to the Vatican and Ratzinger’s office numerous times.
Nothing was done.
See Warnings of Sexual Abuse by Priest of Deaf Students fell on the Deaf Ears of Ratzinger
It is clear the Pope is outside of the law of the United States. But he is not outside of our moral condemnation and judgement. We could say this is a church matter and leave it at that. But that would obviously be wrong.
When the actions of the Catholic Church have injured so many children across the globe then it is up to all people to condemn the Church and to demand justice for those abused.
The abuse and cover-up has clearly been going on for decades and it is time to end it all now at the beginning of this decade.
A good first step would be for Catholics to demand that the Pope and the Church be held to accepted standards of ethical behavior. The Pope, at the very least, should resign and there should be an open investigation of the Church and its conduct by an outside governing agency. This would go a long way toward showing the public that the Church is serious about protecting the little ones and correcting crimes against humanity.
Jesus is quoted as saying, “Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.” The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the little ones, the poor, the downtrodden, the suffering and it should be the Church’s responsibility to protect and to serve those of the Kingdom–not to abuse them or to cover up that abuse. By Grant Lawrence
As outrage mounted over the latest Catholic Church sex scandal, writer Christopher Hitchens called for the arrest of Pope Benedict XVI, and singer Sinead O’Connor said the pope should face a criminal investigation.
Protesters rallied outside the Vatican, angry that an office under his command had stopped the prosecution in 1996 of Wisconsin priest Lawrence Murphy, who admitted molesting 200 boys at a school for the deaf where he worked for 20 years…..Source: ABC News
Here we have the Archbishop Ratzinger (future Pope Benedict) that sends out a letter to Catholic Bishops asking for secrecy in claims of child sexual abuse cases.
See A ‘Pontifical Secret,’ Ratzinger’s 2001 Letter Ordered Bishops to be Quiet on Sex Abuse
Instead, these cases should have been reported to law enforcement and all of the documentation should have been turned over to the police. In the US we have strict laws in most states on child sexual abuse reporting.
….Every State, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories have statutes that identify persons who are required to report child maltreatment under specific circumstances.1 Approximately 26 States currently include members of the clergy among those professionals specifically mandated by law to report known or suspected instances of child abuse or neglect.2 In approximately 18 States and Puerto Rico, any person who suspects child abuse or neglect is required to report.3 …..Source: Child Welfare.gov
But Archbishop Ratzinger is into secrecy, even when tens of thousands of little children suffer.
Now that is not only christ like, it is immoral and illegal in most states not to report sexual abuse (even if you are a priest, counselor, psychologist, etc.) .
So the right thing for the Ratzinger and the Church was to follow most legal requirements and report suspected child sexual abuse.
But we also have a specific example of hundreds of boys being molested at a school for deaf students and it was reported to the Vatican and Ratzinger’s office numerous times.
Nothing was done.
See Warnings of Sexual Abuse by Priest of Deaf Students fell on the Deaf Ears of Ratzinger
It is clear the Pope is outside of the law of the United States. But he is not outside of our moral condemnation and judgement. We could say this is a church matter and leave it at that. But that would obviously be wrong.
When the actions of the Catholic Church have injured so many children across the globe then it is up to all people to condemn the Church and to demand justice for those abused.
The abuse and cover-up has clearly been going on for decades and it is time to end it all now at the beginning of this decade.
A good first step would be for Catholics to demand that the Pope and the Church be held to accepted standards of ethical behavior. The Pope, at the very least, should resign and there should be an open investigation of the Church and its conduct by an outside governing agency. This would go a long way toward showing the public that the Church is serious about protecting the little ones and correcting crimes against humanity.
Jesus is quoted as saying, “Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.” The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the little ones, the poor, the downtrodden, the suffering and it should be the Church’s responsibility to protect and to serve those of the Kingdom–not to abuse them or to cover up that abuse. By Grant Lawrence
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