Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven
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| Sunny Days in Heaven Spiritual/Political/Philosophical Blog on the Nature of Truth and Falsehood and Heaven |
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Saturday, April 27, 2002 The Quandary What is a Catholic to do when he discovers that the hierarchy of his religion can never be trusted to behave as Christians? I carry no brief for Garry Wills, but many of the things he illustrated in his book about the papacy (was it called Papal Sins?) are matters of fact; and frankly, his definition of "structures of deceit" I found to be essentially accurate. So many other Catholic bloggers have been praying that JPII will somehow set things right, but it doesn't look good. First of all, we have the Vatican scandal of the Legionaries of Christ founder who apparently molested a great many children being covered up and ignored by JPII himself. This story was on ABC's 20/20 last night, but it's been reported in many places for quite some time now. Also, we have the American Cardinals and bishops in Rome lacking any shred of culpability or repentance for their sins - they have no real sympathy for their victims. I realize that Protestants have their own problems with adulterous ministers and similar scandals, but somehow, Billy Graham, apart from a few lapses when he fell in love with being a friend of U.S. Presidents has an entirely unblemished record of probity in himself and his staff. The same with that fellow who ran for President from Focus on the Family. (Gary Bauer) It's been the Jimmy Swaggarts and Jim Bakkers who have hustled after TV popularity and sentimentalism that have demonstrated such a lack of integrity and faith. (And anybody with an ounce of judgment saw through their 'act' and sick piety.) At this point, though, I have to say that the entire history of the Catholic Church is unbearably sordid in the machinations and sins of its hierarchy. There are few bright spots. I realize that many of my fellow Catholic bloggers have no fondness for Vatican II, but John 23rd is one of the few truly Christian and decent men to hold the office of Peter's See in a long, long time. You cannot view film of the man and not fall in love with his transcendent goodness, joviality, and wisdom. The Church was in dire need of reform and he made it happen. Whatever excesses that followed can't be laid at his altar, and in no way equal such periods as the Inquisition (which began about 1000 years ago) on through the Papal Estates in Italy until liberation by Garibaldi. For all the absurdities so many complain of, they don't begin to resemble the pure evil of Torquemada and his predecessors. One would have to be the worst kind of ostrich to not be familiar with the horror that has been the Church of Rome for the last millennium. The history of the popes after 300 A.D. is an incredible litany of murder, debauchery, intrigue, duplicity, forgery, lies, and crime. As a new Catholic, I set all this aside in the belief that only God could have preserved such a Body in the presence of so much pure evil in His name. Now, I think it is both a combination of God and inertia. I have been so thoroughly rejected by the Church that I humbly desired to serve with my whole heart that I can no longer find reasonable excuses or apologies for her behavior. I have lost all hope (which I once had in abundance for the RCC) that my church can ever become anything more than a thoroughly corrupted organization throughout its hierarchy. It is sick in its core structure and can never be made well by the faithful. I have no problem accepting other humans as imperfect and prone to error and sin. I cannot accept that such humans shall never be accountable on earth - that is, that wolves in sheep's clothing may never suffer correction when caught. I can't support an organization that would protect such unctuous and pretentious evil doers in Jesus' name. I am sick at heart over my experience with the priests of my church. A fish rots from the head. Any who absolve JPII of this can't be more wrong about life, people, and wisdom if they think it all happened out of his sight and practice. His autocratic manner sets the tone for the whole church; and his lack of faith which seeks to protect a church as if God couldn't; oh, the conspiracies of silence and secrecy. Well, I must stop here. But I hope, despite how I sound that no one mistakes me for a "progressive" Catholic. I am as conservative as they come, but such evil that goes on without remorse or correction is more than I can bear. No more than Jesus could bear what he saw going on in the Temple. posted by Mark Butterworth | 2:19 AM | |
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