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Yes, and Ratzinger too.

MCC

I served an ASBO on you a couple of weeks ago. You were evicted from my 'Bed and Breakfast.' I painted the room a bright colour, opened the curtains and let the sunshine in. Opened the windows and let fresh air fill the room.

Its a really nice place to be now and I intend to keep it that way.

Had I not done that, your words written in another place about Cardinal Brady and about clergy child abuse would have made me blow a fuse. It didnt. It just proved to me that I was correct to distance myself from you and move on, for my sake.

This is all to do with 'my brother's keeper' and 'loving oneself.'

In your article, you have U-turned on practically every single thing which you slaughtered me about on here for the last few months. That's neither here nor there now though. I do want to publicly challenge one statement which I will not let go.

You write, in relation to Brady's possible resignation, "It might be unfair. It might be unjust. It might be a disgrace to yield to the pressure of the enemies of the Church. But sometimes that's just the way things are."

Appalling.

I think whoever has protected child abusers from scrutiny should really question what they are doing in positions of influence.

Also, what is the Catholic church doing to ensure that this culture of child abuse comes to an end?

I think his position is very difficult - but - what has really changed? We knew the Church handled these things badly. They've said so already. He didn't do this as bishop or cardinal but as a priest 35 years ago. The State then as indeed today did not have legislation on mandatory reporting.

I've blogged three times on this from different angles if you want to follow up.

MCC

Really not good enough.

"The State did not have legislation for mandatory reporting."

He was a thirty seven year old man. Instead of getting up from the table and going straight to the police to report that this man was raping children, he sat there and made those children sign a promise - under the threat of eternal life in Hell fire - that they wouldnt breath a word of this to anyone, ever.

And you think that people who call for his resignation ARE the enemies of the Church?

I couldn't care less whether or not he remains an officiating member of his cult. Whats of more concern is why he and his co-offenders aren't being tried for their crimes.

What we need to be careful off, is blaming one man and using him as the "SCAPEGOAT" and so by doing, giving others within the system a fresh start to continue their EVIL DEEDS.

And the parents of the children did what? Did they go to the police. I don't think so.

RJB - I did something similar (the B and B reference) but then I read people like Patsy McGarry who is an enemy of the Church.

The hypocrisy on this issue knows no bounds. I have contacted a range of agencies, Rape Crisis, Brooke, Planned Parenthood. None of them - none - report crimes. And that's today, not 35 years ago. In fact some of them facilitate crime.

Why aren't the PSNI doing anything??? Why are they covering up??? It's a Roman Catholic Police force now and all this serves to do is turn protestants against them, look at my county... Loyalists have told people not to talk to the PSNI and the UDA is refusing to have any contact with them because they are so Pro republican and now look, we have Bishops and Priests involved in heinous crmes and getting people to cover for them and what does our police do? Do they do the victims justice?? No they cover up for Rome... which makes me wonder what power rome holds over our province...

Some might say he should never have been there in the first place. His defence is appalling. It's hardly very media savvy to complain that it's "unfair" to hold him to account. It's plain silly for him to say that he was "out of the country". He wasn't in darkest Africa or the Amazon jungle. As Rector of the Irish College in Rome he had all kinds of formal and informal contacts with all kinds of Irish sources. Maybe it's time to ask about the standard of priestly formation in that college during his tenure. What mechanisms were in place to root out perverts? What training was provided for a lifetime of celibacy?

The Parable of the Good Samaritan seems an appropriate guide with which to judge the Cardinal's defence.

GV

Maybe the moderator can fix my grammar. That last statement doesn't sound correct.
GV

It seems that Cardinal Brady thinks there is a connection between paedophile grooming and the practice of confession and absolution.

When asked about his actions with regard to serial child abuser, Father Brendan Smyth, Brady said, “I did act, and act effectively, in that inquiry to produce the grounds for removing Fr Smyth from ministry and specifically it was underlined that he was not to hear confessions and that was very important.�

Brady wanted Smyth removed from the confessional. Why was that "very important"? The implication is clear - the confessional is the place where Smyth was able to indulge in his paedophile activities and get control of his young victims. The confessional is where the grooming took place, encouraging the children to talk about their sexual fantasies and 'misdeeds'. The secrecy and intimacy of the confessional is what gives the paedophile an opportunity to establish a close relationship right under the noses of the child's parents - a relationship which can be exploited for sexual gratification.

If Brady has had his doubts about the practice of confession and the opportunities it allows to paedophiles, has he done anything about those doubts, other than help to shunt the paedophile on to another parish and fresh victims?

Brother cc, don't be naive about people taking to the police, even the "type" whom you mentioned, that you say don't, for years even before you were born there has been a clear history right up to this very day, certain "types" still talk to the police, there's no conspiracy within the police NOW to be one sided, of course their will always be those who let law and order down for whatever reason.

I am in disbelief at what Monsignor is saying. A child confided in the church. The church took some notes but did nothing.

The pain and strength it must have took to bring this to the church nevermind leave the meeting with no one having listened to them, as no one acted on their reports.

They were very badly let down by those they trusted most. What hope did they have of trusted others to acts on their reports.

Religion breeds greed and a question has to be asked, would Cardinal Brady be where he is today if he had have brought the relevations to the appropriate authorities. I think not. Self gain at the expense of hundreds of thousands of children across the world.

Should he go... or should everyone go? And I don't mean the hierarchy - they will stick it out - and discussion at this level will go round and round in circles, to the detriment of everyone else who are drowning due to this mess. I mean the faithful, the disillusioned, those with the cultural & generational attachment to Roman Catholicism. The 'one, holy, apostolic & catholic church' is much wider than the Roman expression of it. Time to go and seek out other expressions of Christianity; what's to lose?

ChristianCalvinist,

I am not sure what you expect the PSNI to do, these two events which the Cardinal is wrapped up in took place in the Irish Republic.

Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.

This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities"


So - my mum made me belive in Santa; this explains why I torture puppies?
Three years of therapy, and I get the answer on Will and Testament.

Makes you wonder what the people who bought Religulous would do...

As someone who was brought up a strict Catholic in Belfast I was disgusted by the Monsignor who was on the Talkback Show yesterday. To try and cover up the activities of the clergy to the detrement of the victims is in diametric opposition to Christ's teaching. Did this Monsignor ever read the section of the New Testament where Christ referred to treatment of children? The man should be thrown out of any Christian Chruch, not just the Roman Catholic.
The Church is in the process of destroying itself and I hope it takes the Pope on the way. The Vatican and hierarchy of the RC Chruch is only interested in ammassing power, retaining its political power and influence in the world. Sorry, that doesn't tally with Christ's teachings.
The Catholic Chruch, beginning with its head in Rome, needs another Reformation. We need another Martin Luther to rid us of the hypocrites within the structures of the apparatus.

sebe23,

The hypocrites & the stuctures & the apparatus are but one part any reformation - Luther of course set in motion that other part: theological. The Roman church may be reformed structurally - but theologically? Justification by faith alone...

Is it not time for Roman Catholics to seek out other expressions of the 'one holy apostolic and catholic' churches that exist - there are 'reformed' churches alive and well throughout Ireland. Time to go.

The moderator's picking on me...

"The Roman church may be reformed structurally"
---in no way is the Church of Rome reformed structurally... the presbyterian model is closet to scripture and so can be considered most reformed but the RCC is almost entirely man made...find me a pope in the Bible.

As for theologically it is simply corrupt and evil in it's denial of gospel truth...

#25 CC, yes that's true, justification by faith alone has obvious implications for papacy, priesthood etc etc etc.

Upsidedownworld:
Not only does the structure of the Roman Chruch need to be reformed but also in a number of theological issues: celibacy and the role of women in the liturgy. Nowhere in an Scriptures is there a refererence to celibate priests. The fact that some of the initial leaders of the Christian Church (Paul and Clement) were obviously macho-minded and clearly anti-femininist does not help matters.
It is strange that most religions are run by men......only radically reformed religions involve women in the liturgies.
Definitely time for change.