The Pope sells out his boyz

[liggy 0]

LISBON, Portugal (AP) -- Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday blamed the church's own sins for the clerical abuse scandal - not a campaign mounted by outsiders - and called for profound purification to end what he called the "greatest persecution" the church has endured.

His strong comments placed responsibility for the crisis squarely on the sins of pedophile priests, repudiating the Vatican's initial response to the scandal in which it blamed the media as well as pro-choice and pro-gay marriage advocates for mounting what it called a campaign against the church and the pope.

Speaking en route to Portugal, Benedict said the Catholic church had always suffered from problems of its own making but that "today we see it in a truly terrifying way."

"The greatest persecution of the church doesn't come from enemies on the outside but is born from the sins within the church," the pontiff said. "The church needs to profoundly relearn penitence, accept purification, learn forgiveness but also justice."

Despite the Vatican's initial, defensive response to hundreds of clerical abuse reports in Europe, Benedict has promised that the church would take action to protect children and make abusive priests face justice. He has already started cleaning house, accepting the resignations of a few bishops who either admitted they molested youngsters or covered up for priests who did.

But critics say he still hasn't done nearly enough to repair the damage or protect children from a culture of secrecy that allowed priests to rape and molest children for decades unchecked. Some have noted that while Benedict has accepted some bishops' resignations, no bishop has been actively punished or defrocked, even those who admitted to molesting children.

"Many are tiring of hearing about his 'strong comments.'" They want to see strong action," said David Clohessy, director of the main U.S. victims' group, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

the rest of it is at:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...MPLATE=DEFAULT



step one: admit you have a problem...?

[Cephius]

Admit God doesn't exist and you made the whole "religion" thing up and we'll call it even

[Priran]

bros before altarhos

[Mizango]

Admit God doesn't exist and you made the whole "religion" thing up and we'll call it even

Ceph 3:16

[Acturus]

Admit God doesn't exist and you made the whole "religion" thing up and we'll call it even

http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/2..._you_super.jpg

[Olo401]

Admit God doesn't exist and you made the whole "religion" thing up and we'll call it even

/thread

[ZarakiKujata]

But then how did we ride the dinosaurs?

[bigrougabagel]

Some of you need to check out this, tho I am sure some already know it well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55h1FO8V_3w&feature=fvst

[wagon]

Seriously, religion is like the longest active MMO there is. You roleplay, you quest, you level up (from clergy to bishop), you share loots (the altar boys), etc.

[Sanoske]

Somebody bring back John Paul II. I miss that guy.

[Mizango]

Seriously, religion is like the longest active MMO there is. You roleplay, you quest, you level up (from clergy to bishop), you share loots (the altar boys), etc.

lol

[Qalbert]

So if religion is an MMO, does that make scientology gilsellers?

[Egon]

Admit God doesn't exist and you made the whole "religion" thing up and we'll call it even

If God didn't exsist, there wouldn't be a large group of people (most atheists, not all) angry at people who do believe.

[wagon]

So if religion is an MMO, does that make scientology gilsellers?

Most definitely. All the different denominations of faith are like linkshells/guilds. A linkshell of gilsellers to regular linkshells is what Scientology to Christianity, Islam or what have you. Scientologists are not in it for the quests or loots but the gils, or analogously, wholesale salvation if you will.

[Mizango]

If God didn't exsist, there wouldn't be a large group of people (most atheists, not all) angry at people who do believe.

If God did exist he would tell you how to spell exsist.

[Xno Kappa]

Believe in the heart of the cards.

Yugioh voice: "DARK MAGICIAN!"

[Zilong]

Speaking en route to Portugal, Benedict said the Catholic church had always suffered from problems of its own making but that "today we see it in a truly terrifying way."

They definitely weren't expecting the Spanish Inquisition

[Niiro]

So if religion is an MMO, does that make scientology gilsellers?

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/9694/tcrf.jpg

[Vail]

If God did exist he would tell you how to spell exsist.

god loves those who can't spell as much as he loves those who don't believe in him

[Cephius]

If God didn't exsist, there wouldn't be a large group of people (most atheists, not all) angry at people who do believe.

Isn't that what it's like now?

Also to quote the late George Carlin, more people have been killed in the name of God than for any other reason. Somehow I think we'd be better off if people just realized that He is human fabrication designed to make people feel special and significant (with the modern additional effect of liberating people from their money and avoiding taxes) and guiltless of their wrongdoings. Oh, and to make themselves feel superior to those who don't worship the same imaginary being.