Gods and priests (and nuns)

This story, out of many, coupled with visiting the Vatican (and countless other churches) got me thinking about my relationship to Catholicism ... and into some not too friendly discussions with my mom and sister ... ah ... not sure I have the strength to recreate the thoughts here ... suffice to say, there are too many issues that continue to arise for me to "commit" to faith in a church that allows so much pain.

In this News Round Up (RANT-don't say you weren't warned) you will find snippets of the issues I have with the church and that some believers have with me:

The pope, in his most recent past life, was in charge of just this kind of "discipline" but never saw fit to deal with the issue of pedophilia ... instead charging that it was an American problem.  Hmm.... Clearly not ... as the same issues have arisen in Germany; and, now Ireland, perhaps the quintessential Catholic nation in the world, folks are demanding answers.

And, even in the light of this, among many, many other scandals (not just sexual crimes, but also financial involvement with the mafia), the Vatican is busy investigating the nuns in the US who, in the Vatican's eyes, are spending too much time worrying about social justice, and not enough time fighting against abortion ... yeah ... and folks want me to lighten up on the nazi youth pope, I'm sorry, but I just can't.

Thankfully, neither are the nuns ...I am happy to report that the nuns are not just taking it on the chin ... and that there are some priests who are willing to "speak their truth" -- respectfully (that is more than I can bring myself to do).  The Vatican's attempts to distract from their other scandals with their investigation and tightening down on the nuns is nothing more than that ... a distraction.  A perfectly played page out of the Republican handbook ... or perhaps it is the reps that have been borrowing from the Vatican. 

Folks also wonder why I care ... yeah, regardless of what others feel about me, I am a confirmed Catholic, so I have the same right they do to have an opinion about the pope and the church ... it is not an issue of practicing -- unless someone is going to get the practicing meter out and check folks first before they have opinions.  Like the survivors, I, and all others raised in the church, have the right to opine about the church, its ethics and its leaders.