As Pope Benedict XVI’s tenure comes to an end, his legacy
will be marred with controversy. Although exonerated, his status as a member of
the Hitler youth has tainted his reputation and had his actions questioned by
sects from all over the globe. Aside from his ties to the Reich, he has also
been implicated on covering up various child abuse scandals within the Catholic
Church.
Before he
was Pope Benedict, he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and before his papacy he
spent 24 years as the Head of the Congregation of the Faith, which was once
known as the Holy Office of the Inquisition. This is the same inquisition that
accounted for thousands of deaths and murders over the centuries due to
religious differences and accusations of witchcraft. In other words, Pope
Benedict has been involved with organizations with extremely poor images.
With a new
face about to emerge as the next poster child of Catholicism it’s time the
Catholic Church joined the 21st century.
First of
all, next guy (because the Catholic Church will never allow a female pope)
can’t be a former Nazi. If you were a manager in charge of hiring and former
employers included Adolph Hitler or any other murderous dictator, one would be
inclined to think you wouldn’t hire them. So why should the highest religious
position in the world get a pass?
Secondly,
the next top dog for the church has to report any and all reports of abuse of
any kind to authorities. During Ratzinger’s role as Cardinal, all the cases of
the child abuse reported throughout the Catholic Church came to his desk. One
particularly sickening incident was Wisconsin Reverend Lawrence C. Murphy who
worked at deaf school for 24 years. During his tenure, he allegedly molested
nearly 200 deaf boys.
Despite
various letters from local and national church figures urging the Vatican to
intervene, Pope Jean Paul II and Cardinal Ratzinger did nothing and Father
Murphy died of old age before being punished. This was even after Murphy wrote
a letter to Ratzinger asking to not be tried for his crimes so he can die with the
“integrity” of the priesthood. Shorthand, the next pope cannot be a Nazi who
may have covered up child molestation.
A solution:
let priests get married. If the bible teaches that we are here to repopulate
and spread the word of god, why prevent god’s most devout from spreading their
seed? Most pedophiles are not homosexual and are opportunist abusers. They
abuse whomever they can get away with. Rather than forcing old men to be with
young boys for years on end, let them marry someone and have their “needs”
satisfied.
Finally,
the church needs to get with reality. The doctrine needs to change. Stop
condemning Africans to hell for using condoms when the population is burdened
by the world’s largest AIDS epidemic. Stop
telling women what they can or can’t do with their body. Leave the gays alone. Marriage should be a
human right not a heterosexual privilege. Everyone should be allowed to get
married, that includes priests. The next pope is scheduled to be announced
around Easter.
