Removed thread - "Catholic Church show no mercy"

[muppet]

A senior Vatican official has spoken out very strongly in favour of the Doctors and severely critisized the Bishop involved, he also emphathised the need to lovingly protect and support the child and her parents. Doubtless this and similar comments will be ignored by the anti-catholic liberal commentators whose only agenda to attack the church. This is a very complex problem and the interests of no one involved will be served by sensational and usually inaccurate reporting.

Pangurban those of us who dare to criticise have backed up our posts with links. Could you do the same please?

[Pangurban]

Todays Irish News, page 5 and official Vatican website

[Donagh]

However in this country we have a Church that turned it's back on it's children for decades and right up to very recently, still failed to adequately address this problem and properly take responsibility for it's failings.

To identify criticism as only 'from those who hate the church' is hiding from reality (I know it wasn't you who said that).

I accept that muppet and believe me I was one of the Churches biggest critics for how it behaved regarding the child abuse scandals. However, as I got a little older, I've come to understand that for all the human failings of many of its members, that there are many many more good, honest and compassionate people within the Church and it's followers. Despite my socialist beliefs and natural anti-clerical tendencies, I think the Catholic Church has achieved great things in that part of the world e.g. you only have to think of what liberation theology has contributed through the likes of Archbishop Romero, Sister Peggy O'Neil, Fathers D'Escoto and Cardenal (Sandinistas) or even Bishop Fernando Lugo who was elected as President of Paraguay recently. I've travelled fairly extensively through the Andes and for a long time I could never understand why the indigenous population had such a strong belief in and loyalty to the Catholic Church, given that it was brought to them by the Conquistadors. But spend any time with them and you'll see that the priests have been there with them side by side for all the poverty and oppression they've suffered - and as such my reason for thinking there's a parish priest somewhere disgusted by whats happening around him with this child.

[muppet]

However in this country we have a Church that turned it's back on it's children for decades and right up to very recently, still failed to adequately address this problem and properly take responsibility for it's failings.

To identify criticism as only 'from those who hate the church' is hiding from reality (I know it wasn't you who said that).

I accept that muppet and believe me I was one of the Churches biggest critics for how it behaved regarding the child abuse scandals. However, as I got a little older, I've come to understand that for all the human failings of many of its members, that there are many many more good, honest and compassionate people within the Church and it's followers. Despite my socialist beliefs and natural anti-clerical tendencies, I think the Catholic Church has achieved great things in that part of the world e.g. you only have to think of what liberation theology has contributed through the likes of Archbishop Romero, Sister Peggy O'Neil, Fathers D'Escoto and Cardenal (Sandinistas) or even Bishop Fernando Lugo who was elected as President of Paraguay recently. I've travelled fairly extensively through the Andes and for a long time I could never understand why the indigenous population had such a strong belief in and loyalty to the Catholic Church, given that it was brought to them by the Conquistadors. But spend any time with them and you'll see that the priests have been there with them side by side for all the poverty and oppression they've suffered - and as such my reason for thinking there's a parish priest somewhere disgusted by whats happening around him with this child.

I have no problem with any of the above. I'm sure people who have travelled elsewhere can add to that.

However the way some people always circle the wagons, duck any debate and hide behind statements such as 'Doubtless this and similar comments will be ignored by the anti-catholic liberal commentators whose only agenda to attack the church' are counter productive.

It is a fact that the Bishop excommunicated the doctors and the mother. Blaming the media is the usual head in the sand stuff. I absolutely accept that the Bishop is entitled to make a mistake. However it is up to the Vatican to unequivocally correct that mistake.

[Donagh]

However the way some people always circle the wagons, duck any debate and hide behind statements such as 'Doubtless this and similar comments will be ignored by the anti-catholic liberal commentators whose only agenda to attack the church' are counter productive.

It is a fact that the Bishop excommunicated the doctors and the mother. Blaming the media is the usual head in the sand stuff. I absolutely accept that the Bishop is entitled to make a mistake. However it is up to the Vatican to unequivocally correct that mistake.

I don't believe there is a circling of the wagons in this case and that there is some justification for saying that some "anti-catholic" commentators  have jumped on a bandwagon e.g. the initial reports said the child had been excommunicated but that simply cannot be true as a child cannot be excommunicated under Cannon Law, especially one who has not been Confirmed.