Would Church benefit from forcing the pope out?
Pope Benedict XVI is facing a firestorm from critics as to how much he knew about the Vatican's latest sex abuse scandal. (PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES)
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
In the middle of Holy Week and with Easter right around the corner - the Catholic Church is launching a massive P-R blitz to defend the Pope's role in the growing sex abuse scandal. Instead of contrition and asking for forgiveness, get a load of the following:
The Vatican is pushing back against the idea that Pope Benedict the 16th should take personal responsibility for the child abuse scandal... and it's defending his management of abuse cases. Some Catholic officials are suggesting it was the previous Pope, John Paul the Second, who blocked investigations into pedophile priests.
And the Vatican is planning a legal defense against an American lawsuit... that would force the Pope to answer questions under oath. The A-P reports court documents related to a Kentucky case show Vatican lawyers plan to argue the Pope has immunity as head of state and that American bishops who oversaw abusive priests weren't employees of the Vatican.
Pure garbage.
It gets worse:
In the Pope's native Germany, the church has opened a hotline for victims to report alleged crimes. Critics are outraged... saying that victims should tell the authorities first, not the church.... They have a point, considering that the Catholic Church has done virtually nothing except shuffle abusive priests around and cover-up the scandal for decades. Including a priest who molested 200 deaf boys. The church did nothing.
Meanwhile a new Gallup poll shows Pope Benedict's favorable rating has dropped to 40 percent in the U.S–its lowest level ever.... that's down from 63% two years ago. The Pope's image has declined about equally among Catholics and non-Catholics.
Here’s my question to you: Would the Catholic Church benefit from forcing Pope Benedict out?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Jim in Reno, Nevada
Jack, John Paul II did cover up sexual abuse, but that probably won't stop the Church from making him a saint. The Church would benefit from the removal of the current pope only if the new pope was a kick-ass reformer determined to clean the windows and let the light shine in. As long as the Church's instinctive response to scandal remains covering up, a new pope will do no good.
Olga in Austin, Texas
Who cares? Their behavior is not going to stop. My entire family was raised Catholic. As the atrocious sex crimes were reported through the years, one by one, we left the Catholic Church.
Charles in New Jersey
Maybe naive people, like anyone who uses the Catholic hotline, would feel vindicated, but selecting a fall guy for decades (centuries?) of rape, torture and conspiracy to obstruct justice is a placebo no one should accept. Since justice is unavailable from a foreign country like the Vatican, a boycott is in order. No more tithing or sending our kids to Catholic schools, or "faith based" contracts. Drive them to extinction like any other evil corporation, an irony that Darwin would love. Snatch the opium from the lips of fools, they will thank you later.
Bret in Ohio
The Catholic Church would do well to out the current pope and any member of the church involved in the sexual abuse of anyone. If head of a religion and the supposed closest person to God is covering up sex scandals with children, what kind of credibility does this bring to the religion? At this rate, Catholicism is about as credible as Scientology, only without the pretty celebrities.
Harold in Anchorage, Alaska
I don't think it will make much difference. It seems like it is disintegrating from within. The Roman Catholic Church is organized much like the Mafia, with omerta at the core, and the same goal: gaining and retaining power, regardless of the human cost.
@jackcafferty on Twitter
Probably not, particularly in the long term. By the way, since the US has an embassy and ambassador to the Holy See it is likely to be difficult to prove that the Pope is not a Head of State with all of the immunities that go with it.
I don't think that would end the hypocrisy of the Catholic church, but it would be a good start. Let's face it, this sort of abuse has probably been going on for centuries. It's just that people don't fear the wrath of the Catholic church like they used to. Popes in the past have had mistresses and children and no one would ever think of asking them to resign. If he did resign it would at least present a new attitude of intolerence for this kind of unacceptable behavior.
Everyone is well aware most, if not all religions are actually cults.A person is made to believe all these good things will happen to them if they follow a set of rules. Much like a pimp promises a prostitute. Just because a there are millions of followers of these relgions does not make them any less a cult where people are constantly taken advantage of. Putting a different person at the head of the church will not change the beliefs.
The Catholic Church is the most hypocrirical entity on the planet (not counting our congress). Replacing the Pope won't change anything. What needs to be replaced is their docterine i.e., let priests marry; open the archives to show all the gospels etc. they've hidden in order to control 'the following'. The REAL truths about the church would give Dan Brown enough information for mannnnny books!
David, Las Vegas
This is the kind of garbage that cuases people to lose faith in their religious leaders. They preach one thing and practice another as if the rules do not apply to them. Those priests should be in jail. Anything short of unbridled repentance fom the Pope impeaches his credibilty as a religous figure and turns his following into a cult.
Of course,everyone would benefiut if the Church would take a stand and make the Pope resign.. The whole College of Cardinals needs to be cleaned out. What is Cardinal Law doing in such an important role over in the Vatican. I guess he's not a Vatican employee? If the Church doesn"t start to meet the needs of 21st century members then it will continue to lose followers.
The church hierachy would have to be removed as well. It is not a democratic organization but rather an autocratic one. The status quo suits all currently in power the congregation be damed. It's the people in power who will continue to protect themselves and insulate themselves from any claims on them and the church. It's a money making machine for some. I ideals spoken about by Christ have long since gone out the window. The congregation has to take up arms against the church the best way to do that is to stop all monetary support and force as many law suits against all documented abuses all at once make them bleed money until the church is bankrupt.
Christianity is dying, whether the Pope is forced out or not.
No sir . Forcing out the pope will accomplish nothing .He is not the molester. He however has the authority to have the suspect turned over for civil action by the courts.
Jack, I cannot imagine any benefit that would come from forcing the Pope out. I personally think that a major portion of all this recent outrage is a bunch of crap, brought on by the public at large smelling MONEY, thinking if they can claim abuse they'll get a big payday from the church just to shut up. The critics are right, the alleged "victims" should be going to the authorities NOT the church, if they are seeking justice. If they are going only to the church, they are after the money and probably lying.
Jack,
The damage may already be done.
The mistake here is that the Pope just resigns. Sorry this can't happen the way the general public thinks. Catholics believe that he is the Vicar of Christ on earth. Upon this Rock I will build my Church (Catholic) and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. So the Pope is here for the long haul. He is Head of the Church and the government in Rome. This is one very difficult situation for Catholics to resolve.
YES! Since the Pope is supposed to be infallible in matters of faith and morals, even the absence of a Vatican policy to prevent molesters from having any contact with children after even a single infraction proves he is not worthy of his position. Hey if even thinking about adultery makes you guilty – how do they justify ignoring repeated crimes? How much did he protect his brother too?
No jack i don't think it would benefit the catholic church. I myself am catholic and each and every time one of these sexual abuse cases makes the news i cringe. Mostly because sometimes bad people do bad things and no religion is free of bad people that choose to participate in their beliefs. The catholic faith is more into forgiveness but that does not mean that local authorities should follow those teachings when a crime is committed. Police agencies have a job to do and no religion is immune from prosecution if they did cover up sexual abuse. Let the legal process run it's course and we can all learn the truth.
I am not of the Catholic faith, but many friends and work associates are Catholic. Most want a younger Pope with liberal thinking. These old conservative men do not relate to most church members.
The historic role of the Catholic Church in regard to priest's pedophile crimes the Church has spurned the victims and rewarded the pedophiles. The predecessors to this Pope did nothing. This Pope again sets a very poor example and he will reap what he has sown. A new Pope who takes these disgusting crimes seriously is a good beginning for all Catholics...and children.
Jack,
Yes! He and Cardinal Roger Mahoney are evil men. Keeping people in the bondage of fear, superstition and poverty, while they rake in Billions!
Not to mention harboring Pedophile Preists and Illegal Immigrants.
Ousting the NAZI Pope may benefit the Church.
Letting the poorest of the poor use BIRTH CONTROL would benefit the WORLD!
Rory Murray
Southern California
Yes, the Catholic Church would benefit from his removal. Any Pope who condones sexual abuse and protects pedophile priests doesn't belong in the Vatican or being second in command of the church after Jesus Christ. This is Holy Week too. You don't leave pedophiles free to repeat their crime on other children.
Jack, No it makes no differance what so ever if the pope resigns. the pope is totally irrelevent these days anyway . the Catholic church and many other churches in general are full of homosexual, pedofile predators masquarading as men and women of faith, and the church will always shield them . This extends to islam especially. There, little girls of ages 7 and up are raped every single day and by islamic law it's ok. Religons by definition are full of monsters and always will be.
Does the pope live in the woods? Well, maybe he should. cy from arlington, va
How? What good would that do? Come on jack They are like politians, thay have perks and what not. Wasn;t a study done in the 90;s by a vatican jesuit lawyer about this topic and thet reasigned him? Hm Hm hm. My guess is they do have some nerve saying Us bishops are not connected, well if thats the case they should bring Bernard Law back to face the music. Blaming a pope who had Parkinsons for years. They have the college of cardinals who run the show. Sound familiar?
I don't believe it is a political position and unless you are a Catholic it is really none of your business. No he should not leave. Why is that people think they should be able to control the Catholic Church when they aren't even believers.
Too late, it may not matter at this point. The church has done enough to lose the faith of people.
Not necessarily. The Church would benefit from selecting a Pope, who no longer lives in the Dark Ages, however, and who will understand that some of the decrees from Popes in recent decades must be discarded......especially the one prohibiting birth control.
This planet is already so overpopulated with humans, that we are killing the planet at an alarming rate. So......once we have destroyed the planet, and humans along with everything else, will the Church repent, their folly?
Jack: The Catholic Church has gotten away with everything but murder! But I think that what they have done to children is tantamount to murder. They have killed the children's spirits. This Pope has a sneaky look about him, so only God knows his secrets. Would the church benefit with his resignation? I think the Catholic Church is finished no matter what occurs. While I have your attention, Jack, there was a spokean for the church on Larry King last night who made the preposterous argument that it was not pedophilia but homosexuality because the boys were post-pubescent. Now there's one crazy argument. Shame on him and all who defend the church's actions. The church is finished.
Unfortunately, this is a hypothetical question. We live in an age where no one who is in power (governmental, corporate or religious) is held accountable for their actions. If you are rich enough or hold a high enough position, you don't have to play by the rules – they don't apply to you.
Jack, whether or not the Pope should be forced out should be left up to MEMBERS of the Catholic Church, and not anyone else who is up there pontificating (pun intended) on why the Pope should step down. It is not up to anyone else, especially network commentators looking for another "hot topic" which is really nothing more than Catholic bashing. And that is something that would not be tolerated, were it any OTHER religion.
I don't think it will make much difference; it seems like it is disintigrating from within. The Roman Catholic Church is organized much like the Mafia, with omerta at the core, and the same goal: gaining and retaining power, regardless of the human cost,
We have no business suggesting to the Catholic to force the pope out.
Pushing for such a move is politicizing the church and we need to leave respect whatever way Catholics or any other religion is handling their problems.
It would benefit the Catholic Church. Even better if the Pope has enough integrity to resign.
Tax the church, It madness to think that out of Pope Benedict mouth comes the word of God.
Yes. It would show that Catholics care as much about damage done by pedophile priests as they do about abortion, but quite frankly, it doesn't look like they do.
I beleieve the Catholic Church would benefit from removing this Pope and all his henchmen, plus all the priests currently known by the church to be molesting children. How can you trust a cult which doesn't police their own?
Maria
Brunswick,MD
Not Really, Jack. It won't matter who is Pope as long as the basic structure of the Catholic Church remains unchanged. They have been exposed for what they are, and if people continue to attend their services and support them then those people become complicit in their own misfortunes.
only if they take all the guilty priests, bishops, and cardinals with them and allow the remaining ones and future ones to marry if they wish.
We have no business suggesting to the Catholic to force the pope out.
Pushing for such a move is politicizing the church and we need to respect whatever way Catholics or any other religion is handling their problems.
The unfortunate part is that nothing will change whether he stays or goes. The cover up will continue and they'll only admit to the problem if they're forced to. Kinda like our politicians.
Yes, the Pope should be removed from his position. As a teacher I would be fired and lose my license to teach if I molested a child, the police would be involved, why is it different for the clergy? Should not the police investigate abuse and bring the abuser to justice? The Pope turned the other way when he has his chance to do something, he is guilty of that crime and should not be at the head of a worldwide religion. As former Ratzinger he made sure our local priest was ex-communicated for serving communion to all who accepted Christ, regardless of religion or sexual orientation, that man is James Callan, formerly the head of Corpus Christi Church in Rochester, NY, he was not allowed to practice as a Catholic priest and he committed no crime. The Pope should not have immunity for his past oversights. They were serious in nature and damaged many young lives forever.
melina Rochester, NY
Yes.
Evidence has been suppressed. The Church has benefited from collusion with civil authorities, all done to "protect" the Church.
Benedict has his hands all over this problem for most of his adult life.
He has to resign for the good of the Church.
I don't believe so. They would see a lot more benefit by coming into the 21st century and allowing priests to marry.
The Catholic Church can't escape this ill-advised practice by forcing the Pope Benedict out. The only way for them to be able to get some shaky trust bavck from the public for them to work as real beings.
Would the FAITHFUL benefit?
That should be the question. It seems the CHURCH has already benefitted, for years, by ignoring the sexual escapades of the priests.
It seams clear that sweeping this problem under the rug is the official position of the Vatican as a whole, not just the current Pope. The only action that would be beneficial to the Vatican right now would be to stop the cover-ups and turn molesters in the church over to the authorities. What absolutely should not happen is that they replace Pope Benedict with someone else that will simply continue with the same policy.
The Roman Catholic Church is an anachronism pure and simple. Its relevancy has long since passed- run by men wearing ancient costumes in Rome, services in lavish churches in blighted neighborhoods all over the world. It doesn't matter, this may be the last bastion of Papal power anyway.
Carol (a former Catholic) Northampton, MA
Only if he was replaced with someone people could trust and I don't think right now there is anyone in church leadership that could fill that roll.There needs to be a major investigation in the church but I don't see that happening. All members of the church should withhold their money until an investigation takes place.
Yes, along with allow the men to get married, if they have to allow them to marry the Nuns if they have too, I am hoping that this will get them to leave the little boys and girls alone, it is not natural for humans not to have a mate in one form or another!
If he's in it up to his knees, then he shouldn't have to be asked. The trust of the worldwide congregation of Catholics has been breached around the world. How many charities and organization abroad will be impacted by this scar on the Churches.
The teachings of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the hypocricy are running hand in hand. Yes he should step down, if he knew and did NOTHING. I understand his brother was also involved and he is claiming he didn't know.
How many of their own list of deadly sins has this church broken over the centuries?
The most obvious here is greed, as the cover-up of this evil has nothing more to do than preserve the monetary income of the church at the sake of children.
If it is proven that the Pope was in some way part of this evil, then yes he should be removed and all who either did the deeds or covered it up should be removed. It is only then can this church and the billions of people begin to heal.
Jack, Those that believe in this antiquated nonsense are too far gone to make rational judgments anyway,so who really cares? If this man ever sets foot inside the U.S.A. again, he should be immediately arrested, and charged with, at the bare minimum, contributing to sexual assault. Come-on Jack, these GUYS spend most of their time walking around in fancy dresses, just look at the picture you are showing. Would you leave one of your kids alone with one of these guys? Alright, so your "kids" are full-grown women, but you, and everyone else understands what I'm trying to say. Layne A. Antioch, Il.
In their state of COMPLETE denial for 50 years and the 200 cases
that have come prior to this and last year's cases and the year before that- all covered up until exposed...................ha!!! I think we need to CLEAN HOUSE AND GET "'REAL"' who on earth do they think they are kidding.
David
No. The past is the past the present is the time to take care of issues. To drag up the past is of no help.
Jack,
I can't say for sure, but Catholic priests and the Pope just might be like all politicians, you know, the ones coming into office and power are just as bad as the ones going out. So my answer is, you can lump both parties into the same category. Sad to say, but in my book, there all bad.
We shouldn't really care. The Church, regardless of denomination, is a collection of voluntary members. It's basically a superstition club made up of ordinary men and women from top to bottom, and ordinary men and women are going to fall short. So why should anyone be surprised that the Pope, a man of flesh, might have a few skeletons in his closet. Let these people swing incense, chew wafers, talk Latin or whatever they do to have their club, and if the members like it, they'll fund it. If not, they can find one that better suits.
The Catholic Church would benefit and the world as a whole would benefit as well from removing this disgusting human being that the world refers to as the pope! Benedict is not holy, he's not a man of God, he's not a leader he's just a disgusting man who won't do anything when it comes to innocent children being hurt, the only thing he will do is continue to hide abusive priests who molest and rape children, lie to the public, and continue to be deceitful! Remove Benedict From The Vatican Now, We Can't Afford Another Child In This World To Be Hurt! The Catholic Church should be appalled and disgusted!
Scott Stodden (Freeport,Illinois)
The Catholic Church must change its name and should do it now! Enough complains–enough to cover one of the planets, have been exposed so far. So the idea that the Catholic Church wants to force the Pope Benedict out is simply a joke.
Jack,
The Catholic Church needs to clean house–removing the Pope would be a good start, but little more than that. We cannot tolerate religious leaders, whether at the highest levels of the Vatican or the lowest refectory in America, who do not stand for the moral values they preach. Every time I hear a Saudi Imam say that Islam is about peace, I have only one thing to say in return: Prove It! Don't just talk about what's right–do it. The same principle applies here. If the Catholic Church teaches that homosexuality, pedophilia and abuse are amoral acts, then they need to prove it by acting on their teachings–not by saying all the right things while continuing to try to sweep this mess under the rug.
Sam Stone
Tucson, AZ
Jack,
John Paul II did cover up sexual abuse, but that probably won't stop the Church from making him a saint. The Church would benefit from the removal of the current Pope only if the new Pope was a kick-ass reformer determined to clean the windows and let the light shine in. As long as the Church's instinctive response to scandal remains covering up, a new Pope will do no good.
Jim
Reno, Nevada
Yes, the Catholic Church should force and eliminate the Pope's title. There is no where mention in the bible the title Pope. The Catholic administration is a disgrace. All priest molesters that are still alive should be prosecuted and if found guilty should spend their last days in prison. The Catholic Church should allow priest and nuns to marry. ITimothy 4:3 "Forbidding to marry,". Forbidding someone to maryy is a "SIN"
Only if the Church outs and ousts all the pedophiles. If anyone's left standing, there's your new Pope.
Chuck
Longview, TX
First off let me say I am not a Catholic, and do not believe in the Catholic Doctrine. But to answer your question Jack, the reputation of the Catholic church has taken several blows over the past few years. I think forcing the Pope out of the church would do more damage and show weakness in the church as a whole. If you can kick the man at the top out for wrongs commited by those under him, then let us apply that same concept to our Government. PLEASE!!
I don't think the Pope should step down from his papacy.However, he should own up to the facts about his part in this terrible mess!
How? This abuse has gone on for God knows how long and involves the Pope on down. Add to that their stance against the gay community and women’s rights, and they don't even represent their founder's teachings anymore. I’m a former Catholic, and what they've become just makes me sad.
No, the Catholic church has shown it's inability to police or control its clergy members who have been committing crimes for decades, mostly unchecked. It's not the pope, it's the church. Forgiveness is a good thing, but a person can be forgiven in prison too. The Catholic church should pay damages to every family with a claim; excommunicate the offenders; and there should be an international criminal conspiracy to commit crimes against children initiated.
Maybe naive people, like anyone who uses the catholic hotline, would feel vindicated, but selecting a fall guy for decades(centuries?)of rape, torture and conspiracy to obstruct justice is a placebo no one should accept. Since justice is unavailable from a foreign country like the Vatican, a boycott is in order. No more tithing or sending our kids to catholic schools, or “faith based” contracts. Drive them to extinction like any other evil corporation, an irony that Darwin would love. Snatch the opium from the lips of fools, they will thank you later.
None of my business because I am not a Catholic -
It's like the expression I've often herd used to answer a question. "Is the POPE Catholic?" Yes the church would benefit but only if those that have abused young boys go with him. It's called cleaning house but Jack you and I both know it will happen only when Hell freezes over.
Is it true that the pope was involved with the cover-up? if so, then get another pope.
During Holy Week it is wholly weak to listen to the Vatican's lame excuses.
The people of planet Earth would benefit if there was no religion at all. The Catholic Church is no different from any of them.
They're obviously not worried about going to hell for lying if they're not worried about going to hell for buggering altar boys.
No, the catholic church is too deep into the scandal now. Its a real shame, I'm embarrassed to say I once called myself Catholic.
Jack no one would benefit from forcing the pope out. The church would stand to lose the most. I think what needs to happen is those victims of sexual abuse that have legal complaints filed against their accuser or their accusers boss need to be brought to light and let the whole world discover the truth. All this speculating and hypothecating by the media of what may or may not have happened serves no purpose other then to fill air time and news print. The truth will tell us what happened and that is what the church needs.
This guy should never have been elected pope. From the Hitler Youth to the sex scandal. not to mention being in with all the freaks in the church (and there are a lot of cults there, Angus Dei for one, Catholic League, and on and on). Get somebody in that is younger to clean house.
Have the Pope resign. The Catholic church is condoning child abuse. They have the money and power to keep it as it is, so where is the justice.
Another point, when is fair news reporting going to be fair? The Fixed Noise station, and the radio Rush followers are still condeming the current administration. Fair news reporters like yourself need to speak up for the office of the Presidency. He has been threatened from these folks, and in my book, this is treason.
Sure it would, lets replace him with the Ugandan President.
Yes, the Catholic Church would benefit not only from their own stand point, but also in the eyes of the whole world. No one in this country should be exempt from the law!
Who cares? Forcing the pope out would do nothing to restore what was lost by the children the priests molested. I don't understand how anyone can continue to practice the Catholic faith knowing what these men have done over the years. And to contribute to the church?
Ye gods, what fools these mortals be ...
no because who would trust his replacement ?
What purpose does the pope serve any? I don't pay him any attention! Most are too, too old anyway. Ain't no telling what they are doing. No one is going to do anything but just talk.
Trying to get rid of the Pope is not worth the effort. Just stop investing the church with power and then the Pope has none. If a crime is committed, go to the properly invested civil authorities. Force the closure of abusive schools and churches instead of tax exempt status. Hold the church to the same standards of any other organization.
Maybe now the believers will begin to understand and see the reality of evolution - forget "revealed" truth.
Jack, I'm not sure what would cause more commotion: forcing him out or leaving him in. The fact is that the current pope is a former Nazi who without a doubt knew this sexual abuse was happening. Either that, or the Catholic church doesn't disseminate information to the top. In any job if someone is aware that such horrible deeds are taking place and don't say anything they are liable, but the church is more than just a job, it is the ultimate job to model a moral way of life. This behaviour is typical for Washington, not for the Vatican.
I think so, yes, sadly, the Catholic church is becoming irrelevant because of these revelations. I have friends who have stopped participating because of the pedophile priest scandels. The Church does a lot of good things but this is overshadowing them, get rid of him and move on.
Jack,
This is simply ridiculous. The Pope cannot be "forced out" and for that matter Pope Benedict has done more than any other to promote healing for victims. The media's coverage of abuse in the Church is entirely one sided, out of context, and shows complete ignorance for how the Church runs its administration.
Jack it is not just the Pope it is the whole establishment. The church has failed to realize that Pedophilia is a serious crime and should be punished unlike their current way of treating priest by just slapping them on their wrists. This news has truly made me sick but in another way I am glad that I never supported this church in the first place.
at best this Pope is a Nazi.. Yeah he has a good PR team but he can not hide, and now the sexual abuse shadow catches up with him... there is a special place in hell for those that abuse children AND those that hide it.... even a "Pope"
throw the bum out, hey ... send him, with Pelosi to Alaska so they have to live with Palin.. Seems it takes care of three losers at the same time.
The pope is either blind or dumb to see that these scandals are killing catholic church, either gets tough or step aside for someone who will
Yes the POPE should resign!
The Pope is supposed to be infallible, and our forgiveness depends on the absolution of a priest. So why is anyone still Catholic?
Absolutely. Speaking as a recovering victim of child abuse, outing the abuser can only serve to help the victims heal. If the church hopes to recover from this horrendous scandal, it must accept full responsibility for what has been allowed to happen. That has to begin with ousting the person who did so very much to help hide the rampant abuse that was allowed to happen for so many years. Benedict needs to slink away in shame because of his part in allowing this to continue unabated for so many years.
Yes the church would benefit. The media is not going to let this scandal go and rightfully so. The church needs to show the world it has acknowledged this atrocious scandal and will respond with drastic measures. Anything less will not allow the public to forgive and forget.
Jack,
Asking the catholic church to force the pope to resign is a waste of time. After all this is the organization that condemns consenting adults, who happen to be gay, for simply loving each other while defending and covering up for child molesters. It is like asking the republicans to admit the war in Iraq was based on false pretenses.
Bob in South Carolina
Most definitely. The church needs someone who can lead it into the 21st Century not someone to lead it back to the 16th century as seemingly his goal has been from the start.
The Catholic Church has been making ridiculous and harmful decisions regarding sex for long enough. Condoms cause AIDS, covering up sex abuse and same sex sex. It's time this institution was disbanded: not only for the backward bunch of costume wearing fools but for the fact that it's an ancient religion that serves no purpose in modern society. Get with the times and lose the Pope and the rest of the bronze age bozos...
The Church has no way to benefit from the current situation. It has defined the truth for Catholics for 2000 years; that truth is embodied in the Pope as the infallible vicar of Christ on earth. If the Church backs down and dumps Benedict, it will be admitting infallibility violating one of its central tenets; if it does nothing it continues to lose followers as people lose faith in the Church's ability to provide spiritual guidance, much less prevent itself from touching their children.
Jack,
Sexual abuse in the Catholic Church hasn't been going on for decades, it's been going on for centuries. The church has endorsed and condoned this kind of behavior, by ignoring it. All popes in history are responsible, due to the policies they have put in place in the name of God. Including the policy of priests not being allowed to marry. The entire history of the church is based on guilt, shame, fear, and self loathing.
I am not Catholic. I think shuffling abusers around and not telling the churches that they are sent to is a recipe for more abuse. Pope Rattzinger, since he grew up in Germany during World War II, was also forced to be in the Young Nazis. You can forgive, but not learning from the past, and forgetting lessons learned by the mistakes of past generations, has always been said to doom people to repeat the same mistakes from not learning from mistakes made in the past.
Not only should the Pope be forced out, but the Catholic Church should be prosecuted under the Federal RICO (anti-racketeering) statute. Under RICO, a person who is a member of an enterprise that has committed any two of 35 crimes—27 federal crimes and 8 state crimes—(including obstruction of justice) within a 10-year period can be charged with racketeering
The Pope's resignation would be a good start. Thanks so much for bringing this up on your show! I know you'll take a lot of heat , but whatever, you said it all, the veil has been lifted , Oz has been revealed and he is a pedophile enabler.How can the Church" take a stand on morality when they themselves are above the law. Indeed.
Right on Jack!
Some people seem to think the Pope is above the law. I say hell no and he should be brought down from his high horse and have to answer for things just as others have.
Jack,
Removing this Pope is only a small (and necessary step) what needs to happen is a total reconstruction of the Catholic church. Start with the priesthood itself. Allow married family men to be priests; also allow women. (BTW, notice how small the ration of female pedophiles is compared to males.) As it now stands, with the Church having such a far reach into the education with all its schools, it is a perfect and rich environment to attract pedophiles.
No. they need to get rid of the whole church. they have a histoy of child abuse.
The Catholic Church is a bunch of booty Bandits hiding under the name of god they should all getbe put to death for the actions
You do know that we can explain how the sun rises and sets... how lightning is created.. earthquakes.. why it rains... – THIS is why we created the many thousands of gods throughout history. We should not only force the pope out we should force religion in its entirety out. The world would be a MUCH better place without it. If only we could evolve past the need to worship things our ancestors imagined to explain life and the things that happened around them
The Pope isn't to blame for what's been going on forever.Never will the Catholic church beleive they have done anything wrong. Committing sex crimes on little boys has probably been what took some of them into the preisthood. I think they should be tried just as my child or yours would be and thrown into prison for sure.
It sounds to me that the Catholic Church has done its utmost to protect itself. The Pope when he was archbishop had the opportunity to do right but instead chose to protect the church, not the victims.
No one should be calling the Catholic Church to report abuse; they need to call the police ASAP!
The Catholic Church needs a complete housekeeping from top to bottom. The Pope needs to resign, but that won't happen. It's like some good ole boys network; they protect priests, bishops, cardinals, etc. BUT not the children.
Jack, forcing this pope out won't make any difference.
Pedophilia is rampant in the church and will continue to be.
What needs to be done as would be done in any other case, is a criminal investigation church wide and every last one of the vermin that hide under the veil of religion arrested no matter the degree of the abuse. If a member of the clergy is aware, then that person is guilty, period. Purge the church in its entirety.
Hello Jack – This is my first time leaving a message for Cafferty file but I am done with the Catholic Churchs arrogance and denials of proveable sins and abuses.
Yes! Even if Pope John Paul was indeed the pope II who blocked investigations, too bad from Benedict. He needs to resign. I am Catholic but I no longer give a cent to the church. I pick my own charities to donate money too.
On a positive note, if the Catholic church hadn't persecuted my Scotch Presbyterian ancestors, they wouldn't have emigrated to America for a better life, and where would I be today? Unfortunately, emigration was not an option for the 200 deaf children who were sexually abused by priests, so there is no good end to their story. Since we now live in a global society where international law rules over pedophiles, secular law should prevail. If found guilty, the Pope should pay same price as any other criminal.
Unfortunately, as with most other issues in today's world, this question seems a mostly political proposition. How would forcing the pope out help the Church's popularity? Wouldn't everyone benefit in having the Church force the Pope out before he allows anymore of the clergy to force their way in – to the children of the Church?
Palm Desert, CA
If the Catholic Church is willing to acknowledge the continuing decay of its dysfunctional hierarchical system and its overall appeal to the Catholic faithful, it would clearly benefit from removing the Pope. Unfortunately, those who would be in a position to remove the Pope are part of the problem. As usual, they will be more interested in maintaining the status quo and disclaiming accountability for this outrageous problem.
I respect the Catholic church because my ex and my kids are catholic.
That being said
1st I think the Vatican is a huge business... Money here and there... They even have ties long ago with all the mafias
2) They are 90% pedophiles, who I think should be bought to the full wrath of the World laws against pedophiles. I see nothing but the Vatican church is the biggest haven for pedophiles or child molesters.
3) Have women priests
4) Get married.. Not to each other but as the Bible says to a woman.
5) Get with the modern times... Life has changed since Rome conquered half the earth.. Dont be like Muslims that man control everything...
Jack,
The Pope may have a good reason to remain mute on the subject of child sexual abuse. He is responsible for upholding the bible, much like your president is responsible for upholding your US constitution.
The bible says "let he who is without sin cast the first stone". Well, he isn't reaching for any stones...except for the stonewalling silence . Could he be simply following the bible's advice?
The fat lady sang and if Yogi Berra was alive he would probably say, "OK, OK, it's over."
The cardinals elected him and they should get together and annul their votes.
if he was duplicite or culpable, in any way, i want him gone! he could not have god's ear, his infallability, very fallacious!
The only thing tha will help the Catholic Church is a revolution. This institution avows the sanctity of human life only to treat it with disregard the second the umbilical cord is cut. Maybe if parishoners stopped putting money in the plate every Sunday the Vatican might get the message that protecting their predators will not be tolerated by Catholics or the general public.
If I heard you correctly that the Vatican is putting the "blame" on US priests for cover ups and then claiming that these priests were not "really employees" of the church then should it really matter to US Catholics? If these Vatican statements/claims are accurate then it seems that the Pope is not "our" Pope.
Forcing this pope out would accomplish nothing. The sex abuse/cover ups started years before he ever became pope and would probably continue under whoever would replace him. Keeping him in may force him to clean up his part of the act.
The Catholic Church should force out anyone who has contributed this long term problem, or ignored the children who cried out for help. Other nuturing churces and organizations should do the same. True reform and contrition is what is needed. Thanks for your part in exposing disturbing pedophilia.
This pope has stench on him from multiple sources:
As Archbishop of Munich he transferred a priest around who molested boys to maintain the Church's reputation. Eventually that priest was imprisoned in Germany.
As Cardinal and head of the 'Office of the Congretion of the Faith' he knew but did nothing about the rapist priest in Wisconsin who molested more than 200 boys. Eventually Ratzinger forgave that priest, and never disciplined him within the Church. That priest died and was buried in his priestly garments. The victims were blamed.
This stench transfers to his papacy. He is unsuitable for such high office.
Forcing this Pope or any other Pope out is not the answer. The solution is simple, if priests were allowed to marry you would not have the problem the Catholic church is facing today. By not allowing priests to marry, this attracts pedophiliacs to become "men of the cloth" a perfect place to hide and still lead seemingly respectful lives.
People have a right to be upset about the abuse scandal in the church and the bishops who mishandled it should resign. But holding the Pope responsible when their is not proof he knew is like holding the President responsible for the actions of military personnel who break the law. Stop picking on an 84 year old man and call out the bishops who failed!
The whole Catholic Church needs to step down, or at least step back. This cover-up and scandal is just one of the many chinks in the armor of that institution's effort to control the thoughts of the people in this part of the world. If the church were truly sincere then the pope would admit fault and make reparations. He can keep his job, but first he must stand up and set an example by taking responsibility for the mistakes of his institution.
No they need to get rid of the whole church. They have a history of child abuse.
The Catholic Church is a bunch of booty Banits hiding under the name of God.
They should all be put to death
Jack, it's never going to happen!
I am from Germany, actually close to where Ratzinger resided before he became Pope, which, btw, we could not believe our eyes when he was elected. That being said, I just read the German papers and Angela Merkel is so very proud of the hotline that was installed, they had over 4000 calls the very first day! Get it: German Chancellor, German Pope.
The abuse of children has been happening since 2000+ years and will be happening the next 2000+ years. No matter who's Pope.
P
Henderson
No, not good enought it must be dissolved. Why should a pedophilia church that is fraudulent exist?. It should have been gone after it started but everything was kept under the rug and bad people still supported it. You can't keep saying your going to change and consider it a religion. That is not credibile. Just another sect of Christianity where people don't take responsibility for their actions.and keep doing evil things over and over. Meanwhile, they are given a false illusion that they are alright no matter what they do. .
As a priest. I am an Old Catholic priest. And, as a priest, I continue to be appalled and amazed. Appalled at the Church who continues to bury its head and never apologize, and amazed at the people who continue to go and support by their attendance and their dollars. By now, a wise person would be voting with their legs and leaving!
Yes, I am a Catholic Priest, just not a Roman Catholic priest. My parish and my church care for people, follow the mandate of Christ, and never, ever have even once had an abuse scandal. Yet, when people hear 'catholic' they think to be so they must go to church that has become so bereft of reality and so beset in rules, that they have lost the love and grace of God. Now, in more ways than one.
So, would the Church be better off without this pope? No. They have many more right behind him to take his place. They need change. Right now! And it must begin with someone who remembers why they became a priest and how they became a politician instead.
Please, repent and stop hiding. Tell the people of the world that you are sorry. That the Catholic Church is sorry. That every living person who is Catholic is sorry. But take some responsibility, please. Before it’s too late for you, too...after all, you do have a soul, right? God help us all.
First I should say I'm Catholic and I realize my view will differ from non-Catholics and some fellow Catholics. I don't think ousting the Pope will make any difference, but the current defensive stance of the Vatican is a mistake and not in keeping, I think, with Christian teaching. The Pope and any of the hierarchy that have ANY role in allowing the occurence of sexual abuse have to make a sincere acknowledgment of their responsibility. There are differing levels of responsibility, but nitpicking about how responsible the Pope is only shows a self-serving attitude of trying to safe the Vatican's reputation. Humility and repentance is in order here. Let the chips fall where they may, legally, I say. The Church needs to face the consequences of ignoring the suffering and damage done to young people who trusted the religious and found their trust destroyed in the most reprehensible manner.
Irrelevant question – ain't going to happen. Period.
YES IT WOULD! I say it as a catholic and objective observant. When the Salahi's crahsed the white house state dinner party, social secrectary Desiree Rodgers had to step down. Same here heads have to roll jack. Anyone who had anything to do with it must go!! That is the only way to restore the Church's credibility.
Forcing this pope out would not benefit anybody, he would only be replaced by another who would exercise the same policies of concealment and obfuscation. Vatican City is a sovereign nation state and nothing short of a military invasion would remove him.
I think the Catholics ahould run their church. I am not a Catholic. However taking him down would be fine with me. The whole thing makes me sick. If this had happen in some other church, there would be a gaint investigation Pronto.
Absolutely. Case after case of pedophile priests being sheltered. With this latest atrocity, a direct link to the pope, it is time for some accountability at the top. I had 12 years of Catholic education and between the nuns verbally and physically abusing students and the priest sexually abusing kids it is a wonder how anyone could call themself a Catholic.
The abuse of children in any form is reprehensible, but the ongoing frenzy on the Catholic church and the call for Popes removal distorts the facts. In virtually all the reports the Pope is considered guilty of doing nothing when the true facts are not known and he is not even been given an opportunity to defend himself. The Church has a right to defend itself and not judged solely on the behavior of a few bad priest. Most child abuse is still being done by family and friends and we should not loose sight of that. The Catholic church has done much good in this world and while it should be held to account it should not be lynched without a proper trial.
Jack. Another Media assault on the Catholic Church. First off i will say that i am a Catholic myself, and that it is absolutely disgusting what some of these Catholic priests have done, and that i am disappointed that the Papacy has done nothing about it. However, from what i know there has never been a Pope "impeached " from office and quite frankly i believe there never will. The cardinals dont have enough guts to stand up to the man, but that is beside the point. These priests need to be punished there is no exception from the law for molesting a child. I believe that this situation has been blown completely out of proportion by the media. The one thing that i think the people of the world need to know is they need to quit pointing there finger at the Catholic Church, because there are four fingers pointing right back at them. The Catholic Church isnt the only church that has ever abused children. It is the only Church you hear about. WHY IS THAT? People need to focus on the point that it is Holy Week , the time in which we celebrate jesus's death for our sins. This situation should be dealt with after Holy Week, and the priests, not the pope being punished.
Hunter
Beautiful Maryland
The Catholic Church continues to mishandle a growing crisis. When their goal is to protect the church and sexual offending Priests it is wrong. They need to step forward and demonstrate reconciliatiob by openly disclosing that the sexual behaviors of some priests is wrong and these priests need to take actions of restitution that helps victims. The church should also be accountable under the law that if they protected information of crimes to children they need to turn these records over to the authorities.
This Pope never wanted to become Pope. In fact he fought it. Being in the Hitler Youth (mandatory) made him an easy target for one specific other religion. I do not think he should resign.
Blame should be put on the Pope before him. That sanctimonious Pole who shipped all the homosexual which abused these poor children to Ireland, other places, even gave sanctuary for the higher ups at the Vatican. And now they want to nominate him for sainthood.
Sigrid
The US Department of Health and Human Services reported 83,600 substantiated reports of sexually abused children in 2005 including incidents which were not reported would make the total number even larger. So would we have benefited by impeaching President Bush and every Governor in 2005 since each state has a different law. The Catholic church molestation reports are a such small percent of this.
The Pope is entitled to defend himself even though he doesn't need to at this time until all the facts come out. Kicking a Pope out without knowing if he is directly involved and not given due process is absurd and of course half of the world who is not Catholic would love him to be gone even if the Pope got a traffic ticket.
As a non practicing catholic, I think the catholic religion is a cult, like most religions, brain washed hypocrites that never practice what they preach, inflict harm on others and sweep under the rug. How does that not make you a sinner. How can you preach one thing and practice another, and then have the audacity to condem consensual homosexual lifestyle as an abomination. I think the catholic religion is an abomination living in this golden palace while people are suffering. Where is your morality or humanity for that matter. All a bunch of hypocrites. I have one god to answer to and he is everywhere I don't need the church or a cult to find him. God bless.
Yes. While they're at it the Catholic church can also use all their money to have a clone of John Paul the II made as a replacement. That guy was pretty chill.
Yes he should be out
Just because many in the U.S. have become disillusioned does not mean that the rest of the world 's true believers fail to support the Pope and Catholicism despite centuries of Crusades, Inquisition, Jewish pogroms and pedophilia.I think the (stupid) lawyers who are arguing immunity should just say God chose the Pope,the Pope is infallible- case closed.
As a devout Catholic it pains me to say he must be removed. To shield these perverts is sinfull and wrong. Those priests are going to hell and the Pope should get out of the way before he finds himself there as well.
Yes Jack,I believe that the Pope should be held accountable for all these Pedophile priests who have molested and raped all these children during all these years,and most were never prosecuted,or sent to prison for their crimes.All those innocent victims and their families are all demanding justice,and its about time their voices were heard as well. So yes,the Catholic church would benefit from forcing Pope Benedict out because it would send out a clear message to all those other Pedophile priests still out there,that no one is above the law of God,including the Pope,and could be arrested anytime for their sex crimes.There is no doubt that the Pope,and the Catholic church knew of all these crimes, and instead of doing something,just simply covered it all up.
The Catholic Church can't force out the pope, since he has a lifetime appointment and it's not a democracy. It's amazing how so many Tea Party folks are catholics ... how can you be upset at Obama taking too much power and then submit to a papal monarchy that hides child molesters??
"Good people tend to do good things...bad people tend to do bad things...to get good people to do bad things, well, that takes religion"
Getting rid of the pope is just the first step.
Jack,
Rape is a crime..Covering up the crime makes you an assessory! Rape of a child is an atrocity!
This is a civil matter for the courts in EACH counrty! No deals –take it to the top if necessary!
Of course not, the church would lose credibility. It would mean that the church is accepting that they have done something wrong. What the pope needs to do is to stop acting as the law and start helping out all those inocent vctims.
yes, after all these scandals the pope should resigh and the catolic church should allow the priest to a wife, so they dont have to molestade kids. jeannot petit FL
But God chose him! Who are any of us mere mortals to say he's not the right white guy for the job? Don't go criticizing the defenseless, innocent, infallible Pope too harshly.
I'm a Catholic and if I ever found out that my priest was abusing someone I would not hesitate to tell someone. I really don't see why the Church is trying to cover it up like nothing happened by not punishing priests and only letting the police handle it. Obviously Pope Benedict has chosen to keep quiet and not act on it and I don't think he will. When I heard that there were men in Kentucky suing the Church for negligence and that the Church's lawyers were saying the Church/Pope could not be tried because he was a head of state, I thought that was ridiculous. If the president ever did something like that there would be so much outrage from the public and congress that he would be deposed and tried! I think the Church needs a strong Pope who doesn't hide behind the cloth, but condemns the actions these priests are taking and with any other incident. We need a Pope who was as strong as John Paul and who takes action rather than hiding and trying to cover everything up so as to not lose credibility.
Alex, Green Bay, WI
Nope it would not help the Catholic Church to force this Pope out. Let the cards fall where they fall. Maybe this story will get bigger. For years the Catholilc Church has led people threw a dark hole of of ignorance and superstition.
Kiss the Pope's ring and you are saved. Put your self on a cross with nails, as they do in Mexico and you are saved. Women, have more babies.
Unfortunate, that most of them don't even watch the news. They listen to their Priest...that's where they get their news from.
And yes, I am a Christian...but the Pope is not the Holy Father.
The Catholic Church is a bunch of criminals. Remember they help hide the germans who kill the jews in the Holocaust. rapeing children is just another part of their criminal enterprize.
How do we define these crimes? We have thousands of pages of rape laws, and thousands of pages of gay rights laws.
Are we sure the Pope broke any laws. Sex gets complicated in the US and many other Countries.
Maybe we should start chopping off heads, then the confused would know where we stand.
So the "Vatican lawyers plan to argue that American bishops who oversaw abusive priests weren't employees of the Vatican." I bet if our Catholic bishops decided to ordain women priests tomorrow in defiance of the Pope, the Holy See would not hesitate to send all them their pink slips along with orders to move out of their chancery offices within 24 hours.
The church would benefit by getting into th 21st century
I don't think so. I think he should stay in office, apologize to the world, to the Catholics of the world, and to any abused person who wants a face-to-face apology. Besides, what would it accomplish if he resigned now?
how can anyone respect a "church" that refuses any accountablility, hides and/or relocates pedifiles, continues to practice cover-ups to hide their misdeeds. the news media has uncovered evidence that this pope was involved in the coverup. this organization seems more intent on accumultating wealth, not punishing pedophiles, avoiding any accountability–this is a role model??? I think not! they are a bunch of hypocrites and should be held accountable for their crimes and the resulting suffering.
Yes. It would demonstrate to the world that the church has integrity. But Jack, you know it will not happen. My father was molested by a catholic priest in a boy’s home in NJ in the 1950’S. My dad took that anguish to his grave.
The Catholic Church is a false religion
No, Jack. It wouldn't make a difference. During WWII, the Catholic Church turned a blind eye to the atrocities happening to the Jews, yet Pope Pius XII was not removed. Although they are receiving condemnation worldwide for child abuse, for centuries, all organized religions seem to be above reproach. If I am not mistaken, a majority of wars, throughout history, were religious based. Today, homosexuals are being targeted by religious groups and organized religion, yet nothing is said or condemned. The church will again get through this, because they are GOD'S CHOSEN. Bit of sarcasm at the end.
It's okay Jack,The pope and all the rest will get their judgement,and I think the judgement they will face is worse than any courtroom or jail.
The National Child Abuse report found that 10,667 USA people had made allegations towards priests of child sexual abuse between 1950 and 2002. That is 50 years with an average of 212 molestations per year.
We average 10,000 molestions a month in the USA. The Pope needs his due process but who else needs to be put in the electric chair in the USA for the 80000 molestations per year that are not by priests. There is no benefit of taking down the Pope other than proving the 2012 doomsdayers that said this would happen.
Jack this pope never do anything to stop those sex scadals he should resigh.
The Catholic Church and the Pope might find salvation if the truth were set free.This behavior by the clergy is probably very old, very known and so very sad for the Church and for those whose faith can be so destroyed.. It must be very likely some of these abusive priest were possibly abused as well.
Removing the pope will not change anything. The issue is one of church policy. Prohibiting priests from marrying forces many of them into sexual perversion, because they don'e have a normal outlet for their very human impulses and desires. Jesus himself never said that priests must be celibate. As a matter of fact many of the apostles were married.