The Popes visit to Britain seems to have caused some vitriol from certain circles. some like Peter Tatchell, take a position against the Pope because of the relatively large cases of child sex abuses that have occurred under the gaze of the established catholic church to which, the Pope has not given the kind of apology to those abused as should be. Also, among these people is the criticism of subjugation of women and gay men and women within the church.
There are others opposed to the Popes visit because they suffer from bigotry and have beef with catholicism and those who follow the catholic religion (although I have not seen them give a coherent reason why, they just display some ugly superior disdain without giving reason).
There is no way I am going to defend or make allowances for the above average numbers of cases of child abuse in the catholic church, or the sexism or the homophobia. But I will say the obvious which is there are pressures on priests to have all the answers, to be a bit above the masses and the pressures from celibacy. Often catholic priests go into the profession at a young age and are inexperienced, not mature emotionally and may have no or limited sexual experience.
That they vow celibacy means they might find sexual gratification from children as they are disallowed and disallow themselves a relationship with someone who is an equal. That is out of the question, so they find that children are not only eager to please but also easily manipulated. It is a combination of the sheltered lives that the priests lead and that they are emotionally underdeveloped and insecure.
It is the link between the catholic church and the state that causes this problem. It is not the fault of the people who practise this religion, and the priests themselves need a lot more understanding.
When Marx says that religion is the opium of the masses and the heart in a heartless world, it is true and for a religion to be practiced it requires some level of ritual and ceremony, however bizarre it looks and might be to others on the outside looking in. In no way is this a justification for the vast wealth that places like the Vatican have, it does not cost much to practice rituals and ceremonies, let alone accumulate vast sums.
Due to the unequal society we are born into, every institution will reflect this inequality, and there will be and is struggle within them for something better, for something that has freedom and equality at its heart.
All institutions contain this struggle, from the family, hospitals, schools, leisure, sports industries and also religious institutions. These institutions are here when we are born, we can choose to shape them and / or get rid of them as adults... However this must always be done with the interests of the majority of people. What they (the majority) understand and are prepared collectively to do.
With feet firmly on the ground - reach for the stars!
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
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The place I was trying to remember yesterday in Avignon is called "The Palace of the Popes." It is at that place last year that I came to terms with religion and the Roman Catholic. As far as I am concerned, 'Yes there is a God, IT is the universe and every little thing is a creation of the universe.' How we human beings came to be can be debated by physicians, scientists, religious people and the like. But one thing I am 100% sure of is that all these people use hypotheses that they can never prove in their lifetime.
ReplyDeleteThe Pope is the head of one of the money making institutions on this planet. There is absolutely no relationship between the Pope and Jesus Christ - this is how religion works. It is a man made institution that serves the purpose of those who claim its legitimacy. However, there are genuine people who go into these religions because they believe in what is written in the scriptures they follow and the majority of them live a humbled life whilst serving those they are entitled to help. The Pope is not one of them. What he has is a very big ego.
You would have loved the talk by Colin Wilson on racism and fascism at our branch meeting yesterday. It was a well balanced presentation, no hysteria about the threat of the BNP and the EDL and no apathy as to our fight back either. This is a man who knows what Hitler and the Nazi did to those they undermined - gays included. I know Colin is gay and just like me knows the fate that would befall us if we allowed the Nazis back into mainstream politics. Their target at present might be a religious group whose religion they disagree with, but as a black woman, history has all its hallmarks when it comes to how racism works.
The Pope is homophobic, but like the Nazi, that is not his place to go round judging others who have nothing to do with his church. It is the Roman Catholic that has the highest record of gay priests who suppress their sexual desires and instead of getting into adult consentual relationships, they rape young boys and girls. It is the RC that has the highest institutional abuse of the most vulnerable. No where does the Pope sound concerned by this paedophilia in his organisation as he is when it comes to consentual adult gay sex. Obviously, one has to ask a simple question. Why? The simple answer is he would rather scandalise others than his own business. It is this idea of pointing one finger at someone (mainly innocent) without realising that 3 are pointing back at you.
But I agree with you, personally, I will not demonstrate against the Pope's visit to the UK. I will not be critical of the Roman Catholic either. But I will support and if need be work with those who are fighting for justice against the abuse they suffered under the Roman Catholic. I will support and work with those who are victims of the Pope's bigotry and narrow mindedness. The Pope might have authority over what Roman Catholics believe in, but to go around using his status to criticise what adults do in their private lives is abuse of his power. I believe that is how we have to stand up to him and his nauseating little mind.