Should the Pope resign?

by slimboyfat 49 Replies latest social current

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  slimboyfat

  Questions are being raised about whether Pope Benedict was personally involved in covering up a case of child sex abuse by a Roman Catholic priest.

  Documents seen by the New York Times newspaper suggest that in the 1990s, long before he became Pope, he failed to respond to letters about a US case.

  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8587082.stm

  That would prove the Catholic church is capable of reform, no? Instead of cover ups and forcing others to stand aside, if the leader admitted his own guilt.
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  minimus

  yup
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  SacrificialLoon

  Wouldn't that interfere with the whole "the Pope is infallible" thing though? Then they might as well hand over the Holy See to the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.
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  JWoods

  I think he should go away too. I think the Catholics knew he was a mistake from day one, but put up with it because he was politically connected and was the "next in line".
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  Gregor

  I have not followed the latest Catholic pedo scandal very closely. Is there a molestation accusation against the Pope or is this call for his resignation based of his participation in a cover up?
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  sir82

  If it didn't bother his conscience or seem wrong at the time when he was just a bishop, why would he think differnetly now?

  Yeah, he should resign, but he won't.
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  BurnTheShips

  I am starting to think he should step down.

  BTS
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  JWoods

  Just for the record - is there any procedural way in the Roman Catholic Church to remove a pope if he has been found to have done some gross sin?
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  BurnTheShips

  Just for the record - is there any procedural way in the Roman Catholic Church to remove a pope if he has been found to have done some gross sin?

  There are procedures in place for a Cardinal to take over a Pope's duties in case of mental infirmity. But that is all I am aware of. I stress duties. The Cardinal doing the Pope's job isn't the Pope.

  An Ecumenical Council, however, can do it. It has been done before.

  They "write the laws" governing the church. Within the law, the Pope is tops, but he doesn't "write the law".

  As far as I can remember, during the Catholic inquisition it is estimated that 50,000,000 people were tortured to death.

  Those numbers are grossly inflated by individuals with an agenda. Considering the fact that the population of all of Europe was about 50 million in 1450, and the Inquisition only operated in certain parts of Europe, the falsehood of the figure is easy to see. The Inquisition did not dispose of millions. Nor even hundreds of thousands. It was only a few thousand people-tops. Records were kept. As bad as that is, it isn't 50 million. 50 million would have depopulated Europe.

  Here are studies on the subject. Yes I know the Catholic Church has done some bad things, but let's stick with reality, not hyperbole. The Inquisition has been turned into a sort of myth far beyond what it actually was.

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition#Death_tolls

  BTS
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  SacrificialLoon

  I believe he can abdicate, but he can't be forced out. This stuff is small potatoes compared to some of the things other Popes have done in the past.