Anti-Catholic bigotry [Ecumenical]

RenewAmerica ^ | 4-27-10 | Matt C. Abbott

[mlizzy]

Perhaps the term "bigot" is overused these days, particularly by the libertine left when referring to those of us who oppose the homosexual lobby, which in turn promotes the homosexual lifestyle and same-sex "marriage" and denigrates the traditional family unit. (The homosexual lobby often supports the abortion industry as well.)

Yet bigotry does exist — and we orthodox Christians bear the brunt of it. Consider: Abortion and homosexual activists frequently exhibit bigotry toward us. Vicious secular humanists such as Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins frequently exhibit bigotry toward us. And then there's the bigotry exhibited by some Protestants toward Catholics such as yours truly. (Yes, I will concede that there are some Catholics who exhibit bigotry toward Protestants — i.e. by claiming Protestants have no chance of being saved and by not treating them as our brothers and sisters in Christ — but, thankfully, such Catholics are relatively few in number.)

I recently received an e-mail from a fellow I'll call Jim, who was responding to my April 24 column "Homosexuality and the Church Crisis." Based on Jim's initial e-mail to me, printed below, I assumed he was an anti-Catholic gay activist bigot.

'I did not read your article. I did find the title very offensive. That church is NOT only not my church, it is also not the church of most people living in the USA. The only things I know about your church is: 1. They didn't stop murdering Protestants for heresy until a few hundred years ago. 2. They shifted to buggering to [sic] children is [sic] the present day. I do not want to know anymore. I don't [sic] to read anymore. I am tired of bitching, analyzing, and whining in the newspapers. If you want to write about this crap please confine it to the Catholic press and stop bothering the rest us.'

I responded:

'I assume you're referring to this column of mine. No one's forcing you to read anything. I don't know you and I didn't e-mail you. If some leftist blog/Web site you happen to read links to and/or comments on my column, well, that's certainly not my doing. My suggestion is quite simple: If my column offends you, don't even read the title. I don't let anti-Catholic bigots dictate the subjects about which I write.'

Well, I soon found out that Jim isn't in fact an anti-Catholic gay activist bigot; he's an anti-Catholic Protestant bigot. To wit: In a subsequent e-mail (partially edited, except to show that Jim's e-mail correspondence is sloppily composed), he said:

'It is a fact that the Catholic Church persecuted and, yes, murdered Protestants in the past for high crime of heresy. Now, that was a long time ago, and I and most others don't blame the Catholics of today for the crimes of the past. But, given the history, some of us just do not like the Catholic Church very much. Calling us 'anti-Catholic Bigots' does not help either side. (btw.. Matt, do you call modern Jews, 'anti-Nazi bigots?') It is also a fact the 'us bigots' don't particular like it when the press, any press, refers to Catholic Church as THE church. Gee, does that mean that nice little Baptist church my family has attended for the past 3 generations is not a real church? Well, I guess only on god can answer that one, but according to Matt, it is obviously not THE church.

'And Matt, after you sent me the link, I did go back and read your article. Statistics and formulas. Very and impressive and probably all very true. But, this heretic's view is much more simple:

'I have know since the scandals of the early 1980's that the Catholic Church protects the pedophiles in its high and holy priestly ranks. Actually any one read newspapers in the 1980s knew that then. Are there pedophile Catholic priest? Heretics think the answer is yes. Are the pedophile Baptist Ministers? Heretics, including many Baptists, think the answer is yes.

'The ONLY difference that this heretic can see is: The Catholic Church protects the pedophile priests from criminal prosecution! (And has many times moved them new parishes were they can prey on even more children.)

'Gee, let's think about this for minute. It's... say 1985 and there is a man that really likes to have sex with young children. He was gone so far as considering entering profession that will put him in contact with young children. What are his alternatives? School teacher? If busted, he will go prison? Protestant Minister? If busted, he will go to prison? Catholic Priest? If busted, he will be protected from and criminal prosecution and be will be moved to new parish with lots of new children to molest?

'Finally, true confessions: I am a born and raised protestant who is such an anti-Catholic BIGOT that I married a nice Catholic girl about 35 year ago. We are still married (although, I admit the marriage is NOT recognized by your high and holy church. I did not convert) and my wife stayed with the church until about 5 years ago when she realized that her monthly tithe (10% of our income — earned primarily by the bigot) was going primarily to pay for the criminal defense of pedophiles and left THE church. I was pleased and proud.

'Thanks to the internet genealogy craze I have an Aunt who was actually able to verify that the family legend is true. I do have a great, great..... grandfather who was beheaded by THE church for the crime of heresy in the 1600's. He was, in fact guilty of two crimes. He was a Quaker and he had stayed on the wrong side of the Atlantic Ocean much too long. After the beheading, his family (my ancestors) migrated to place with a history that Matt may be familiar with. Today we call it Pennsylvania. Actually, I think they called it that back then but that's another story. (NOTE: His last name was Dye, I have never actually counted how may 'great''s go before grandfather, and she has details, I never bothered to get them from her. I must admit, I was surprised that we were once Quakers, all that I had know about were Baptists and an occasional Lutheran)

'I DID get linked to Matt's article though one of those far left wing web sites. It's called Free Republic. You may want to check it out.'

(I shared Jim's initial e-mail with a Catholic friend of mine who also responded to him — hence Jim is, at certain points, directing his comments toward my friend as well as me.)

I'd say Jim and his ilk have been spending too much time indulging in anti-Catholic propaganda.

What a shame.

[emphasis; mine]

[Ransomed]

Jim R. is Catholic?

Freegards

[Irisshlass]

the Church would do NOTHING to address such perversion and corruption but instead continue to practice the DENIAL that was characteristic of the 1950s-2000s

These are a few examples of denial outside the Catholic Church.

http://www.reformation.com/CSA/ilger1.htm

Ilger, a former second-grade teacher, was convicted in 1988 of molesting four students in his San Luis Obispo classroom. After being released from jail, Ilger and his family moved to Los Angeles, where he took a position with Hope Chapel of the Valley in Canoga Park

"We've lived and learned a painful lesson," the Rev. Jeff Fischer of Hope Chapel said outside court.

Fischer has said he and about 30 church elders knew that Ilger had molested young girls before he was hired, and restricted his church duties.

http://www.reformation.com/CSA/turner1.htm Minister admits to being ‘sex addict'

Turner had been pastor of Anchor Community Church, 38 S. Fairgreen Drive, for seven years when he was arrested last summer

D) Anaheim, CA. Anaheim pastor admitted Monday he fondled two teen-age girls 18 years ago while working as a part-time counselor at a Colorado church a decade before he was assigned to an Orange County church. "I was acting like an irresponsible teen-ager. There's no excuse for what I did," the Rev. Greg Tucker of Anaheim First Church of the Nazarene told The Orange County Register. The church settled lawsuits by two women, who said Tucker, then 22, molested them when they were 16. A Colorado jury sided with the women in a civil trial, ordering Tucker to pay the two $70,000. Tucker said he never told church leaders about the indiscretions before his ordination in Southern California seven years ago. In Colorado, sexual relations with a teen-ager were not considered criminal then, which led the women to sue for civil damages. The former youth pastor is now a senior pastor in a Nazarene Church in Anaheim, CA. The Nazarene General Superintendent's remarks about the case were very telling, i.e. "This happened a long time ago. . .the man has 'grown' since then. . . isn't the Christian faith all about forgiveness. . ."(North County Times, April 17, 2002

NEW PORT RICHEY, FL -- The mother of a 5-year-old girl has filed a lawsuit against the Gospel Outreach Church of New Port Richey,alleging that her daughter was molested because church officials failed to screen the background of a church volunteer

http://www.reformation.com/CSA/robinson1.htm

Church Youth Leader Charged In Molestation Of 13 Year Old

Reginald G. Robinson, 24, a resident of Kansas City, was charged by the Jackson County Pro-secutor on Monday, May 20, with one count of statutory rape, three counts of statutory sodomy and one count of child molestation

Pastor Frank Douglas II, pastor of Beth-Judah Ministries was unavailable for comment

[Campion]

I do have a great, great..... grandfather who was beheaded by THE church for the crime of heresy in the 1600's. He was, in fact guilty of two crimes. He was a Quaker

This man's history is highly suspect. Quakerism started in England in 1640. Except for a brief period under Queen Mary in the 1550's, England became effectively a Protestant country in 1535.

Heresy was typically punished by being burnt at the stake. Beheading was the punishment in England for treason, if your sentence was commuted from the normal punishment (hanging, drawing, and quartering). (And you probably had to be a nobleman to earn that commutation.) I suppose beheading was the punishment for some other crimes, as well.

IOW, I don't believe his story. Catholics weren't beheading anyone in England for heresy in the 1600s.

[TheThirdRuffian]

Sure will. Most is not in the religion forum.

[vladimir998]

By the way, the bigot is full of it. If his ancestor was a Quaker, in England no less (name of “Dye”), then he wasn’t ever beheaded by a Catholic or even tried as one since Quakerism was started in the 17th century - over a century after Protestants took over England.

He’s not only a bigot, but he’s either a moron or a liar.

[Pyro7480]

A belated welcome home to the Catholic Church!

[Terabitten]

Disagreement doesn’t have to mean disrespect. I respect my Catholic brothers and sisters despite our disagreements.

I demand the same respect in return. By and large, I get it.

[mlizzy]

You are in a unique position, where you have changed faiths during your tenure at Free Republic.:) More and more as our government turns the screws tighter eliminating freedoms, it's important to have such a site as this one, but when the bickering takes over, nothing much can be accomplished at that time, which is unfortunate; we are all in this together. Thanks for posting! These Missionaries of Charity sisters (and their young friend taken this Easter) welcome you to the Catholic Church on the exact day you joined! (I was a Missouri Synod Lutheran for 33 years btw, and have been a Roman Catholic for 25.)

[ottbmare]

Jim R. is Catholic?

I believe so. Mod? Am I right?

[mlizzy]

So you want to be accepted by everyone? Was Jesus?

There's accepted and there's respected. I don't care at all if I'm accepted (having no friends opens up a lot of time for prayer:)), but I think there might be more "lurkers" who would participate, if there was more respect in general given to those who comment on FR, especially on religion threads. And participation is a good thing, right? It's what makes anything and everything successful IMO.

[mlizzy]

I really don’t understand it as it accomplishes nothing ...

I couldn't agree with you more ... :):)

[mlizzy]

Disagreement doesn’t have to mean disrespect. I respect my Catholic brothers and sisters despite our disagreements. I demand the same respect in return. By and large, I get it.

Yes, exactly!

[mlizzy]

By the way, the bigot is full of it. If his ancestor was a Quaker, in England no less (name of “Dye”), then he wasn’t ever beheaded by a Catholic or even tried as one since Quakerism was started in the 17th century - over a century after Protestants took over England. He’s not only a bigot, but he’s either a moron or a liar.

Thanks! I thought that might be the case.

[MEGoody]

There’s plenty of anti-Catholic bigotry. There’s plenty of anti-Protestant bigotry. There are bigots in every group of people. One would hope that the whole group is not painted with a single, broad brush.

[Salvation]

So, because of all the Catholic bigotry — is the author calling FreeRepublic a leftist site?

Maybe some people need to check their typing fingers and brain linkages! LOL!

FR is FAR from a leftist site! Wowsies!

[mlizzy]

I think he (the one who wrote Matt the e-mail) was using sarcasm, because Abbott originally said that he can’t help it if left sites link to his articles.

[Jim Robinson]

I don’t belong to any organized religion. I’m a Republican.

[ottbmare]

Sorry, Mr. Robinson, I was misinformed. I apologize.

[Jim Robinson]

No problem.

[Zionist Conspirator]

(Yes, I will concede that there are some Catholics who exhibit bigotry toward Protestants — i.e. by claiming Protestants have no chance of being saved and by not treating them as our brothers and sisters in Christ — but, thankfully, such Catholics are relatively few in number.)

This is the author's definition of Catholic "anti-Protestant bigotry?" He defines it out of existence!

REAL Catholic anti-Protestant bigotry isn't the Feeneyite kind. It's the sickening, disgusting "we're so much more enlightened and intellectual than you narrow-minded, illiterate Bible-thumpers who are so passe as to believe that only people who believe as you do go to Heaven."

THAT, my friends, is REAL Catholic anti-Protestant bigotry, and far too many Catholic posts on FR are absolutely dripping with it. But since "Catholic anti-Protestant bigotry" is being redefined so as to make Feeneyites and other traditionalists into scapegoats, I imagine no Catholic FReeper will see it that way.