Ah, how about the thread that we’re on???
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The horror, the sordidness of the awful abuse of children by figures of spiritual authority is not much assuaged by current Archbishop Jose Gomez relieving Cardinal Mahony of “all public duties” after mounting evidence showed he shielded pedophile priests from law enforcement.
So Mahony won’t be overseeing the Sacrament of Confirmation at Our Lady of the Angels anytime soon. But he is not only still a priest who can perform Mass - he is still one of the 120 cardinals who form the leadership of a church with more than 1.1 billion adherents worldwide, in a line going back to St. Peter.
Given what we now know about Mahony’s active efforts to protect known and suspected sexual abusers in clerical collars, this removal of him from public life is not only not enough - it’s no punishment at all.
And this crime deserves punishment. That was made clear by the heartbreaking letters that were made public last week.
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So what would you do with STILL CARDINAL Mahoney? A fiend who passed pedophiles around to prey on innocent children and a man your church still considers a Cardinal. And what will you do to back up your words? Honestly, I feel like I’m talking to aliens when I have these conversations.
You wrote:
“So what would you do with STILL CARDINAL Mahoney?”
First, I would have to know exactly what he did in detail. That would require an investigation. That’s why I believe there should be an inquisition.
Second, I do not know if he can formally be removed from the college of cardinals, but he could be removed from the clerical state.
We can’t burn anyone at the stake. I’m not saying that’s a plus either.
“A fiend who passed pedophiles around to prey on innocent children and a man your church still considers a Cardinal.”
Again, the problem is that I don’t even know if a cardinal can be removed from the college. There might be no mechanism for it - much like Jimmy Savile can’t have his knighthood (or whatever his rank was) removed because there is no mechanism for it.
“And what will you do to back up your words?”
Well, as a ‘civilian’, I can’t do anything to back up my words just like everyone else in this thread. That’s the reality of the situation. I can only leave it in the hands of God, pray, fast, and work for justice. My power and influence is limited.
“Honestly, I feel like I’m talking to aliens when I have these conversations.”
That’s probably because you have no idea of what you’re talking about and you’re trying to force a worldly answer onto a spiritual problem. I don’t think you’re having a conversation. I think you’re just babbling without any understanding.