Real Reason Pope Resigned

[stromboli]

http://www.ashtarcommandcrew.net/forum/ ... -seriously

The Pope and top Vatican cardinals have been accused of possible crimes against humanity for sheltering guilty Catholic priests, in formal complaints to the International Criminal Court.

The Centre for Constitutional Rights, a New York-based non-profit legal group, requested an ICC inquiry on behalf of the Survivors Network, arguing that the global church has maintained a "long-standing and pervasive system of sexual violence" despite promises to swiftly oust predators.
The Vatican said it had no immediate comment on the complaint.
The complaint names Pope Benedict XVI, partly in his former role as leader of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which in 2001 explicitly gained responsibility for overseeing abuse cases; Cardinal William Levada, who now leads that office; Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican secretary of state under Pope John Paul II; and Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who now holds that post.
Lawyers for the victims say rape, sexual violence and torture are considered a crime against humanity as described in the international treaty that spells out the court's mandate. The complaint also accuses Vatican officials of creating policies that perpetuated the damage, constituting an attack against a civilian population.
Barbara Blaine, president of the US-based Survivors Network of those Abused by priests, said going to the court was a last resort.
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"We have tried everything we could think of to get them to stop and they won't," she said. "If the Pope wanted to, he could take dramatic action at any time that would help protect children today and in the future, and he refuses to take the action."
The odds against the court opening an investigation are enormous. The prosecutor has received nearly 9,000 independent proposals for inquiries since 2002, when the court was created as the world's only permanent war crimes tribunal, and has never opened a formal investigation based solely on such a request.
Instead, prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has investigated crimes such as genocide, murder, rape and conscripting child soldiers in conflicts from Darfur to this year's violence in Libya. Such cases have been referred to the court by the countries where the atrocities were perpetrated or by the UN Security Council.
Also, the Holy See is not a member state of the court, meaning prosecutors have no automatic jurisdiction there, although the complaint covers alleged abuse in countries around the world, many of which do recognise the court's jurisdiction.
The prosecutor's office said in a statement the evidence would be studied. "We first have to analyse whether the alleged crimes fall under the Court's jurisdiction," it said.
The Survivors Network and victims are pursuing the case as the abuse scandal, once dismissed as an American problem by the Vatican, intensifies around the world. Thousands of people have come forward in Ireland, Germany and elsewhere with reports of abusive priests, bishops who covered up for them and Vatican officials who moved so slowly to respond that molesters often stayed on the job for decades.

There is a lot more to it than this. One becomes Pope by being a very sharp politician and having ties in Italian politics besides the Vatican. But I think that the fact he is Pope during the first real revelation of the sickness within the priesthood and the media exposure, he did not want to be the pope that was sitting on the biggest mess of pedophilia and sexual abuse in history. Along with his health and other issues, I'm sure that played a part. Never before in history has the Catholic Church been called out like it has over this. He didn't want his name tainted by the scandal.

[VaasMontenegro]

He was forced out, I think. Likely because of his age and the need to appeal to the younger generation through a younger pope. They will most likely vote for the black bishop so to widen the demographic.

It's all bullshit though.

[stromboli]

More on the issue:
http://americablog.com/2013/02/did-the- ... andal.html

At that point in our discussion Arnie pointed me to a couple of links I hadn't seen involving a Rhode Island court case against the so-called "Legion of Christ," a Catholic group with very close ties both to John Paul II and Ratzinger, and its notorious (and sexually prolific) founder, Fr. Marcial Maciel. I bring up Arnie Arnesen because she personally knows one of the principals in the lawsuit and has additional information. I'll add her contribution below the news pieces.
So what's the news regarding Maciel? This isn't complicated, but it has a couple of pieces. Those are:

? Who is Marcial Maciel and why is he notorious?

? What are his ties to John Paul II and to Ratzinger (both before and after his election as Benedict XVI)?

? What is alleged in the lawsuit against Maciel?

? What's going to happen on February 15? (Yep, a deadline, and just around the corner.)

VaasMontenegro wrote:

He was forced out, I think. Likely because of his age and the need to appeal to the younger generation through a younger pope. They will most likely vote for the black bishop so to widen the demographic.

It's all bullshit though.

We will never know. The political in house shit that happens takes place beyond the eyes of the media. No doubt there were other people pushing him, though.

[Bobby_Ouroborus]

Personally I think he is just too old for the bullshit and that's why he is throwing in the towel.

[PopeyesPappy]

I wonder what kind of retirement benefits an ex-Pope gets?

[stromboli]

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/ ... monastery/

Madrid, Spain, Feb 14, 2013 / 07:47 am (CNA/EWTN News).- One of the nuns that lived in the monastery where the Pope will retire says his choice shows his "great simplicity" because it "is not a work of art or comparable with other Vatican buildings."

"His decision to retire has surprised me, but he is very brave, although he is fragile and elderly," said the nun from the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary, who requested anonymity because of her cloistered life.

"But this decision is proof that he has a very lucid mind," she stated, adding that "our self love does not allow us to see our own limitations, contrary to what Pope Benedict has done."
 
"If I loved him before," she declared, "now I love him even more."

The sisters led a simple life with no staff. They spent their time praying and, for their 400th anniversary, made liturgical vestments for Pope Benedict to donate to poorer churches.

"One week before we left he asked us: 'what will the Pope do without you?' and he asked us to keep praying for him," said the nun.

"His decision has made us cry, but he has been very brave," she added.

The monastery, called Mater Ecclesiae, is 4,300 square feet and lies just west of St. Peter's Basilica.

Monastic life. He's going into hiding, basically. Probably doesn't have long to live.

[The Dude]

Is there another link reporting this? I don't usually trust the "alternate news" websites.

[TheDevoutPasta]

So is the vatican still trying to fufill the malachy prophecy?

[ApostateLois]

Why do popes still bother to exist? They seem so irrelevant to the modern age that I don't get why so many people still give a shit what the Pope does or says. But millions pay homage to this guy, giving credence to  his every word. It is baffling to me sometimes--so much so, that I feel like Ford Prefect, stuck on a planet full of crazy people as I wait desperately to hitch a lift and get the hell out of here.

[stromboli]

Why do popes still bother to exist? They seem so irrelevant to the modern age that I don't get why so many people still give a shit what the Pope does or says. But millions pay homage to this guy, giving credence to  his every word. It is baffling to me sometimes--so much so, that I feel like Ford Prefect, stuck on a planet full of crazy people as I wait desperately to hitch a lift and get the hell out of here.

One word: power.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I'm betting that he'll be replaced by a Latin American.  As to whether he's leaving ahead of an indictment, that doesn't seem well-supported to me.

[wolf39us]

Maybe a lesbian, black woman?

[NeoLogic26]

Why do popes still bother to exist? They seem so irrelevant to the modern age that I don't get why so many people still give a shit what the Pope does or says. But millions pay homage to this guy, giving credence to  his every word. It is baffling to me sometimes--so much so, that I feel like Ford Prefect, stuck on a planet full of crazy people as I wait desperately to hitch a lift and get the hell out of here.

You and me both.

[NitzWalsh]

I would like to see a new pope apologizing for the Catholic Church. Begging the peoples forgiveness for the pedophile priests and turning over their records and defrocking the perverts and turning them over to the law. Changing their stance on contraceptives and doing what they can to combat AIDS in Africa. There's more, but I don`t want to rant too much.

[St Giordano Bruno]

He may have just woken up one morning and said "O fuck this!"