This Date in History: Anti-Catholic Origins of the Sexual Abuse Scandal

May 01, 2002: Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Honduras, sometimes described as a leading candidate for the next papacy, decried the "persecution" of the Catholic Church at the hands of the American media during the sexual abuse scandal. According to Maradiaga: "We all know that Ted Turner is openly anti-Catholic, and he is the owner not just of CNN but also Time-Warner. This is to say nothing of dailies such as The New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Boston Globe, protagonist of what I do not hesitate to call a persecution of the Church." Why did the persecution exist? Because the Catholic Church supported the creation of a Palestinian State and opposed making Jerusalem the capital of Israel: "Only in this fashion can I explain the ferocity that reminds me of the times of Nero and Diocletian, and more recently, of Stalin and Hitler."