Vatican to Screen Out Gays, Not Pedophiles
The guidance says the voluntary tests should also aim to vet for those with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies". Among other traits that might make a candidate unsuitable for the priesthood, the advice lists "uncertain sexual identity," "excessive rigidity of character" and "strong affective dependencies".
Source: BBC
This has been personally approved by Pope Benedict XVI, so it's not as though this plan comes from an agency that's acting without official sanction. This frankly appears to be "the plan" from the Catholic hierarchy for dealing with a worldwide scandal involving both the sexual abuse of children and the subsequent, massive coverup of these crimes. Whose bright idea was it to say "I know, lets go after the queers!"? Did they really think that no one would notice the witch hunt or are they hoping that enough people hate gays that they just won't care?
I suppose, since gays are "disordered" and thus undeserving of full equality, it's ultimately preferable from an organizational standpoint to persecute them even more than they already are than it would be to cast a critical eye towards the organization's own policies, culture, and structure. The latter allows Catholics to transfer any internal failings onto "disordered others" who shouldn't even be real members of the in-group and thus preserve their self-image as sanctified, holy, and blameless. It's classic scapegoating and will hopefully be included in future sociology texts as an example of the problem.
What I find curious, though, is why any self-respecting gay person would even remain a member of the Catholic Church, much less try to become a Catholic priest. When an organization invests so much time and effort into demonizing a minority as "disordered," and then tries to blame them for evils they aren't responsible for, it seems like the only sensible thing is to kick the dust from your sandals and move on to a more hospitable climate where hate, fear, and bigotry don't hold so much sway. Anyone who spends much time in such a diseased environment is likely to start believing all the lies being told about them and come to fear or hate themselves, and that's just not healthy.
Comments
Austin wrote: “What I find curious, though, is why any self-respecting gay person would even remain a member of the Catholic Church, much less try to become a Catholic priest. When an organization invests so much time and effort into demonizing a minority as “disordered,” and then tries to blame them for evils they aren’t responsible for, it seems like the only sensible thing is to kick the dust from your sandals and move on to a more hospitable climate where hate, fear, and bigotry don’t hold so much sway.”
I was working with an LGBT organization on issues concerning gay youth in schools in Sacramento, and one of our board members was a catholic priest. He is a gentle soul, thoughtful, caring and happens to be gay. The bishop ordered him to stop his work with our organization. After he resigned, he was hounded out of the church and quit the priesthood.
This was the final straw for me with the catholic church. Instead of searching for a more “welcoming” church, I began to question the notion of faith belief itself. First things first. I found faith belief wanting. Thanks to this site and others, I’ve been able to begin to think rationally about things for the first time in my life. Thanks to all of you, Austin and contributors, who have offered clear-thinking and reason to replace superstition and myth.
No more gay priests?
I bet seminary enrollment drops at least 50%
Gays are “disordered,” but it’s “ordered’ to
believe that you can inherit somebody else ’s sin and that sin can be removed by a Divine Scapegoat being crucified for you. People are nuts.
While we’re asking why any gay person would want to continue as a member of any religion, I’d go a step further, and re-ask an even more potentially powerful question:
Why would any WOMAN want to continue to belong to any religion?
I also wonder why black North Americans stay within Christian churches. You’d think that among women and non-Europeans the numbers of people in churches would drop more rapidly than it has.
To Gerald:
My heart rejoices for you! I left the Catholic Church 14 years ago, and have felt such a burden lifted when I finally realized I didn’t have to take such spiritual abuse.
The bigotry against gays is based on religious teachings by ancients who had no understanding of human psychology, human sexuality, or biological determinants. In my humble opinion, the idea behind the gay taboo was to build up the Hebrew tribe to gain regional strength against more powerful tribes. I’ll bet men who were willing to have plural wives and father children could have had their male lovers without any condemnation from the elders. It would have been those who refused to shoulder their tribal responsibility that brought down this ban on “abominable” behavior.
The above “fertility imperative” would also account for why barren woman were held in such contempt or were pitied. That may have been the impetus for polygamy. A man could still pass on his genes if he had multiple opportunities to do so honorably, in a family setting. Families are the backbone of successful tribes.
The Catholic hierarchy is all about power, control, and conformity. If backward or reprehensible teachings aid its purposes, they will remain the status quo, as long as Catholics put up with them.
Congratulations on your realization that faith is based on myth. You can have a fulfilling life without such a crutch. It feels good to walk on your own power! Once you are outside of the religious “mental prison,” your mind can explore without boundaries.
Here we go again,why o why is it that the Church can run the World and get away with everything. We are not a civilised world in any way and i would just like to know how many years or decades it will take for human beings to follow without question what they are told to believe and not make their own minds up and follow like sheep. I do hope, although it will not be in my lifetime, that the world will see sense. So much evil is done as we know in the name of religion.
Religion is big business and as long as their is greed there will be religion.
Could not Jesus as in the bible, have been gay. and proud of it no doubt, and how would he be treated in this day and age for if he is to come back to earth he would then be sent straight to a mental asylum as crazy and disowned by the CHurch.