Cardinal Keith O’Brien resigns after sexual allegations by four priests

There,s a modicum of truth in what Eamonn states. As I stated in another post yesterday the famous from 6 counties are British when they popularand Irish when they regress. Catholicism seems to reel from one calamity to another. Rome needs to rid itself of the opus dei types and the other middle of the road fascists running the church into oblivion.

@EamonDublin: A line on a map is NOT sufficient to firewall the Irish Republic from the lineage of this man. Many on this page refer to "Irish" Actor Liam Neeson (also born in Antrim) I find myself (curiously) in concert with Gearoid4 in puzzlement at your remarks. I would also point out that in many posts on this site, in the wake of the publication of the Murphy Report, I noted that I was pretty certain that all that had gone before was merely a portent for what has come and what has yet to be revealed concerning the dysfunctionality of the Catholic hierarchy across the world. I would contend yet again that as a believer, our Father in heaven is calling time on those within the church who have brought it to this sorry state. More anon!!

@EamonnDublin, I usually agree with most of your commentaries, Eamonn, and find them illuminating and erudite. But this time I'm puzzled at your taking issue with Niall O'Dowd for omitting "Northern" before the "Irish" in reference to the Cardinal's nationality, because in your opinion, it distorts the real nationality of the beleagured prelate . Are you inferring that somehow by the mere fact of Cardinal Keith O'Brien being a native son of Ballycastle, Co Antrim that he does not qualify as a true Irishman. Why should Niall have to prefix the term "Irish" with "Northern" in relation to his nationality? It seems that you want to fall back on the lazy partitionist mentality which blurs and constrains the vision of some many southerners in relation to Irish citizens up north. I hope that I've got this one wrong and you are free to correct me if I have.

Pope and cardinal resign. Are the wheels finally coming off the great con that is religion?

Myhomenj - Olovely sure casts an awful lot of stones. She must surely be a Saint!

We have known for some time that men who are homophobic turn out to be the biggest closet cases. Last year Cardinal Keith O'Brien, head of the Catholic Church in Scotland, led the battle to defeat the gay marriage bill in the British parliament. O'Brien called gay marriage "madness" and a "grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right." O'Brien, an Antrim native, said countries that legalize gay marriage are “shaming themselves” and "going against the “natural law.” "Imagine for a moment that the Government had decided to legalize slavery but assured us that "no one will be forced to keep a slave." “Would such worthless assurances calm our fury? Would they justify dismantling a fundamental human right? Or would they simply amount to weasel words masking a great wrong?” O'Brien stated “I think it’s a very, very good example of what might happen in our own country in the present time." He claimed that “further aberrations would take place and society would be degenerating even further than it already has into immorality.”

At least 4 former seminarians have described inappropriate advances carried out by the retiring Cardinal. No doubt more of this behavior could and might surface before much longer. A alleged predator doing this 30 years ago makes it very unlikely that the behavior stopped. The Cardinal "resigned" because he doesn't want to draw media attention from the changing leadership at the Vatican? Me thinks he was fired and now runs and hides from public view. The man (if that is an appropriate call) apparently behaved like a vulture, attempting to devour the youthful seminarians. All with a smile of course, a gentle touch and an evil mind! Return to the North of Ireland, devious one and learn how to make your own breakfast, tidy up the cottage, wash your own clothes, and throw turf on the fire. You might think about the torment and self doubt you created for the young seminarians you preyed upon.

Well this is one way to get a rebel preist to shut his mouth. He comes out in favour of priests being able to marry and they come up with the allegations of homosexual activitie and that all folks. The Vatican is like the Mafia only without guns.

Apparently Pope Bendict insisted that Cardinal O'Brien resign in one of his last acts as pope. So much for conspiracy theories.

I believe it was Jesus who said something like this " If anyone among you is without sin, cast the first stone"

So, are we to believe that O'Brien's dalliances in the 1980's were unknown to the Vatican until a few days ago?

What ever happened to innocent till proven guilty?

I'm not sure if I understand the reasons why Cardinal O'Brien was forced to resign. Was it because of his disapproval of homosexualy activity? To my knowledge, the R.C. Church has NOT endorsed same-sex unions of any kind, and neither has any Bible-believing Christian.

O'Brien's Homophobia and his campaign against Gay marriage had to lead to a renunciation by those who knew him! Homophobia is a very tricky position if you are a homosexual. I am grateful to the priests who "outed" O'Brien. Now, what was that Ephraimkibbey posted yesterday about the person who is "the loudest accuser is often the most involved." Boy did Ephraim hit the nail on the head with that one. O'Brien thought he could condemn gays and get away with it? Well, I for one am glad this "Irish" cleric is not going to the Conclave. Sean Brady (Armagh), Roger Mahony (LA) and Tim Dolan (Milwaukee, NYC) should take a page out of the O'Brien book and recuse themselves from the Conclave!

Sadly this seems to have become the "rule" rather than the "exception'. Unbelievable.