Famed atheist professor says 'being raised Catholic is worse than child abuse’

Misneac! get a hold of yourself,on second thoughts that ay be the problem.

Perhaps Dawkins would enlighten us on the glory of Sharia law ! It might explain the philosophies of the "after life " ,also why I always thought that natural marriage is between male and female .Oh I feel such guilt ,must be my Catholic upbringing !

No such thing as Anglo-Norman. They have faded into history.

You are lost in your own mythological thoughts Gearoid

Again another over-reaction by overly-emotional posters on here.

@Eiriamach, When you refer to "equal participation" are you talking about the 2000 year old practice of the Catholic Church not extending the priesthood to women? The Catholic view on gender in relation to priesthood is not based on sociological trends or opinion polls, but rather on the decision of the Savior Himself to appoint only men to the first 12 positions of His apostolate. The priesthood moreover is based on the Personhood of Christ and thus being male is not incidental to the choice of candidates for this vocation. It is also based on the Judaic priesthood of the O.T. which came to it's perfection in the Person of Jesus Christ. Men and women have different roles in the Church which are equal but different. "Benedict's cult" as you so disparagingly call it, was promised by the Lord that the Holy Spirit will be present with Her(the Church) during His absence and that guarantee still remains. The Catholic Faith when properly presented is reasonable and enriching and will lead people to the Truth and not the subjective worldly versions that one wants to superimpose on Christian tenets.

I remember the line my friend gave when we visited New Orleans and were met by Hare Krishnas. "What God are you peddling today?" I have thought about that even after becoming a Catholic. He was right religion is just a way of life with these horrific after life consequences. I think the Southern Baptists think like the Catholics too. So it is really a religious thing that you can believe or not. Personally I like Christ and God but not the way religion portrays them, expecially the catholics and their interpretations. Catholics my Mom is not in Hell becasue she wanted to save her life, but she lived the abuse of the Catholic religion her whole life and it affected her termendously. I am no longer a Catholic as I can not condone a seller of God who would do this to any one.

I remember the irrational fears that catholic teachings caused me and children I knew growing up. Dawkins is absolutely correct on this.

@Gearoid4, once a week at that high school, we had a Latin Mass, with nuns serving at the altar. Today, by Vatican decree to placate uber-conservatives like you, no female may approach the altar to serve a traditional Mass. Is that progress? Jesus would sharply reply to anyone who suggested that "Domine non sum dignus" means "I am not worthy *because* I am a woman." No woman with a shred of integrity can support a Church that rejects the equal participation of women and pretends that churchmen have divine authority to deprive women of equal service to God and equal moral autonomy in life. What "intrinsic truth" do they protect when priests must read from the pulpit bishops' letters directing the laity to vote against equal rights? What "hurricane" do they fear the equality of women or gays represents? They've shut the window and sealed it, rolled back Vatican II reforms, and with solitary hubris, the pope walks upon turbulent waters rather than helping to keep the fishing boat of the Christian churches afloat in a storm. The fishing boat will make its way to safe harbor for repairs (0ongoing reform), while Benedict's cult will sink beneath the waves. Dawkins ironically serves the faith he rejects when he calls attention to the harm that abuses of Christian ethics cause to children, especially, I'd add, to girls.

Stupid Anglo fails to realise he referred to English catholics not just Irish Catholics.How oneeyed can poor old Anglo get.

Anglo-norman, you are an obvious bigot; continuosly spouting anti Catholic and anti Irish views. You should be ashamed of your background (if it is anglo norman). Colonisers and bigots all the way throughout history. Probably Northern Ireland prod I would think. Look up w.a.s.p. if you have the brains to do so. Nothing to be proud of there. Your prod majority in N. Ire will soon be a thing of the past and about time. You can always join the remnants of your clan in S. Africa or the red necks in Appalachia; and bring your Lambeg drum with you.

Still more parodying of Catholic beliefs, Eiriamach. The "hell and fire" sermons are a thing of the past and it is hardly the stuff of the timid and vapid sermons that you will hear from a lot of pulpits nowadays. Many priests do not touch on the "red-button" issues such as abortion and same-sex "marriage" and prefer to give a feel-good talk instead. You complain about the "open-window" being shut, but open windows should be open to let in healthy fresh air, but not hurricanes which sweep all before them in terms of intrinsic truths, which progressive, modernist activists want to overturn.

If only the abuse-- being lashed about by didactic 'hellfire and damnation' RC churchmen-- ended with childhood! but it's fiercer than ever. See the article on the pope's anti-same-sex-marriage speech for examples. I often think ironically of a sweet old librarian nun who helped me work through a section of the Summa Theologica when I was in high school and I couldn't agree with RC teaching on a point of moral philosophy. I still disagreed after we read Aquinas. She didn't lecture me (though she was learned in theology) or chastise me for not accepting the teaching. She smiled and said, "Don't worry! You're only in high school now, but when you get to university, you'll be able to debate all these questions, they're all open to challenge, even Aquinas, and you'll find your own answers." That "open window" in RC has been shut, nailed closed, and concreted over with warnings posted, and I'm glad the cheerful old nun did not live to see it happen.

Yet Irish Catholics are still too blind or dumb to see through this charade.

Someone need to sell a few oul newspapers! He made the observation years ago. He's right though. In Ireland overall the mental abuse perpetuated by the Vatican's sick cult is even greater than the physical abuse and facilitates that abuse in turn. It was the brainwashed Vatican followers in the Irish government who let the church get away with it right up to the present day. Teaching children that some interstellar zombie got himself nailed to two planks on their behalf is sick.