26 Comments

• MAGHNUS | Jan 24, 2010, 08:13 AM EST

  For centuries, the catholic church <-(lower case on purpose) has tried to make itself equal to God, putting themselves in a position to judge everybody. Here's the bottom line. There is GOD and there is JESUS, and should anybody wish to pray, talk, or confess to either one of them, they don't need to do it through the "church." How anybody worships the Lord God of Heaven doesn't matter, just as long as they do.

• MAGHNUS | Jan 24, 2010, 07:53 AM EST

  I agree adfloatj23, they should just burn the church and have done with it.

• adfloatj23 | Jan 11, 2010, 09:31 AM EST

  I have said before and I will say it again,Everyone is entitled to his or her beliefs What ever his or his beliefs may be, But when he or her decides to force his or her beliefs on me that`s where the buck stops!!!!Aperantly the Catholic church in its misguided ideas decided that they and only they had the right idea, and to reinforce their ideals they had people hanged quartered burned at the the stake and any other deviant means to murder debase and slaughter the innocent the least being rape and Sodemy, Plus stealing lands and fortunes from the gulliable people whom belived the load of horse crap (sorry Horse ) That the so called men ( and women ) in skirts whom plyied their ditrade on a very un suspicting public The witch hunt should be directed at the CATHOLIC CHURCH not at the bishops even thoug they are just as guilty as the church , They are the group that oversees the doctrine of this church, And as such both the church they are just as guilty, Again I say its time Ireland Seperates Church and STATE and only then Will Ireland be truly free.

• MAGHNUS | Jan 05, 2010, 03:35 PM EST

  Witch Hunt, huh? How Anglo-Saxon.

• MorganLeFey | Dec 28, 2009, 01:30 AM EST

  The fundamental issue here is the hypocrisy and deceit of those who pray to their gods at their altars and under a pretext of goodness and concern for their fellow man, and yet carry out the most heinous of deeds and harbour evil thoughts towards others. I have no trust in or respect for anyone who proclaims religious beliefs as they are all deceivers. That includes American Presidents who with complete insincerity state, "God bless America" whilst conducting unjust and illegal wars and keep millions in poverty and protect the moneylenders who have infested their temples, and prey on the weak and the vulnerable to satiate their greed. Rather give me a man who honestly proclaims his imperfections as I know exactly where I stand with him and the kind of man he is and I can act appropriately. The hypocrits and deceivers of the organised religions must always be held under high suspicion.

• Watereskhill | Dec 27, 2009, 11:30 PM EST

  Is the closing remark to this Article "More heads on silver platters will not help the Irish people" suggesting a halt to the investigations into the heinous crimes of The Heirarchy until the country recovers from the current economic slump? There's a lot more at stake here than the rent being paid on time in my opinion. There is the dignity and tragedy of a once venturine people whose Faith has been completely demolished. Are four disgraced Bishops now a token of Justice? "Render onto Caesar that which is Caesars" (Scripture) Better more 'head-less' Bishops roam the mists of Erin than criminals at a pulpit pushing platitudes and whimpering to The Almighty. And no. The Irish don't need to run to the Church for succour in this time of 'great travail' with budget cuts and whatever. They need to take a second look at the blue-print and agenda of The Minister of Finance. That is if the Christ making a whip from cords in The Temple overturning the tables of the so-called devout and money changers holds any meaning.

• HughesDohmann | Dec 27, 2009, 10:31 PM EST

  I think you are all nuts!!!!! Have a nice day.

• HughesDohmann | Dec 27, 2009, 10:30 PM EST

  I think you are all nuts!!!!! Have a nice day.

• Lillith | Dec 27, 2009, 06:09 AM EST

  A Papal reprimand.? No, I do not think so- a slap on the wrist from the very one who wrote both the Crimen Sollicitationis and the reminder letter, then Cardinal Ratzinger now Pope Benedict XVI. The Vatican elected the most devout defender of pedophilia their leader. It's guidelines included threatening child victims and their parents with excommunication if they went to the police for starters.

• MorganLeFey | Dec 27, 2009, 04:36 AM EST

  Aaah EPBCDDC, how may times have we heard that before. "Ours is the only `TRUE' religion,and Our God is the only `TRUE' god". I've certainly heard it from the RC Church, the Anglican Church, JWs, Mormons, Baptists, Presbyterians, Episcoplalians etc etc etc. By implication then all the other Christians are liars and deceivers is that it.?. Well self-titled `Christians' cannot even agree among themselves and despise each other. What a way to run a religious organisation.!. Not to mentionm the atrocities and crimes those organisations have committed. Among those already listed in other postings you can add genocide - of the Incas, the Aztecs, and other ethnic groups, who refused to convert to this religion of many parts and interpretations. When is the RC Church to be held to account for its war crimes in South America.?. They were a little more `coercive' in Africa and the Phillipines, but still managed to wipe out the existing religions, as they had done in the U.K. With all these atrocities and abuse of adults and children around the world, how can the Christian religion (whichever is the `TRUE' one), ever cleanse and redeem itself?.

• epbcddc | Dec 26, 2009, 11:48 PM EST

  Is this article supposed to be some sick attempt at humour? This is outrageous. The purpose of these investigations was not to "help the Irish Catholic Church." The "Irish Catholic Church" has committed unspeakable crimes, damaged countless lives, and has attempted to lie about these crimes under their perverted brand of Christianity for decades. Pardon me if the victims of this horror and their advocates might not wish to build up the very institution responsible for these great sins. The reason that most Irish people will not protest against or leave the Roman Catholic Church is that they do not realize that this Church itself is NOT the original church founded by Jesus and the Apostles in 33 AD. The original church has existed for nearly 2000 years now, and is known as the Orthodox Church. In its lust for worldly power and wealth, Rome left the original church in 1054 AD, declaring itself THE catholic church, in spite of the fact that it was only one of many Christian "patriarchates" in existence at the time. And, no, today's Orthodox Christian Church is not some "cult." There are over 200 million Orthodox Christians in the world right now, who continue to use the (translated) early prayers, liturgical rites, devotions, etc., as the original Church founded by the Lord Himself. I write this to encourage the thousands of my brothers and sisters in Ireland who have been affected by the crimes of the Roman Catholic Church in this and other matters: do NOT to "blame" God, or reject your Christian faith. Remember: St. Patrick himself was Orthodox. It is time to get back to the basics here. For those who might be interested, here is a helpful link: http://www.gettoknowtheoriginal.net/

• ThomasCoolberth | Dec 26, 2009, 06:16 PM EST

  Not sure what the "Irish Catholic Church" is .... but a witch hunt and general firing of all the Bishops and Cardinal is a great help in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland , the USA and elsewhere.

• plasticpaddy | Dec 26, 2009, 06:37 AM EST

  'God' isnt so mighty, more a feeble lie

• Lillith | Dec 26, 2009, 06:16 AM EST

  I thought that when the truth came out in the Ryan report that Irish women would have all walked away from this church in protest, but sadly, they did not. They are so brainwashed and suffering Stockholm Syndrome, in love with their abusers, that it may take more truth to be revealed to them, to awaken them. Of course the collective consciousness is polluted with fear, guilt,control etc that women feel they have no escape, and of course the fear of something new and different is daunting. However, anything is better than this Patriarchal soul destroying church of God. We the people can create our own amazing reality, and we do not need men in dresses either.

• MorganLeFey | Dec 26, 2009, 12:20 AM EST

  Isn't it rather odd that western countries should worship a young Jewish man and his mother. I do not wonder what the reaction would be if another young Jewish man (or an Abyssinian, or a Peruvian, or even an All-American boy for that matter, walked into Times Square or Hyde Park today and decalred "I am the Son of God, follow Me.". To oppose male-dominated organised religions is not to necessarily have opposing belief systems, just a healthy scepticism about being conditioned into those beliefs. There are religions which have no `God' and no places of formal worship and see everything as having a place in the natural order of the Universe. Especially when those organised religions are the bastions of a Patriarchal society and Male Supremacists within their ranks exert power and control over every walk of life. It amazes me how females have been conned into being a part of such organised religions when they have been treated so badly in their `Holy' texts and in reality. Will there ever be a female Pope?. Or ArchBishop of Canterbury, or Ayatollah. Not I would venture to say in the next millenium. "Suffer the little children to come unto me!" - now we know the true meaning of those words as Ireland's children discovered, as did many thousands of children around the world who experienced abuse at the hands of priests and nuns. How are we to know it is not still continuing?. If it could be done in the past and kept secret and brushed under the carpet, there is nothing to say it is not still happening.

• ceciliag | Dec 25, 2009, 10:20 PM EST

  These bishops and their pervert clergy are the filth of our church and Graceless Traitors to Almighty GOD. I am amazed that when they touch the Host, the Blessed Sacrament does not sizzle between their fingers.

• Lillith | Dec 25, 2009, 07:46 PM EST

  A Witch was a wise old woman who healed poor people for free, so she was hunted down, tortured and burned for her crimes, as she was seen as a threat to the money hungry men of Rome.The sacred feminine had to be destroyed and with it came the destruction of the weak and vulnerable men, women and children. So, it is an insult to say, that people of Eire might conduct a witch hunt on these men. As Father Ted reminded us all so beautifully- only the idiot boys became priests. The clever ones became doctors etc.

• Lillith | Dec 25, 2009, 07:36 PM EST

  TonydeNewYork Portia777 MorganLeFey Magdalen all of u working full time for your father SATAN. What do you base your knowledge on?? Was it the names they used- the names of the sacred feminine which was/is demonised by the brutal Roman church of "God". Please allow me to show you how your holy Roman church has converted human beings world wide. Be brave and see for yourself the methods used and then tell me who is serving Satan? http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/murderers.htm

• KathyCallahan | Dec 25, 2009, 06:51 PM EST

  There are really no shades of gray here when it comes to this. Like you can't be a little bit pregnant. In other fields where there is contact with children, there is no such thing as the doctor, counselor or teacher being the one to decide and formally rule: if they should report a little bit of molestation versus routine and chronic abuse: A few broken bones versus repeated fractures and bruises. That is not for me to unilaterally decide. You must legally document and formally report it as you hear and see it. Period. You really can't say that BishopP knew only so much about what is believed to be minor incidents of child molestation by pedophile priests but he has done a lot of good work over the years. He was quiet, compliant with authority, looked the other when problems erupted but there is no evidence that he did anything. Whereas, the other bishopT who is also under the thumb of papal scrutiny now, his behavior revealed in the Murphy Report is obvious, clear cut and much worse than BishopP. In this convoluted Irish catholic strew it is all bad, very bad, terrible and good cause for removal. Minor, major, complicit and or passively complicit behavior in the hands of priests and authority should be treated the same way,as an opportunity for removing direct and indirect offenders from a culture that serves children. It is the sole purview of the Irish criminal justice system to weigh, judge and impose sentences on minor and major repeat offenders. They will have their work cut out for them in 2010 a.d. Would you want your child to see a pediatrician or nurse in a hospital who was just a every few years offender and when he went on a bender. Or be examined by a doctor who shared a practice with a doctor he knew to be a pedophile but everyday his judgment was to look the other way and or minimize and ignore complaints.

• Magdalen | Dec 25, 2009, 06:36 PM EST

  kiwiinamerica: "There is NOTHING obligatory about Catholicism" ???? Are you talking about Ireland? Try living in Ireland where the church still rules in most schools and try to escape that yolk. That's one of their strengths and the oppressive force that needs to be broken as a matter of urgency. I read your tirade. Try humanism and upholding the law instead of fundamentalism. Try protecting the innocent and prosecuting criminals. Lose the fear-mongering and hatred of another religion. Not all people who practice Islam are fundamentalists or terrorists but then maybe you watch Fox News and don't understand that. kiwinamerica - I recommend the movies I mentioned below to you too. Rent The Magdalene Sisters and Deliver us From Evil. You wrote "Oh, it's so oppressive, isn't it?" YES. For children who were raped - YES. For women who were locked up - YES. People did not chose to be abused in institutions or have their babies ruthlessly taken from them. It was forced and the police and other institions supported the church in their evil deeds. As for tax dollars, it is clear you selfishly have more loyalty to protecting your own wealth than having a social conscience and caring for the poor and needy. how "Christian" is that? Barbarism is allowing over 30 million of your fellow countrymen not have healthcare and spending trillions of tax dollars on wars. It all comes down to arrogance, greed and crimes. Convict the law breakers. TonydeNewYork: No, that's not my father's name but I'll tell him you called him that. You might want to address serious issues the next time you write instead of engaging in name-calling. It really is childish and not in a good way.

• TonydeNewYork | Dec 25, 2009, 06:17 PM EST

  Portia777 MorganLeFey Magdalen all of u working full time for your father SATAN.

• kiwiinamerica | Dec 25, 2009, 06:16 PM EST

  Go ahead, fools and throw off the perceived yoke of the Catholic faith. Oh, it's so oppressive, isn't it? Unlike the secular authorities which you all worship and which forcibly take your money through taxation and which tell you what you can and can't teach your children, there is NOTHING obligatory about Catholicism. Are any of you forced at the point of a gun to attend church, the same way you're forced to surrender your tax dollars to the government? Are any of you obligated to follow the Catholic Church's teachings like you're obligated to bow to Caesar?? The real problem here is that hatred runs deep for the Church because it is the ONLY organization which is standing in the way of the new barbarism and which is still speaking out against the cult of "me" and the hedonist culture. However, the good news folks, is that Islam is coming. It will show you what a really oppressive religion is like and make you rue the day you threw off your Christian heritage with such facility. As the formerly Christian Europe commits demographic suicide through abortion and contraception, sharia will eventually be the result. Enjoy it, fools! And weep for the day when you told lies about the Church and exaggerated its sins in order to further your anti-catholic agendas. Heaven is real and so is hell and Jesus lived, died and rose again. Believe it while there is still time.

• Magdalen | Dec 25, 2009, 05:05 PM EST

  A Witch hunt? Let’s talk about the churches history of tormenting women and children then! Malleus Maleficorum may sound like something out of Harry Potter but was an evil doctrine by German inquisitors defining heresy as withcraft. Pope Innocent II (1484) – don’t you love the names they chose? - ordered the inquisitors to seek out witches. Malleus Maleficorum targeted women, specifically midwives, no doubt to protect the male doctors’ jobs. Women were tortured, burned and drowned because they were “heretics.” Many of the orders and practices of the church still are evil. Protecting and defending adults who allowed children to be molested by perverts is evil and criminal. If books (non-ecclesiastical ones) are too hard for you, Jayne Walsh, watch some movies to educate yourself such as “Deliver us from Evil” and “The Magdalene Sisters” or just talk to victims and realize that what you see and hear is only the tip of the iceberg. Then, if you have a soul, weep before you go on to condemn the criminals and the crime and demand justice and have the criminals put away to protect the victims! I don’t excuse you because you are a victim of years of brainwashing, Ms. Walsh. If you water down the effect of the crimes, allow crimes to happen and protect the criminals, you make yourself part of the crime. There are no excuses for this evil. We don't want "heads on silver platters." We want criminals to be held accountable for crimes, to protect the innocent (thousands of lives have been destroyed by abuse)and the Church to change its evil ways.

• MorganLeFey | Dec 25, 2009, 02:29 PM EST

  No!. The Ireland does not need the Roman Catholic Church which has held the people in oppression and bondage for hundreds of years by fear (of damnation) and obedience (to whatever beliefs and attitudes the priest may hold on social issues). And all of it based on a text which at best is a poor history of the Jewish nation and at worst a badly written faery story. But it has given many men who are otherwise unworthy and with little intellect, great powers over people and a job for life. It also hides the hypocrisy of celibacy and oppresses natural rights of people to control their own reproduction. The Roman Catholic church is an outdated and outmoded relic of Patriarchalism and has constantly reviled females in every possible way to retain male supremacy within the RC Church and wider society. Its only relevance in today's world is as a crutch for the emotionally disabled and intellectually immature. The Irish people need their freedom from the Roman Catholic Church not to continue under its oppressions. Any good it may have done has been far outweighed by the harms and evils it has perpetrated across the world to obtain its converts and to hold them as their captives in fear and obedience, whilst destroying and desecrating the previous religions of those countries.

• jamthecat | Dec 25, 2009, 12:35 PM EST

  "Witch hunt." Of course. Now let the minimizing of the Catholic Church's rape of children begin. "Yes, some of these guys were bad, but these other guys weren't so bad because they only had 'fleeting encounters' with the notion that their priests were sexually assaulting children and did nothing about it so they should only be scolded...and besides, we need the church for other problems that are more important than this...and never mind that it's the church's own damned fault for consistently acting outside the boundaries of law (with the assistance of those who were supposed to enforce those laws) and treated the rape of children as secondary to maintaining the church's dignity." I have to wonder at people like Ms. Walshe, who so cavalierly toss aside the serious legal and moral demands of this scandal against humanity just because Ireland needs someone to help guide her through a monetary crisis. Shows us where her priorities are. Just two questions -- do you REALLY think the Catholic Church will be of any use to anyone, again, until it can be completely trusted? And do you honestly believe the church CAN be trusted if it does not purge its ranks of anyone who even so much as just turned away from the notion of a child being raped and did not even try to stop it, as was their moral and legal obligation?

• Portia777 | Dec 25, 2009, 09:15 AM EST

  Witch hunt against bishops. It is simply karma for the thousands of years the Catholic Cult has been burning witches- wise women-,murdering, torturing, raping, abusing children, etc. The irish people no longer need this old patriarchal controlling institution anyway, whose only aim is to keep women , children and good men down. Furthermore- the CHURCH is a Corporation, that is correct- a corporation designed to brainwash people into handing over their money. We, the sheeple have been conned by this cult. This is what we Roman Catholics have been party to- "The Church, which, with a satanic twist of humour, claimed to be the instrument of 'Christ's loving kindness' , taught a brutalised and impoverished people new meanings to the words pain and suffering..." http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/murderers.htm