{"id":19669,"date":"2013-11-20T08:29:40","date_gmt":"2013-11-20T13:29:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theredphoenixapl.org\/?p=19669"},"modified":"2013-11-20T08:29:40","modified_gmt":"2013-11-20T13:29:40","slug":"5-reasons-you-should-stay-off-the-pope-francis-bandwagon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redphoenix.news\/es\/2013\/11\/5-reasons-you-should-stay-off-the-pope-francis-bandwagon\/","title":{"rendered":"5 reasons you should stay off the Pope Francis bandwagon"},"content":{"rendered":"

by<\/span>\u00a0Timothy McGrath<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This week GlobalPost showed why<\/span>\u00a0so many people are digging on<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0Pope Francis. He loves the sick and the poor. He lives a simple life that reflects his values. He has criticized the Catholic church for its alienating obsession with social issues. And he has called out global capitalism for the greed it has produced and the social devastation it has wrought.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sounds good? Not so fast.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are some reasons we should think twice before hopping on the Pope Francis bandwagon.<\/span><\/p>\n

1) Unanswered questions about the Dirty War in Argentina<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"(Jeff<\/a>
(Jeff J Mitchell\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The past is good place to start when questioning the hype surrounding Pope Francis.<\/span><\/p>\n

Specifically,<\/span>\u00a0what was he doing<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0during the Dirty War in Argentina, when the military junta that ruled from 1976 to 1983 was undertaking the systematical mass murder of so-called \u201csubversives,\u201d all under the Western-supported banner of \u201canti-Communism.\u201d As few as 9,000 and as many as 30,000 men, women, and children were killed or \u201cdisappeared\u201d in the course of the purge.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Catholic Church was complicit in many ways. Archibishop Juan Carlos Aramburu openly supported the military junta and its murderous purge. Some priests gave last rights to men and women as they were headed to execution.<\/span><\/p>\n

So what was Pope Francis, then known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, doing during all this?<\/span><\/p>\n

He was the Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus from 1973 to 1979, meaning he was the boss of the Jesuits in Argentina. His role in the Dirty War is hazy. According to<\/span>\u00a0some reports<\/span><\/a><\/span>, he was a willing collaborator: at worst, pointing out liberal ministers to the military and, at least, refusing to protect priests who were seized. He denies all of this, insisting that he secretly helped priests who had been targeted.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, Pope Francis, a leading Catholic figure at a moment when Argentina needed strong voices of opposition, was, at best, silent, and at worst, complicit.<\/span><\/p>\n

We might never uncover all the facts about what happened. But there is enough there to at least be a little skeptical of Francis, his past, and his character.<\/span><\/p>\n

2) Poor handling of the Church’s child sex abuse crisis<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"(Osservatore<\/a>
(Osservatore Romano\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Francis has made some headway on the child sex abuse crisis in the Catholic Church. He\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0spoken out<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0on the problem and instituted some new laws governing Vatican officials and employees.<\/span><\/p>\n

That’s a start, but there is much more to be done when it comes to putting words into actions.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is<\/span>\u00a0especially true<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0in Latin America, where some have questioned Francis’ handling of molestation cases in Argentina, Chile, the Dominican Republic and Peru.<\/span><\/p>\n

He has been largely silent on four shocking cases.<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Dominican Republic: When the Vatican<\/span>\u00a0discovered<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0that its envoy in the Dominican Republic was paying underage boys for sex, it responded by secretly firing him.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Peru: More secret and non-transparent handling of child sex abuse has taken place in Peru, where an auxiliary bishop went on the lam after child sex allegations against him surfaced. The Vatican\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0only action<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0was, again, to secretly dismiss him from his post. The Archbishop of Lima, Juan Luis Cipriani, even criticized journalists covering the story and said that the abuser deserved \u201cmercy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Chile: When a congressional committee began investigating sexual abuse at Catholic children\u2019s homes, the Archbishop of Santiago<\/span>\u00a0refused<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0to appear before the committee. He bravely claimed separation of church and state, despite the fact that Chile\u2019s agency for child welfare partly subsidizes the homes. Quite a show of strength from the Vatican\u2019s top dog in Chile.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Argentina: In Francis\u2019 home country, an imprisoned priest, Father Julio Cesar Grassi, is now<\/span>\u00a0appealing<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0his 15-year sentence for sexually abusing boys. You\u2019d think a convicted and imprisoned child rapist in the Pope\u2019s home country would offer a low-risk opportunity for the Vatican to take a strong stand against child sex abuse in the church. Not so. One bishop in Argentina has openly claimed that Grassi is innocent, and the archdiocese released a statement pointing out that of 17 charges leveled against Grassi, he had been found not guilty of 15. Great.<\/span><\/p>\n

So when we applaud Pope Francis for his vocal opposition to poverty, inequality, and global capitalism, we should remember the pernicious things he\u2019s not opposing as vocally.<\/span><\/p>\n

3) His new tone on abortion and gay marriage is really new<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"(Peter<\/a>
(Peter Macdiarmid\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Francis\u2019 softened tone on gay marriage and abortion is one of the things drawing admiration from socially liberal folks. He said that the Church shouldn\u2019t \u201c<\/span>interfere spiritually<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u201d in the lives of gay men and women. And he warned that the Catholic ministry had become \u201cobsessed\u201d with abortion.<\/span><\/p>\n

He<\/span>\u00a0hasn\u2019t always<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0held such views, it seems.<\/span><\/p>\n

Just before Argentina legalized same-sex marriage, as recent as 2010, Francis called the bill \u201ca plan to destroy God\u2019s plan\u201d and \u201ca move by the fathers of lies to confused and deceive the children of God.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And he has urged a fairly obsessive commitment to fighting abortion, telling Catholics in 2005 that they should protect life even if \u201cthey persecute you, calumniate you, set traps for you, take you to court or kill you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

So the less conservative tone is new for Pope Francis. We’ll need to wait and see whether it translates into doctrinal change.<\/span><\/p>\n

4) He\u2019s continuing the Vatican \u201cinquisition\u201d against American nuns<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"(Franco<\/a>
(Franco Origlia\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Under the harrowing reign of Pope Benedict, the Vatican<\/span>\u00a0cracked down<\/a>\u00a0on the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), an organization that represents most American nuns. A Doctrinal Assessment by the Vatican\u2019s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) accused the LCWR and American nuns of promoting \u201cradical feminist themes\u201d by tempering or even opposing the Vatican\u2019s positions on gay rights and abortion.<\/span><\/p>\n

The CDF determined that a Vatican-appointed overseer should govern the LCWR to keep the nuns in line. Some critics called the measure an \u201cinquisition.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

When Pope Francis took over for Benedict, he<\/span>\u00a0had the opportunity<\/a>\u00a0to reverse or change the CDF\u2019s controversial decision. Instead he \u201creaffirmed the findings.”<\/span><\/p>\n

So maybe Francis was feeling some pressure as a new Pope in the unusual circumstances of evaluating decisions made by a living predecessor. Either way, he had an opportunity to do end a witch-hunt against American nuns and didn\u2019t.<\/span><\/p>\n

5) He might have performed an exorcism on live TV<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"(Andreas<\/a>
(Andreas Solaro\/AFP\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the scheme of things, this one isn\u2019t nearly as important as Francis\u2019s take on Church doctrine or his willingness to combat child sex abuse. But<\/span>\u00a0it\u2019s disturbing enough<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0to join this list.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a Mass in St. Peter\u2019s Square in May, TV cameras filmed Francis praying over a man in a wheelchair. They exchanged words and Francis placed two hands on the man’s forehead for several seconds while then man appeared to convulse slightly and gasp for breath.<\/span><\/p>\n

Almost immediately, people began to speculate that Francis, who often talks of demons and devils in his sermons, had performed an exorcism.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Vatican released a statement denying it. Gabriel Amorth, formerly a chief exorcist for the Vatican, saw it differently.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a real exorcism and what is more,\u201d he told reporters, \u201cthe boy the pope exorcized came to me today. His name is Angelo and he is possessed by four demons. I performed a long exorcism on him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Huh. Not a great sign for people who’d like to see the Catholic Church, one of the most powerful institutions in the world, enter the 21st century as a force of progress.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe it wasn’t an exorcism. Or maybe it was an accidental exorcism that Pope Francis was an unwilling party to. Judge for yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n

[youtube=http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8MW1bNGNg30#t=0]<\/p>\n

Source<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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