Catholic Church - A Tippling Philosopher

What to do with a disused church: A quiet sign of Catholic surrender in the UK

Near my home in suburban UK sits a Catholic church attached to a primary school. Although we are less religious than our American cousins, who are themselves secular, our education system is still hugely under the influence of religion. About 37% of primary schools are faith schools. For just under

Catholic Church

UK Catholic priest: teachers are 'devils' teaching an 'abomination'

Controversy has visited a town in the south of England over this last week with a taste of American-style preaching very rare in the chapels, cloisters, and vestibules of traditional English holy buildings. Gosport is a town in Hampshire on the south coast of England that enjoys very little news

Catholic Church

The Catholic condom conundrum

Conundrum: (noun) A confusing and difficult problem or question. You’re in love. You get married. But you don’t want kids…at least not for awhile. Maybe later. Or maybe not at all. But you definitely do not want kids now. You and your spouse are devout Catholics, so

Baptism

On Catholicism, magic words, and double standards

For the religious, baptisms are important. They are, for most Christians, the door to church membership and entering into a covenant with Christ, an invocation of unity, and a symbolic cleansing. In fact, Catholics believe it cleanses the subject of original sin. Get in there early, or sin could take

Catholic Church

Spanish Catholic Bishop Quits for a "Satanic-Tinged Erotic Fiction" Writer

You couldn't write this stuff. Well, she probably could. The BBC reports on this delicious story - one that should please our ardent Catholic commenters: When Spanish bishop Xavier Novell resigned last month, the Roman Catholic Church cited strictly personal reasons without going into detail. It has now

By Milliped (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Catholic Church

Are Catholic Clergy more Likely to Be Paedophiles than the General Public? REDUX.

This has come up in a thread again, so I thought I would regale you with a piece I wrote now three years ago on the subject, but now with some updated tweaks. This is a question that has been kicking around ever since the child sex abuse scandal involving

Australia

Is the Australian Church above the Law?

This is pretty staggering:

Catholic Church

'Shocking' sexual abuse of children by German clergy

It is no surprise that, given that this sort of thing has happened and been extensively reported on in the US, that it has also taken place elsewhere. As The Guardian reports, things are not looking good for the German clergy: A “shocking” report into the sexual abuse of children

Catholic Church

Saint Peterasty

Here is something a little different for you, kindly with permission from Robert M. Price. Saint Peterasty Robert M. Price The Roman Catholic Church reached the point of crisis some years ago. The ever-expanding scandal of priestly sexual abuse and, just as bad, the intricate and systematic cover-up by the

Catholic Church

Pennsylvania Catholic Abuse: "It's Your Word against God's"

As many of you will know, Pennsylvania State has released a massive report of the Catholic priest abuse that has taken place over the years. If not, The Guardian reports it as follows: More than 300 “predator priests” were found to have committed sexual abuse in Pennsylvania, harming more than

blogging

To Ban or Not To Ban, That Is the Question

I recently wrote a post answering a critique by fellow Patheos (albeit Catholic channel) blogger Dave Armstrong. Fairly quickly, a number of atheist commenters, some of whom were regular commenters here (and some not), came on to make it known that they had been banned by Armstrong. Many, if not

Catholic Church

Are Catholic Clergy more Likely to Be Paedophiles than the General Public?

This is a question that has been kicking around ever since the child sex abuse scandal involving the Catholic church came to the fore. In around 2010, loads of articles came out, citing some data, that the priesthood was broadly in line with national averages, some people claimed it was

Catholic Church

Cardinal Pell Charged with Historic Sex Abuse

It's been a long time comin'. I have reported on this ongoing investigation before, several times. What is it with the One True Religion™? Here we have someone, Cardinal George Pell (Vatican treasurer), in one of the most senior positions in the church being accused of one

Big Bang

Reminder - Pope: Big Bang and Evolution True; God Doesn't Use Magic Wand

A few years ago, the Pope made some important announcements that warrant repeating. As the Vatican attempts to move into the 21st century, parts of the US still remain stubbornly behind. Speaking at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Pope Frances, in 2014, said... ...nothing particularly extraordinary since these are not

Canada

Canadian priest claims to have gambled away funds earmarked for Iraqi refugees

The Guardian reports on this classic what would Jesus do moment: * Father Amer Saka of Chaldean Catholic church allegedly told bishop * Police investigate as much as C$500,000 earmarked to help Police in Canada have launched an investigation after a Catholic priest in southern Ontario claimed he had gambled

Catholic Church

Catholic Archdiocese: Don't Use Birth Control to Combat Zika Virus...

Yup, you knew it would happen. And like clockwork, it did. Birth control and abortions have been put off limits in advice from the Catholic church in the face of the advancing issues of the Zika virus. As the Daily Mail reports: Reverend Luciano Brito, a spokesman for the Catholic

Australia

How Convenient: George Pell Too Unwell to Fly... Just Before Sex Abuse Commission

The most senior Australian Catholic, who you might have seen in debate, Cardinal George Pell, is too unwell to fly from Rome to address a Catholic organisation in the US. This might seem pretty innocuous, but it comes after he refused to fly to Melbourne in December mere days before

Catholic Church

Vatican suspends 'bishop of bling' Tebartz-van Elst

The Vatican has suspended a senior German Church leader dubbed the "bishop of bling" by the media over his alleged lavish spending. Bishop of Limburg Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst is accused of spending more than 31m euros (£26m; $42m) on renovating his official residence.