O'Brien apologizes for Vatican priest's remarks
Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien has apologized for the comments of the Vatican priest who likened criticism of Pope Benedict XVI and the Catholic Church in the sexual abuse scandal with anti-Semitism and "collective violence" against Jews.
O'Brien, spiritual leader of the area's half million Catholics, called the remarks of the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa during the Good Friday Mass at St. Peter's Basilica "reprehensible and unfortunate," and apologized to "our friends in the Jewish community, to victims of clergy sexual abuse, and to anyone offended by Father Cantalamessa's personal views."
O'Brien's statement, in full:
Father Cantalamessa’s words on Good Friday, somehow linking the Catholic Church's sexual abuse scandal with anti-Semitism, were unfortunate and reprehensible. They pose harm to Catholic-Jewish relations in Baltimore and around the world and I personally denounce them. Rightly upset and embarrassed as we are by the scandal we are enduring as Catholics, as frustrated as we are by the sometimes unfair coverage in certain elements of the press, nothing justifies this insensitive, harmful and regrettable comparison. On behalf of the Catholic Church in Baltimore, I offer apologies to our friends in the Jewish community, to victims of clergy sexual abuse, and to anyone offended by Father Cantalamessa’s personal views.
Cantalamessa, personal preacher to Benedict, said he was inspired by a letter from an unidentified Jewish friend who was upset by the "attacks" against Benedict.
Cantalamessa said Jews "know from experience what it means to be victims of collective violence and also because of this they are quick to recognize the recurring symptoms."
Quoting from the letter, Cantalamessa said his Jewish friend was following "with indignation the violent and concentric attacks against the church, the pope and all the faithful of the whole world."
"The use of stereotypes, the passing from personal responsibility and guilt to a collective guilt remind me of the more shameful aspects of anti-Semitism," he said, quoting from the letter.
Note: O'Brien issued the statement on Saturday; we were alerted to it by a story in The Baltimore Jewish Times.
Comments
"The use of stereotypes, the passing from personal responsibility and guilt to a collective guilt remind me of the more shameful aspects of anti-Semitism."
The Roman Catholic Church is an well-organized, hierarchical institution that has not only sheltered known pedophiles within its ranks from criminal prosecution, but has enabled them to further perpetrate their heinous actions by shuffling them off to different parishes where they could continue to prey on unsuspecting worshippers.
"Collective guilt"? Any institution as rigid in its authority would be met with at least as much outrage from the public at large if a similar level of cover-up and betrayal of trust were undertaken.
If the Church couldn't turn these men over to civil authorities (the proper and legal thing to do), it could've at least defrocked them. Time and again it made the worst choice imaginable: turning these sick men loose on more innocent children, who were no doubt raised to think that priests were to be trusted and respected. WHY did the Church choose to do this?
This is to say nothing of the Church's own history of Anti-Semitism.
Posted by: Unconfirmed | April 8, 2010 5:14 PM
Well give Archbishop O'Brien a chance to help out. He is headed for Rome tomorrow. Maybe we should pray that he is the next Pope. Wow I could have a lot more pull with the Catholic Church. Change could be in the works. Remember, God is in charge.
Posted by: Clay | April 8, 2010 5:51 PM
It would be poetic justice if they got another Pope Adrian VI in charge, after Benedict, both for better and for worse.
Posted by: Anonymous | April 8, 2010 7:12 PM
Clay,
Puffs of smoke notwithstanding, I think if you examine the history of the Pontificate and of the Vatican, you will come to realize that politics (both world politics and that of the Curia) have much more to do with the slection of a Pope than does any other-worldly influence. This present Pope seems to have been angling and lobbying for the job for quite some time.
Posted by: BankStreet | April 9, 2010 7:49 AM
Yes, BankStreet, Ratzinger/Benedict has lobbied for the papal seat for quite a while. His overt concern for his own image and covering his own a$$ is demonstrated day in and day out in his horrific ethical and moral behavior.
Posted by: Laura | April 10, 2010 5:34 PM
Laura or Bankstreet could you share what information you base the statement that Ratzinger lobbied for the papal seat on?
Posted by: Anonymous | April 12, 2010 11:34 AM
I went looking for some documentation of my charge ... couldn't find anything specific, to be honest. I'm not even sure what credible objective documentation there could be, short of a transcript of the conclave deliberations....
I suppose I was extrapolating from the ambition he has demonstrated throughout his career and his advantageous position at the time of JPII's death. (Sort of the Dick Cheney parallel, I guess.) I also thought I had heard this said of him at the time of his elevation...but, again, no documentation.
Posted by: BankStreet | April 12, 2010 1:07 PM
John Paul II and Cardinal Ratzinger played "good cop, bad cop" for quite a while. John Paul II could embrace the world with warm fuzzies even conversing with practitioners of voodoo. Meanwhile Cardinal Ratzinger would rule on matters of faith and morals, especially the controversial ones.
His undeniable intellect is what put him in power. It was a clear race between Arnize and Ratzinger and it was no surprise when he won.
Sadly for him he spent a lot of time as head of the CDF tightening the church's stance on human sexuality. All the while these abuses were setting him up to look like a hypocrite.
Looks like the Rottweiler was chasing its tail and finally bit itself.
Posted by: Dana LaRocca | April 12, 2010 2:24 PM