According to reports in the mainstream media, Vatican police broke up a drug-fueled homosexual debauched party in an apartment of the Holy Office, but how true is it?
The news first broke in a June 28 article in Il Fatto Quotidiano: the Vatican gendarmerie raided a flat in the same building as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith where they discovered hard drugs and a group of men engaged in homosexual activity. A number of prominent secular English-speaking media outlets have subsequently published extensive details of the Il Fatto Quotidiano report.
The article claims the occupant of the apartment was the secretary to Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, the Church’s most important canon law office.
The report further claims that the area of the building was reserved not just for monsignors but senior curial officials, suggesting that the secretary had influential friends in high places to secure such a prestigious apartment.
Others residing in the Holy Office reportedly complained about a steady stream of young male visitors and of noisy parties in the secretary’s apartment — complaints that prompted the police raid. Further suspicions were also raised when others saw the secretary, a monsignor from the diocese of Prenestina near Rome, had access to a luxury car with Vatican plates which allegedly allowed him to bring drugs into the Vatican without ever being stopped by the Vatican police. - Finish reading here.
In 1049, St. Peter Damian's Liber Gomorrhianus condemned homosexual sodomy. It was apparently rampant back then as well. Part of the purification process is exposing the sin, as St Paul counselled: "Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them." One does that without sensationalizing the sin. It seems that could be what is going on in this Pontificate. It is good to recall that St. Paul also admonished: "As for lewd conduct or ... lust of any sort, let them not even be mentioned among you; your holiness forbids this." Therefore sensationalized stories and photos are not necessary for review.
Pentin's report is not sensationalized and is pretty much factual - although I hate 'unnamed but reliable' or 'highly placed' anonymous spokesmen. But that is how these things go.
Having said that, I think it is important to reconsider the writing of Catherine of Siena, as Pentin does in his report. Especially since hostility to Catholic teaching on homosexuality increases with every scandal such as this one.
Even demons are repulsed.
In light of the latest scandal and the current situation, one former official urged readers to recall the warnings of the Lord on homosexual acts, especially between priests, as explained by St. Catherine of Siena in her Dialogues written as if dictated by God Himself.
The medieval mystic, co-patron of Rome and Doctor of the Church, relayed the words at a time when a number of clergy had fallen into grave sin.
Such priests, the Lord told St. Catherine, not only fail from resisting their fallen nature, “but do even worse as they commit the cursed sin against nature [homosexual acts].”
“Like the blind and stupid having dimmed the light of the understanding, they do not recognize the disease and misery in which they find themselves,” the Lord continued, adding that it not only causes God “nausea, but displeases even the demons themselves, whom these miserable creatures have chosen as their lords.”
He added that “this sin against nature is so abominable that, for it alone, five cities were submersed, by virtue of the judgement of My Divine Justice, which could no longer bear them.” The Lord told St. Catherine that even the demons are “repulsed upon seeing such an enormous sin being committed.” - More here.
It seems to me the Lord is cleansing the Church first, and then the world. More than five cities may be lost this time.
Fire will come down from heaven.
Terry - this is a dreadful thing, but I think you are right. God is cleansing His Church, and He is starting at the top. And it will be painful and as ugly as these sinful actions are.
ReplyDeleteI am delighted to read that Pope Francis is horrified and furious. Good for him. I hope he gets the ball rolling and conducts a thorough investigation into every office of the Vatican. He must hold the hierarchy and all their staff to the high standard of faithfulness to Church teaching, in demeanor, conduct, and actions, just as we are expected to in the laity.
We will all have to present ourselves to God and account for our actions on earth someday. Except for the unborn who are mercilessly murdered in abortion, none of us is an innocent. As leaders of the Church, the hierarchy, clergy, and all organizations under the leadership of the Church have an even higher standard of faithfulness to adhere to, because their words and actions affect the faithful and others in the world. They must not cause scandal.
We cannot call ourselves Catholic if we knowingly promote or live agendas contrary to Church teaching. We are responsible for our actions because all of us provide some kind of example to others, good or bad.
It's time to pray for Pope Francis and our holy bishops.
God bless all here - Susan, ofs
Beautifully put, Susan. Thank you.
DeleteThanks Susan - I've been praying very much for the Pope - when he speaks of all the 'corruption' in the Church, it echoes what P. Benedict said about the 'filth'. This latest incident seems to me to be an outward sign of the corruption the Pope condemns. It is at once a sign of decadence and corruption. I think that when the Holy Fathers words are taken as insults and criticism elsewhere - people may not be aware that he is actually addressing the corruption in the Vatican and elsewhere among Church officials. I'm convinced details - such as why this or that curia staff member has been terminated - is part of the process in the reform. I also think the bad, negative press against the Pope, and recently, Card. Pell is the resistance to reform at work in an effort to totally discredit the Holy Father and those who support him. I could be wrong, but I reject the notion that the Holy Father is working against the Church and Catholic doctrine. That is simply absurd. I often consider the following from Pope Francis on the evil of corruption:
ReplyDelete“Today I want to emphasize only one thing,” the Pope concluded. “There is a moment where the attitude of sin, or a moment where our situation is so secure and we see well and we have so much power” that sin “stops” and becomes “corruption.” And “one of the ugliest things” about corruption is that the one who becomes corrupt thinks he has “no need for forgiveness.” - VR
The fact that billions of humans still believe in and organize their lives around absolute nonsense; whether it be catholic, muslim or the fantasies of a science fiction writer, is the single reason we cannot advance as a species and put an end to war, starvation, slavery, etc.
ReplyDeleteThe only hope for the future of humanity is the abandonment of all religion. Embrace science people. All the answers are there!
https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http://www.lanuovabq.it/it/articoli-gesu-primo-trans-in-brasile-c-e-pure-la-chiesa-gay-20432.htm
ReplyDeleteNever stops
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2017/07/important-read-this-what-is-the-appeal-to-build-a-bridge-really-about/
ReplyDeleteI saw that. It's disappointing to say the least. I had hoped for more from Fr. Martin.
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