re: These catholic justices made a conscious decision to belong to an organization...

Guilt by association, eh?

And since you are an American, do you share the blame for the various decisions made by the relative few in the U.S. Government that have snuffed out the lives of literally millions?

re: You can't choose your age, race, gender, or sexual orientation but you can choose what religion you are.

Ready to renounce your U.S. citizenship?

Or, perhaps, have you decided that, while flawed and not always living up to its principles, you want to stay and try to effect positive change from within?

White House Announces Troubling Faith-Based Order, ACLU Says Administration Is Heading Into Uncharted Waters (2/5/2009)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: (202) 675-2312 or media@dcaclu.org

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama announced today that he is taking the unprecedented and troubling step of forming a federal advisory committee to be made up mostly of religious leaders. Also of great concern, President Obama will increase federal funds going to religious organizations without first changing the Bush-era rules allowing federally-funded religious organizations to apply religious hiring tests to employees.

"President Obama launched his faith-based initiative today by heading into uncharted and dangerous waters," said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "What we are seeing today is significant - a president giving his favored clergy a governmental stamp of approval. There is no historical precedent for presidential meddling in religion – or religious leaders meddling in federal policy – through a formal government advisory committee made up mostly of the president's chosen religious leaders."

Today's announcement included the appointment of 25 members of a government advisory committee that will be dominated by religious leaders. The mission of the government committee will be to advise the president and the White House faith-based office on how to distribute federal dollars, and also advise on a range of other issues such as AIDS and women's reproductive health care. Although former President George W. Bush gave prominence to his faith-based initiative and informally consulted with individual religious leaders, even he never formed a government advisory committee made up primarily of clergy.

"Granted one member of a church is not responsible for the actions of the other members but what they are responsible for is giving legitimacy and money"

PS Somehow I don't see any evidence that the catholics who go to mass every Sunday and donate money to such a corrupt and amoral organization as the catholic church make a point of telling their priest "make sure none of that money goes to defend child abusers and rapists or to take away the right of gays/lesbians to get married or to ban a legal and necessary medical procedure such as abortion or trying to ban birth control in desperately poor countries ravaged by disease and famine, etc.

re: Somehow I don't see any evidence that the catholics who go to mass every Sunday and donate money to such a corrupt and amoral organization as the catholic church...

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The John Jay Report,commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, found accusations against 4,392 priests in the USA, equalling about 4% of all U.S. priests. Figures supplied by the Catholic League, and the U. S. Department of Education suggest that the abuse figures in the Catholic Church are similar to abuse in other institutions such as education.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_sex_abuse_cases

Abuse by any adult of a child is disgusting and a crime, so neither I nor any Catholic of conscience is anything but revolted by it. Ditto for any efforts to cover it up by anyone in the heirarchy of the church. Put 'em all behind bars and throw away the key.

At the same time, let us not taint the reputations of the 96% who are good and faithful servants of God and man by lumping them together with the sicko criminals. This is, obviously, unfair and quite wrong.

I would also point out that, in the case of the Church, it was Christ himself who chose Judas, so the element of evil and its betrayal of the Truth has been with the Church from its inception. Somehow, the evil factor is used by God for purposes we do not understand.

Indeed, a mystery of the faith.

Spare me your superstitious nonsense.

PS you either don't understand my earlier reply or haven't read it......I don't care what percentages you use.....the infra structure of the church covered up the rape and abuse of thousands of children for decades.....that means it goes all the way up to your beloved pope since he is head of the religious organization.....much like the "don" of the mafia is responsible for the illegal activities of his organization.

re: Spare me your superstitious nonsense

I'm not trying to convert you, nor am I here to argue theology. The fact that you are against Catholics and Catholicism is clear. I am merely addressing your blanket condemnation as patently, grossly unfair.

re: I don't care what percentages you use

You're not interested in facts, that's clear. You would rather proceed from an ignorant, knee-jerk hatred of Catholicism.

Here's a bit of news for you: Pedophiles are predators who seek out positions where they will have contact with and authority over their prey. That's why this phenonmenon is not limited to priests, but is found in scouting, teaching, coaching, etc. -- and to the exact same degree.

re: the infra structure of the church covered up the rape and abuse of thousands of children for decades

That SOME covered up this is indisputable. But, again, you condemn ALL.

And spare me your wild, baseless comparisons with the Pope and Don Corleone.

My post was more a general note than anything else. One of the earliest posters had said flat-out that "Christianity is communistic," and I assert that's totally wrong.

I'm as disgusted with the phonies who call themselves Christians as ANYONE, and I am generally supportive of the government being used as a tool of social welfare.

I was just pointing out the fallacy of equating Christian values with something "communistic."

Religious experiences are personal. Religious beliefs are personal. Communism is CIVICS, and that's not personal at all.

As for "the Church" itself...

I kinda relate to Frank Zappa's view. "The Church" is about real-estate, and taking money from people who have nothing so that you can expand into new territory, and take more money from more people, and...you get the idea. The larger and more powerful the "institution," the greater the risk of corruption.

That's why I'm an anarchist. No man should have any reason to fear another in a healthy society.