Cardinal Keith O'Brien

I have heard too much recently of unwanted sexual advances - whether homosexual or heterosexual- being made by people in positions of authority.
This is not the behaviour of people who claim to deserve either obedience or respect. Politicians, bosses in the workplace, priests or bishops - what happened to common decency?

I agree j08 - from what I have heard he did nothing illegal so there won't be a police investigation. Reading between the lines (a dangerous thing I know). He made approaches to 2 priests and had "contact" with another.

Whilst I would agree he has been hypocritical, I think we should show him some mercy, after all his entire lifes work and his reputation has now been trashed.

Thank God Barrow! Someone who agrees with me!

Barrow Why write in the passive? He and he alone trashed his entire life's work and his reputation by disobeying the vows he took when he became a priest, abusing his position of authority and then lying about his actions when they were revealed.

Before appeals for mercy, perhaps there should be some signs of penitence.

And how do you know he isn't penitent?!

These things happened something like 30 years ago, haven't we all done things when we were younger which we now regret - isn't that part of being human?

He has apologised and resigned

As I said I believe he has been a hypocrite and broken the vows he took when he became a priest, but as what he did was foolish rather than illegal I think we should cut him some slack.

My response as a Catholic, (albeit in the porch) is that his behaviour has been utterly disgraceful. He has brought his office into disrepute and he has made some of the most bigoted statements in the past that I've ever heard from the hierarchy. The RCC in Scotland seems to be deeply disordered and in need of urgent reform. I'm glad he's gone and I hope he spends his remaining years in prayer and repentance.

I couldn't agree more. If Christ could forgive sins like the woman taken in adultery, surely we should be able to forgive this man who after all is only human.
Let him that is without sin etc:

Galen

That was to jing and Barrow

Thanks Galen - precisely the point I was trying to make (and making a right pigs ear of it!)

If you're going to dress men up in long robes and refuse to let them have normal sex, you're asking for trouble!!

No one knows the full details of what happened, but it would seem that that big offence (sin) was not his homosexual advances, but the abuse of power. He was a bishop and senior member of the seminary and the complainants were much younger and powerless.

He has made so many bigoted homophobic pronouncements in the past that he was given the title of 'bigot of the year'. To many, many Catholics he is an embarrassment. Not because he is apparently gay, but because of the hypocrisy and the damage he has done to sincere gay Catholics.

It's for Jesus Christ to forgive him. Or perhaps his victims, not anyone else. But in any event, justice always needs to precede mercy.

I agree with jing and*Barrow*, but do have difficulty with him being so publicly against gays but, as micelf says, we don't know the whole story, and we may not. I do think it is time for the Catholic Church to be more responsible and do some real investigating, they have turned a blind eye for too long.

It's the hypocrisy that I find difficult to forgive.

I think this "abuse of power" is what I was getting at, or trying to. We seem to have reverted to some medieval "droit de seigneur" in too many of our public bodies, in politics and in the world of work.
Do women make the same sort of advances on men? I must have had a sheltered upbringing, but it's not been my experience. What is it about power and its abuse?

I agree about the hypocrisy. But we don't really know what feelings were at the heart of that.

merlot that is a very good way of putting it!

I think it is ridiculous to expect men to put sex aside. Asking for trouble.

There was a discussion on the today programme this morning about him.It was suggested that the reason for his bigotry was his denial of his own homosexual leanings. It's not just hypocracy though, it's the dishonesty in initially denying the allegations. Yes we all make mistakes and he is only human as someone said earlier, but he's had plenty of time to reflect and should have apologised straight away IMO.

Evan Davis on Today suggested the Cardinal's 'hypocritical' attacks on gays might have arisen from his own confusion about homosexuality. He suggested that aggressive denunciation is sometimes a form of denial.

Sorry, agapanthus, crossed posts!

Yes. That is it exactly. Time to be accepting of homosexuality in all walks of life I think.

Many homophobic people ,particularly of that generation and upbringing, are probably in denial about their own sexuality

Crossed posts there. Slow at typing!