The Pope

Have many nuns sexually abused children? Nuns live in communities , nuns with husbands and children wouldn’t work

It is not only sexual abuse, but physical and psycholgical abuse perpetuated by nuns, Did you ever see the film "Philomena?". It told a true story which I'm sure was by no means unique.

Please watch the documentary ‘No country for women’ on YouTube.....and also ‘The forgotten Maggies’ and ‘sex in a cold climate’ but make sure you have tissues handy.....

Yes I know varian , the vow of chastity has nothing to do with physical abuse and nuns were included in a post about celibacy

Most normal adults are not naturally celibate. Some who choose a religious vocation may accept celibacy without too much difficulty but for others it is unnatural and may damage their character and influence their behaviour for the worse.

I really admire pope Francis (as a non-Catholic) for his liberal views and observance of (relative) poverty, but I have found his response to the abuse issue extremely disappointing. It's simply not good enough to apologise or say how sad he is, actions speak volumes compared with words, which really are empty of any help.

annep, this is a really important question and it’s the one that everyone asks (including me – it was a big problem to me when I started looking into Christianity in my 20s).

There’s so much I could say about it, but unfortunately not enough time! I will just say a few things.

1.
The Bible makes it clear that suffering is not generally punishment. I don’t believe that at all. One reason that suffering came into the world at the Fall (when humans rebelled against God) is that they started using the free will that God had given them, so that they could freely turn to him and have a loving relationship with him, to do evil. Most of the suffering in the world is caused by human beings doing wrong things. Another part is caused by illness and by natural disasters such as earthquakes. Christian belief is that these began when the relationship between God and humans was broken, as a consequence rather than a punishment. It does say in the Bible that

“the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time”
(Romans‬ ‭8:22‬ ‭NIVUK‬‬
bible.com/113/rom.8.22.nivuk)

but that there will be a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:1), where for those who belong to God,

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain”‭‭
(Revelation‬ ‭21:4‬ ‭NIVUK
‬‬http://bible.com/113/rev.21.4.nivuk)

2.
If this life is not all there is, things look different. God has all of eternity to make it up to people who have suffered unjustly in this life. He will also judge perfectly, and nobody will get away with wrongdoing - there will be justice (and for those who trust in him, mercy).

3.
Humans tend to feel that God must want us to be happy. But William Lane Craig (a top Christian thinker) suggests that God’s purpose in creating the universe was not just to provide a comfortable home for his human pets. He suggests that God’s priorities may be that each person will come into relationship with him and will become more like Jesus. He may know that suffering is worth permitting as part of creating a world where the maximum number of people will do those things. It may be that he wants us to be happy in this life, but it’s not the most important thing.

4.
As Tim Keller says, the fact that we can’t see God’s reasons for permitting suffering doesn’t mean that there aren’t any.

I hope these two short videos from William Lane Craig on the subject may be helpful.

youtu.be/k64YJYBUFLM (4 minutes)

youtu.be/cxj8ag8Ntd4 (8 minutes)

I also think John Lennox makes some good points in this brief interview.

youtu.be/tmP5WfEiOe0
(7 minutes)

Please feel free to pm me if you wish.

What did you want him to do humpty?

What should have been done and still should , is that the people accused are reported to the police , not "dealtwith" secretly . A proper enquiry/trial by the law of the land should take place

Yes Aggie, I agree but one man against how many?

Thanks Skye17. looking now.

Jesus was one man against so many,perhaps that would/ could/should inspire The Pope & anyone else who purports to hold Christian beliefs.

True, he was betrayed , denied and crucified and The Pope isn’t the Second Coming Bridgeit

But he does have the most Golden opportunity to condem, investigate & rejuvenate instead of pontificating.

Yes he has an uphill battle with the Curia , but what I mean is that that Bishop should go straight to the law why has Francis to do it , surely the buck stops a lot further down the line than the ton Honcho

Does he Bridgeit? He is doing much which hasn’t been done before

And that’s a good thing Annie, but I can’t help thinking his condemnation needs a bit more passion & foroceity.

I think he spoke honestly , for me I don’t want fire and brimestone from The Pope , he is a man of humility . He is The Pope but we need to remember - there is always power behind thrones. He has done much in only 5 years

I must confess to not being overly knowledgeable about Cathholicsiumm ( hope that is correct) as I am from a non conformist religious background, which to me seems to be more about the teachings of JC.

Bridgeit, what I have learned of the RC Church came from having a RC Godfather, working in a RC convent,knowing my son in law’s father for over 25 years who was RC and have friends who are RC. I was brought up Baptist, became a member of the Angclican Church. Like you my faith is based on the teachings of Christ. I couldn’t care less when people go on about the crusades , many do good in the name of Christ , over centuries many have done wrong, because this is what man has always done.

For me Micah 6.8 -

“He hath shewed thee oh man what is good and what doeth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy,
And to walk humbly with thy God “

I will get of the soapbox ?

I like that verse Annibach.
No don’t get off your soapbox, ( it doesn’t come across like that) besides that is what the bible message teaches believers to do.

Bridgeit, think of The Pope as a PM, voted in but not absolute power. The splits in the Labour Party, the leader wants to go back , many want to go forward. So it is for Pope Francis .

Brilliant Annibach another excellent simili, if you don’t alread teach/ preach locally I think you should consider it. You have the potential to reach people who may not like the traditional delivery of Gods word.

No, Anniebach to a Catholic (the religion into which I was born and brought up) the Pope is not like a PM. He is God's representative on earth.
That's Pope Francis by the way, not "Frankie".

Ilovecheese, I know that too, we who are not RC are allowed their opinions on frankie and his limits of power , perhaps you need a thread for RC only