Why we oppose the Pope’s State Visit to Britain
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Pope Benedict preaches intolerance & rejects key human rights
Even most Catholics oppose many of his teachings
London – 13 August 2010
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who is also a spokesperson for
the Protest the Pope campaign, spoke at a public meeting in Richmond,
London, last night.
In his speech, he set out many of the reasons why the majority of the
British people disagree with the Pope on key moral, social and human
rights issues.
Text of Peter Tatchell's speech at the Protest the Pope public meeting at the Old Town Hall, Richmond, on 12 August 2010:
Pope Benedict comes to Britain next month. As democrats, we believe he
has every right to come here and express his opinions. But we also have
a right to protest against his often harsh, extreme views. We have a
right to say that he is not welcome.
The Protest the Pope campaign is calling on the British government to
disassociate itself from the Pope’s intolerant teachings on issues such
as women’s rights, gay equality and the use of condoms to prevent the
spread of HIV. On these and many other issues, Benedict is out of step
with the majority of British people, including most Catholics.
We also object to his visit being funded by the taxpayer. Much of his
itinerary involves religious and spiritual events. It is not
appropriate that these are paid for by the public. After all, we don’t
fund visits by the Grand Mufti of Mecca or the Chief Rabbi of
Jerusalem.
On so many important social issues, the Pope rejects human rights.
Pope Benedict opposes women’s ordination. Women are deemed unfit to
preach the gospel. This is an insult to the whole female sex. The
implication of the Pope’s teaching is that women have no moral
capability or capacity for spiritual leadership. This is pure
patriarchy, sexism and misogyny.
The Pope says artificial contraception is a sin. He condemns poor
parents to having large families that they can’t care for adequately.
In some countries, priests spread the lie that contraception makes
women sick.
Pope Benedict opposes IVF fertility treatment, to give childless
couples the chance of parenthood. This is odd. The Catholic Church says
having children is God’s will but denies this option of parenthood to
infertile couples.
The Pope rejects potentially life-saving embryonic stem cell research,
which could help find cures for terrible illnesses like motor neurone
disease – saving lives and improving people’s quality of life. Surely
this research is fulfilling Christian values and ideals?
Benedict XVI has denounced the use of condoms, even to stop the spread
of HIV. He has also claimed that condom usage may “increase” the rate
of HIV infection. His dishonest teachings discourage a proven way to
reduce HIV transmission; thereby putting millions of lives at risk.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/lancet-says-pope-distorting-condom-facts-1655647.html
The Pope has colluded with the Vatican’s promotion of the lie that
condoms spread HIV because latex is porous to the virus (sic). This is
an outrageous falsehood and has been condemned as untrue and
irresponsible by scientists and medical professionals.
In 1992, When he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he authored a Vatican
document that condemned homosexuality as an “objective disorder” and a
“strong tendency ordered towards an intrinsic moral evil.” Rejecting
the concept of gay human rights, the document asserted that there is no
“right” to laws protecting homosexual people against discrimination,
suggesting that the civil liberties of lesbians and gay men can be
“legitimately limited for objectively disordered external conduct.”
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Some+considerations+concerning+the+Catholic+response+to+legislative...-a0128671084
The Pope has attacked same-sex marriages as “evil” and vilified
supporters of gay equality as “gravely immoral.” He has also denounced
homosexual equality as a “deviant trend” and condemned same-sex love as
being “without any social value.” He even threatened to excommunicate
Catholic legislators who voted for gay rights laws.
While condemning loving, consenting adult same-sex relations, the
Pontiff played a role in shielding Catholic clergy guilty of child sex
abuse from prosecution.
In 2001, Pope Benedict wrote a letter to all Catholic Bishops, which
ordered Papal silence concerning allegations of child sex abuse. He
instructed the Bishops to report all such cases to him in Rome, so the
idea that he did not know about sex abuse by priests is nonsense. His
letter did not tell Bishops to report the abusers to the police.
The esteemed Catholic theologian, Hans Kung, said the Pope bears
co-responsibility for the cover-up and that Benedict has failed to
apologise for his own personal shortcomings during the child sex abuse
scandal.
For more than two decades, as a Cardinal and as a Pope, Joseph
Ratzinger has attempted to reverse the liberalising trends of the
Second Vatican Council – pushing the whole church back to a more
orthodox, conservative agenda. He’s strengthening the hierarchy and
autocracy of the Vatican and the Papacy.
This has prompted a grassroots Catholic revolt - the "We are Church"
movement - which seeks a more democratic, transparent, accountable
church.
The Pope has condemned liberation theology, as espoused by Catholic
theologians such as Gustavo Gutierriz and Leondaro Boff, and he has
opposed the worker priest movement. He preaches social justice but
attacks those clergy who advocate political action to reform society
and make it more just.
Earlier this year, Pope Benedict rescinded the excommunication of
Bishop Richard Williamson who, in 2008, denied key elements of the
Holocaust; claiming that a maximum of 300,000 Jews died in
concentration camps and that none were gassed by the Nazis.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7869565.stm
Benedict has also paved the way for eventual sainthood of Pope, Pius
XII, despite the war-time pontiff’s failure to speak out publicly,
either during or after the Holocaust, against the Nazi mass murder of
six million Jews and millions of others, including Russian, Polish,
disabled, gay and Roma people - and many more.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/21/pope-benedict-moves-pius-closer-sainthood
Pius XII was no saint. The fact that Pope Benedict wants to makes him a
saint shows how far he has strayed from the moral and ethical values of
most Catholics and most of humanity.