LilBambi’s Blog – BambisMusings

I am not Catholic, but I do have great respect for the leader of the Catholic Church, the Pope.

As you know, Pope Benedict XVI is visiting the United States for the first time since he became Pope as noted in this NYTimes article (free registration/login may be required).

It was very encouraging to hear him actually speak out on the devastating sexual child abuse/pedophilia among the ranks of the Catholic Church’s Priesthood, and stating he was “deeply ashamed” by the actions of pedophile priests.

I know that some have said that that’s not enough, and of course it is not, however, this very statement take great moral courage, courage his predecessors chose not to address leaving gaping wounds in their parishioners.

It also sounds like Pope Benedict XVI will do all he can to fix this so it doesn’t happen again. And I hope he does it soon.

I would also like to know what has been and will be done to help the victims of these great travesties.

Another area that Pope Benedict XVI spoke about in the NYTimes article was his upcoming discourse at the United Nations where he will apparently focus on human rights.

It was also noted that Pope Benedict XVI has often spoken favorably about “how Americans observe their religious beliefs” and when asked if the USA should be a model for Europe, he rightly stated,

“Certainly Europe can’t simply copy the United States,” he said. “We have our own history.” But he said the United States was interesting because it “started with the positive idea of secularism.”

“This new people was made of communities that had escaped official state purges and wanted a lay state, a secular state that opened the possibility for all confessions and all form of religious exercise,” he added. “Therefore it was a state that was intentionally secular. It was the exact opposite of state religion, but it was secular out of love for religion and for an authenticity that can only be lived freely.”

Something that in this day and age so many have forgotten in this country.