The first thing the church can do is rid its own ranks of all immoral individuals. Therefore, all pedophile priests would be fully expelled and excommunicated by the Catholic Church. If the evangelical megachurches don't sell all those private planes and give their impoverished flock a well-earned refund, they will eject and disavow all the scumbag rich conmen who have been leading them. And if churches take on all of these responsibilities and more, then perhaps, just possibly, they will be able to maintain some semblance of "moral authority" and use it to point the finger at social evils. Perhaps, but not before that moment. And please understand me. I have no animosity toward Christians at all. I really love all of my religious friends, and I have a lot of them. However, the majority of those in charge of churches seem to be scum. And despite all of his wonderful deeds, wise sayings, and admirable postures, Pope Francis has yet to excommunicate and remove a sizable number of misbehaving priests, pastors, cardinals, and bishops.
Too many stories of priests hosting orgies and "sex parties" have come to my attention. About evangelistic pastors who host wild parties and are later discovered to have slept with lesbians, registered on adulterous websites, or engaged in private sex with men while denouncing homosexuality in public sermons... and I'm just so damn tired of the obvious, massive hypocrisy of it all. Everywhere there are perverts and hypocrites, abuse is covered up by Catholics, Protestants, Lutherans, Baptists, Amish, Evangelicals, and anybody else you name. The criticism of others never stops, and there is no indication of reform, introspection, or sincere change.
It might not be malice. It's possible that the existing power structures simply make real reform difficult, if not outright impossible. Even so, I have a hard time accepting the moral authority of establishments that don't treat "their own" the same way they treat people they rule over. Doctors, cure yourself!
Too many stories of priests hosting orgies and "sex parties" have come to my attention. About evangelistic pastors who host wild parties and are later discovered to have slept with lesbians, registered on adulterous websites, or engaged in private sex with men while denouncing homosexuality in public sermons... and I'm just so damn tired of the obvious, massive hypocrisy of it all. Everywhere there are perverts and hypocrites, abuse is covered up by Catholics, Protestants, Lutherans, Baptists, Amish, Evangelicals, and anybody else you name. The criticism of others never stops, and there is no indication of reform, introspection, or sincere change.
It might not be malice. It's possible that the existing power structures simply make real reform difficult, if not outright impossible. Even so, I have a hard time accepting the moral authority of establishments that don't treat "their own" the same way they treat people they rule over. Doctors, cure yourself!