The controversy has not broken until now because RC cardinals and high heid yins have been suppressing it, then moving perpetrators of sex offences to new dioceses and hushing everything up.

Meanwhile victims (who in many cases thopught they were alone) have suffered in silence, until a few of them decided to speak up. Hey presto, more and more spoke out. Many of the brave souls are actively speaking out for the palestinian people, the poor, victims of racism etc. as well.

It's fair to say that there is a considerable number of people in the US church, not to mention here in the UK who are pro-israel. They tend to be the ones who believe that abortion is murder, women should submit to their husbands & that modern music is of the devil.

There is a far more important group of people in the church who believe that all women and men are equal - except the oppressed, the poor, the victims of violence and injustice. They are believed to be more important, more worthy, and more 'like god' (for want of a better phrase) than the rich, the seemingly powerful mortals who cause most of the wars in the world for a few barrels of oil.

We're in this together. Let's stay strong and beat capitalism while there's still some of us left to enjoy the end result of our struggle.

Peace!

ok Jim, I reckon you could be right .
But take a look at it from another angle.
The Catholics got trashed by the Italian Cops at Genova.
The Catholic associations were out in force, they were ordinary punters. middle aged straight couples and their grown up kids, you know, law abiding citizens.
Well there are loads of accounts of how this people with their hands raised in thee air, got the shit knocked out of them.
The Pope could croak at any moment if he didn't already and the one we see is a wind up version.
Perhaps one of the carlyle group will take over next.

But what about all the Cash, if you read Yallops book "in Gods Name" It's pretty clear that the Church , Vatican Incorporated is involved in everything that makes (big) fast bucks. Most of it being illegal, drugs, guns, ect and the whole operation is run through off shore banking systems.
I wouldn''t mind betting that there is also some economical scam going off. Like perhaps the Vatican has to pick up the Tab for ENRON or something similar.
Or maybe the people who pull Dubya's strings are looking to
(Multi) nationalise the Church. After all if we have a(NEW) world (Order) government, we will need a World Church.
Perhaps they will merge it with Mac donalds so we can eat pray pay all in the one sitting ...
Just have to stiick one of those massive MAcdonalds signs on huge columns, (all over Holland and France) yeah the Church of Macdonalds. No vegetarians allowed .. shhiit that's me .

Cops beating up catholics, priests abusing children, big business screwing the poor, the workers, the environment, flouting any law that doesn't suit them....

These are all examples of power held, used and abused without adequate accountability structures. We have all seen these things happen - and no doubt opposed.

The Roman Catholic church is not 'the church' per se, although it represents a global organisation with financial link to some of the most corrupt businesses in the world. They are also a source of opposition to these global murderers.

Other branches of the church - the baptists, seventh day adventists, mormons and jehovah's witnesses to name but a few (though they would not all necessarily agree with each other about whether they should all be branded as 'the church') are merely gatherings of people with religious beliefs. However, the structures upholding each of these organisations are modelled on the burocratic autocracy that is capitalism, where the few speak for the many regardless of what the many would say.

As for a Vatican/McD's merger, I think it highly unlikely. It is the kind of hyperbole that illustrates what might be possible if global citizens abdicated their responsibilities to dissent when things are going wrong.

Which brings me neatly to my original point, that the current sex-abuse scandal is not a ploy to keep the RC church quiet on Palestine, it's an example of people resisting the abuse of power. Just like the Palestinians are doing - similar process, different means.