paxetaurora said:
Melon: There are individuals in this forum ("delusional," "sexist," and "autocratic" though they may be) who are still Catholic. I urge you to show a bit more respect for a faith that has also done a lot of good in the world; names like Oscar Romero, Desmond Tutu, and Dorothy Day still mean something to you, don't they?
If only that were extended towards Republicans in this forum. But no, we can time any old crap and make any generalization about any born again christian or "faith based" republican we want without any fear in here. And we do have some in this forum who are born again republicans in this forum, and we continue to make generalizations that certainly do nothing to make them welcome in this forum.
But I digress. Republicans are just really "gay hating" people. They have never done anything good for anyone.(SARCASM)
There are good people everywhere. They may happen to be Catholic, just as they may happen to be republican, democrat, or a member of U2. That does not define the entire group of people. You do have to admit that when Cardinals come out and say things like this, it is not cool.
[Q]Cardinal: Most Gays 'Perverts'
COMBINED NEWS SERVICES
January 25, 2004
Brussels - A new Roman Catholic cardinal has raised a storm in Belgium - and division within its Catholic hierarchy - by declaring that at least 90 percent of lesbians and gays were "sexual perverts."
Gays and lesbians protested the remarks, and Belgium's Archbishop Godfried Danneels, seen as a possible successor to Pope John Paul II, distanced himself from the comments.
But Cardinal Gustaaf Joos, a parish priest elevated in October by the pope, has stuck to his declaration, saying he simply would not open his door to those who protest it.
"I simply say what thousands of people think," he told Belgium's VRT television.
What he said was this: "I am willing to write in my own blood that of all those who call themselves lesbian or gay, a maximum of 5 to 10 percent are effectively lesbian or gay. All the rest are just sexual perverts," he told the Flemish weekly P-Magazine.
Joos, 80, said he distinguishes between condemning homosexuality and homosexuals. "Real homosexuals don't wander the streets in colorful suits," he said. "Those are people who have a serious problem and have to live with that. And if they make a mistake they will be forgiven. We have to help these people and not judge them."
Belgium, a mainly Roman Catholic country of 10 million, legalized gay marriages last year and is moving toward granting same-sex couples the right to adopt children.
It is not only homosexuals that exercise the cardinal. Asked about the merits of democracy, he said, "Politics, democracy. Don't make me laugh.
"The right to vote, what is that all about? I think it is curious a snot-nosed, 18-year-old has the same vote as a father of seven. One has no responsibilities whatsoever, the other provides tomorrow's citizens."[/Q]