Christianity Issues
Christianity faces many issues in modern times. And without a doubt, the Catholic Church is the most troubled one. We could write numerous pages about the Catholic Church and its position on: Abortion, Bioethics, Birth Control, Capitalism, Cloning, Homosexuality, Euthanasia, Stem Cell Research, Marriage and Same Sex Unions, and many more.
A- What is the issue, problem or debate that has arisen and what population(s) does it affect?
This paper will discuss about the Catholic Church and the sexual abuse scandals committed by some of its priests. In this week readings we can find that the more traditional and older Christians churches fallow the same principles and opinions. The Catholic Church, Russian Orthodox Church, Greek Orthodox Church, and the Eastern Orthodox Church share the majority of traditions. The most important dissimilarity is the supremacy of the Roman Pope over the Patriarchs. These Christian churches only ordain men and require celibate vows from their priests.
Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglican Ch...
Sacred Heart Catholic Church
English: Interior of St. Andrew's Catholic Church ...This tradition is sustained because Jesus Christ had 12 disciples (all male) and the teachings of Paul about women.
B- What do you need to know about Christianity in order to understand the problem that is discussed in the article? How does an understanding of Christianity help understand this problem better? Please make explicit connections between the topics of this week's class and your reading, and the issues in the article you have chosen.
The Catholic Church undoubtedly teaches the sexual abuse of children to be a mortal sin. The Catholic Catechism says:
"...any sexual abuse perpetrated by adults on children or adolescents entrusted to their care. The offense is compounded by the scandalous harm done to the physical and moral integrity of the young, who will remain scarred by it, all their lives; and the violation of responsibility for their upbringing." (CCC 2389).