On Popes, AIDS, and Abortions

The Holy Roman Catholic Church; an ancient institution with more followers than any other Christian denomination in the world. It's headquarters - Vatican City - is the center of one of the largest archives in the world, with art collections dating from before the birth of the Roman Empire. In the Middle Ages, the HRCC was a massive political force, capable of overruling the decrees of emperors and kings. Yet throughout its history, the Catholic Church has suffered from a crushing burden: it's outdated and (at times) horrific doctrine and dogma.

Take, for example, Pope Adolf II's Benedict XVI's comments while touring Africa in Cameroon last month. He essentially said that "condoms make the problem of HIV worse", and that "abstinence is the key". Wait a second, didn't the Pew Research Center already prove that "abstinence only" is about as effective as powdered water? In studies conducted several years ago, it was discovered that "the pledge" prolonged abstinence by a mere 18 months, while other forms of sexual contact increased during those 18 months. So, let's move to Africa now, where a population is on the verge of total destruction from the overwhelming power of HIV/AIDS. If you teach people how to engage in safe-sex, I can guarantee that the rates of infection will drop. You need only look at the gay community to know that it works. When they figured out that unsafe sex spread HIV like wildfire in southern Australia, they quickly adapted, and now their prevalence rates, though still cause for distress, are much lower than they used to be. When, 18 months after the Catholic doctrine has been stuffed down their throats, it fails, what then becomes of Africa? To make a long and sad story short: It continues to be torn apart by AIDS.

The arrogance and soullesness of the Catholic Church is overwhelming. They are actually willing to condemn an entire continent to destruction because of their ancient doctrine and dogma - a doctrine and dogma that will succeed in doing nothing but kill off a continent. Pope or not, Benedict XVI is not infallible, and he is definitely not correct on this issue.

You'd think that, for one month, the Catholic Church would have done enough damage, but it doesn't stop there. In mid-march, the HRCC excommunicated the mother of a nine-year-old Brazilian girl, along with the doctors who performed her abortion. For those you who don't know, excommunication is the Catholic-equivalent of the "go directly to jail" monopoly card. Why did they excommunicate them? Because a 9-year old had an abortion. Why did she have an abortion? Because her stepfather repeatedly molested and raped her, causing her to become pregnant. Had the pregnancy been carried through, she would have died, no debate or question. Yet again, stupid dogma means that, rather than being congratulated for saving a young life, the doctors are excommunicated and condemned.

Benedict XVI continues to prove that he completely insane, without even mentioning his service in the Hitlerjugend in the 30's and 40's. Since becoming Pope in 2006, he has fought an unnecessary war with Islam, insulted the world's Sunni populations, declared homosexuality to be "a disease and sin akin to burning the rainforests", annulled the excommunication of a Muslim & Jew-hating, Holocaust denying bishop, and then declared condoms and abortions of rape-victims "evil".

It's time to take power away from these psychopaths, for the good of humanity. It's time to realize that, just because an ancient Roman Emperor sanctioned it 1800 years ago doesn't mean it holds any relevance or weight today, that human life is more important than religious doctrine and dogma. Benedict, your time is up, your morals are spent. Something is rotten in the state of the Vatican, and it is time to extract and destroy it.

"Morality is doing what's right, no matter what you're told.
Religious Dogma is doing what you're told, no matter what's right." - Unknown