Tag Archives: child abuse

Baby dies in pointless ceremony

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I don’t want to sound overly dramatic and suddenly declare Baptisms are unsafe, but when a baby drowns from this pointless ceremony, you have to wonder what kind of safety precautions people take when doing this, especially when it’s not the first time people drown from this nonsense.

The baby’s dad Dumitru Gaidau, 36, said: “We all saw it, the priest didn’t put his hand over the baby’s mouth to stop water going in as he should have done and as they do at every other baptism.

“We couldn’t believe it that he just put his hand over his belly and over the head and submerged him three times in the water.”
The baby’s godmother Aliona Vacarciuc, 32, said: “The baby was crying as he went into the water.

The worst part about this whole story is everyone around the priest knew things weren’t going as planned, but Father Valentin assured them he knew what he was doing…even while the baby was turning blue and gasping for air. Nice job, everybody! Sure, they arrested this worthless idiot, but I’m sure it’s small comfort for the grieving family.

Hey, here’s an idea; if some guy wearing a fancy dress tells you he’s specially ordained by an invisible man in the sky to dunk your newborn in water a bunch of times, why don’t you think twice about handing him over?

Blood is for atonement of sin, not surgery!

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Every so often, you read a story about someone in desperate need of a blood transfusion refusing the life giving procedure because of their religious beliefs. The latest story comes from Smethwick, England where a 15 year old boy died after succumbing to his injuries following a tragic car crash in a store (yeah, you heard right). Joshua McAuley is dead now because his beliefs (or more accurately, the beliefs his parents indoctrinated him with).

It seems hospital officials are on the defensive, tripping over themselves claiming the issue of overriding the wishes of parents and minors in similar cases has to be handled delicately on an individual basis (as in, there’s no official policy). No one seems to quite know what to do about situations like this;  the Friendly Atheist seems a little confused about what the right move is, and Unreasonable Faith just asks his sizable audience to discuss the matter.

I have a solution I think would work out quite nicely: if a minor wants to forgo receiving a blood transfusion due to his religious convictions, he should be able to explain exactly WHY he believes such a thing is wrong (try to avoid pointing out the flaws with the idea of a person with severe blood loss trying to explain anything at all and just humor me, alright?). You see, the real problem is kids like Joshua may think they have acquired their beliefs through their own personal research and introspection, but like every other religious convert, he was conditioned into believing things that were quite obviously untrue. The reason Witnesses refuse blood is because their interpretation of the Bible specifies blood is only to be used in the atonement of sin, and that’s it. The fact  it actually does something much more useful in your body (oh, like carrying oxygen to your cells for instance) is just an inconvenient detail they can’t be bothered to learn. Because Joshua was too ignorant of reality to see the benefit in actually bothering to learn real facts about the natural world, he thought his eternal soul would be in jeopardy if he tried to save his own life with the blood of others. Now he’s just another sad statistic about the dangers of faith.

The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 137

This week on the bonus show: Why Draw Mohammed Day was necessary, and how the person responsible has since washed their hands of it, and how the Catholic Church is more interested in excommunicating people for allowing abortions than in hunting down child rapists.

The Good Atheist
The Good Atheist
The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 137
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Kenyan man sacrifices own son for God

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Probably one of the scariest and most disturbing stories in the Bible (yeah, I know it’s hard to find one which isn’t fucked up) is of Abraham and Isaac. Commanded by God to kill his son, Abraham ties up the boy and is about to plunge his dagger in his chest when he is stopped at the last minute by Metatron (that’s a real angel name) and instead sacrifices an innocent animal in his stead. It’s some dark shit, people.

This story is generally debated as to it’s relative allegorical meaning, but I don’t think you have to look too hard to figure out what’s going on here: it’s not uncommon for jealous and ancient Gods to demand human sacrifice to appease their “anger” . In modern, civilized society this kind of act is exceedingly rare, but thanks to the delusion of religion, every so often, religious nutjobs kill their own children thinking God commanded them to do so. The latest case of religious infanticide comes all the way from Kitale, Kenya, where a father, convinced God was speaking directly to him, killed his own son as a blood sacrifice. He then sprinkled his blood around the house in some ludicrous and macabre ceremony. Your “what-the-fuck-o-meter” should be going off right about now.

He’s being held in custody and the locals have asked the “Ingrafted Fellowship Church”, which he’s been a member of for less than a month, be investigated to see if they are a cult (newsflash guys: all religions are cults, although admittedly, some are crazier than others).

Another sad tale of woe and misery brought to you by the “power” of religion! Isn’t it grand?

Pedophile Nigerian senator justifies himself through Koran

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If you’re a Muslim and you find the idea of child brides offensive, how do you respond to Senator Yerima’s claim since Mohammed married a 9 year old (Aisha), this justifies his recent “marriage” to a 13 year old girl? Muslims believe their prophet led a blameless life, and if the Koran is really supposed to be a guide for how to live one’s life, then he isn’t wrong in his assertion. This is precisely the problem lawmakers in Nigeria are having; there exists a culture of pedophilia because devoted Muslims in the country see nothing wrong with this practice. If it was good enough for Mohammed, they figure it’s good enough for them, no matter how disgusting and despicable the rest of the civilized world feels about it. It’s another example of the evil shit that happens when morons follow the edicts of a 6th century madman.

The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 136

This week: How the Vatican is changing tactics and trying to distance themselves away from pedophile priests, why I dream of swimming in a bevy of bitches (even if it means getting eaten in the process), and why the human race is ultimately doomed! It’s 54 minutes of TGA goodness, so don’t miss out.

The Good Atheist
The Good Atheist
The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 136
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Scumbag priest wants to keep his job

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In 1975, when Father Brendan Smyth was accused of molesting two young boys, Cardinal Sean Brady was present when the victims were coerced into signing oaths of silence. All told, Smyth went on to have a “prolific” career as a child rapist, abusing an estimated 100 kids. He died of a heart attack in 1997, after serving only one month in jail for his crimes. His victims were able to have the title “Reverend” removed from his gravestone, but apart from that, justice was never truly served.

Now, Cardinal Brady, the man who claims he did not have the authority to turn Smyth in to police, has refused to step down from his position even with mounting pressure from the public due to the rash of abuse scandals plaguing the Catholic Church. He seems to be under the impression he did nothing wrong, and he desperately wants to “maintain the momentum towards better child safeguarding” (cause it’s been working out great so far, buddy).

If you can’t even dismiss a guy who did nothing to stop a known child molester, how exactly is the Catholic Church on their way to help “purge” the plight of sexual predators from among their midst? It’s quite obvious no one is really taking this issue seriously. Brady should be in jail for what he did (or more specifically, what he didn’t do), but he won’t even do something as basic as stepping down as Cardinal. What makes people believe this corrupt institution will do anything to prevent these kinds of tragedies from happening in the future?

Missionaries in Haiti get off with time served

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Remember a few months ago, when people still cared about the plight of Haiti (you know, before the world lost interest and turned their attention to something else), and a group of missionaries were facing charges of child kidnapping? Well, it looks like despite breaking the law, they’ve been sentenced to time served (which amounts to roughly 3 months and 8 days), and they’ve been released.

Despite strong evidence she knew the children she took all had at least one parent, and despite repeated warnings she received concerning the legality of what she was about to do, it seems as though the fact that she was motivated by religious charity has somehow absolved her and her group of this serious crime. Personally, I think they should have spent a lot more time in jail for it, but I’m sure the country just wants to move on and put this whole thing behind them (they are also probably still busy trying to rebuilt their shattered capital).

In a predictable fashion, Laura Silsby, the “brains” of the group praised God for the ruling. Was this the same God who commanded you to go down to a foreign country and kidnap children to whisk them away to “white people land” to save them from the evils of Haiti (who according to Pat Robertson made a pact with the devil)?

You have to wonder what kind of message the Haitian government sent with this weaksauce ruling. For a country which has a serious problem with children being kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery, this doesn’t make them look very strong on the issue of child endangerment. You also have to wonder: if the people who had done this weren’t religious missionaries, would the court have been so lenient?

Top American in Vatican implicated in abuse scandal

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So let me get this straight: the Vatican’s top American cleric was exposed in an abuse scandal, and they punished the guy who ousted him by canning him? Yeah, there is not conspiracy to conceal and protect child rapists in the Catholic Church… In other news, up is down, and wet is dry!

Jehovah Witness family abandons child after blood transfusion

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I’m not a parent, so it’s difficult for me to comprehend what it feels like to actually have to take care of one of these screaming whelps. As far as I can tell, they smell, they cry and jump around a lot, and when they get older, they get all “angsty” and totally hate your guts. I’ve been told, however, the experience is rewarding enough to put up with the mega hassle.

One thing I do know for certain is your own brain is changed when you have a kid, and your affection for said child can border on scary. I know a lot of parents would jump in front of a speeding bus filled with rabies infested tigers to preserve their genetic legacy, so it surprises me whenever someone disavows their own progeny for obscure religious reasons.

Last Tuesday, a 5 year old child was admitted into the Eduibiase Government Hospital in Ghana, and was in desperate need for a blood transfusion. Despite the parent’s protest, the doctors decided to save Jepheth’s life, and as a result, the family has disowned the boy.

There are those that refuse to believe parents could disown their children over such a seemingly trivial thing, but this kind of tragedy happens all the time. Some parents can even try extreme measures to prevent their kids from receiving any treatment.

The root cause of all this brouhaha is the archaic belief blood should only be reserved for atonement (the rather disgusting idea people need to be sacrificed to appease gods is something we’ve been stuck with for a long time, unfortunately). Silly me; I actually thought the primary purpose of blood was to carry oxygen and nutrients to all the cells in your body!

Another tragic example of the divisive power of religion, tearing families apart over their stupid fucking theological dogma bullshit.

More pedophile priests get exposed

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More pedophile priests are being exposed on an almost daily basis it seems, and from the look of things, I doubt we’re finished having to read about the terrible deeds of these sick fucks. Today’s pederast is Father Roger Vangheluwe, the Bishop of Bruges in Belgium, who stepped down recently after a commission was set up to investigate priestly abuse received a letter regarding offenses he had committed years ago.

Over the past decades, I asked for the forgiveness of him and his family,” added Mr Vangheluwe. “But the media storm of the past few weeks only reinforced his trauma. It was not tenable any more. I regret what I did and offer my most sincere apologies to the victim, his family, all the Catholic community and society.”

If you’re wondering why this pederast piece of shit isn’t in jail, it’s because the statute of limitations ran out some time ago, so he’s free to enjoy his life without having to worry about paying for his crimes. Instead of justice, his victim gets an apology, which sounds about as awesome as getting a “Cleveland steamer” from a homeless guy on your birthday.

Just another priest who will get to live out his days free from prosecution for his crimes, all thanks to Ratzinger’s informative memo which left specific instructions priests should not discuss any abuse with police until specifically 10 years after their 18th birthday. Of course, that had nothing to do with a systematic cover-up to protect pedophilia at the highest levels of power, right?

Vatican’s financial woes have only just begun

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If you were wondering why the Church worked so diligently to cover up the abuse of pederast priests, you can bet a big part of the motivation is money (like so much in this world). The Guardian is reporting tithing is expected to drop significantly in Italy and other countries. Ever year, the Church makes about €900m in donations, but faced with the growing reality the head of their organization was helping protect known pedophiles from prosecution, the number is expected to drop significantly.

With many Catholics across Europe saying the scandals have robbed them of their faith, there is a risk that this year’s income could be much lower. In Germany, where church membership is registered and has a direct impact on church funds, pollsters for Focus magazine this month found that 26% of Catholics were reconsidering their religious allegiance.

Only 26% had their faith shaken by the systematic cover-up of child rape? Why is anyone still giving money to these monsters? There still hasn’t been any action taken against those responsible for raping kids, and the Vatican continues to affirm all of this is “petty gossip”, even as the evidence continues to mount. It’s like the captain of the Titanic assuring everyone the rumors circulating around of a collision with a gigantic iceberg are “petty gossip”, even as water is rushing into the cabins.

A History of Pedophilia

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Here’s a little history lesson on how long the church has been dealing with priests raping children. The scariest thing? That there’s been internal discussion regarding the handling of pedophile priests for over 1500 years, and these winners still haven’t managed to do anything about it. I’d say it just seems to be getting worse, but it’d probably be naïve to think things weren’t much, much worse back when no one dared question the authority of the church.

Victim of abuse files lawsuit against Pope Benedict XVI

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One of the many victims of Fr. Lawrence Murphy (the guy who molested over 200 deaf kids) has filed a lawsuit against the Pope in the hopes to uncover how much the Vatican did know about the abuse, and how they went about covering it up. The plaintiff, whose identity has been concealed, doesn’t want any money; he just wants justice for his life having been ruined by the sexual torture he had to endure.

I’m curious to see how the Vatican is going to react to this lawsuit. My guess is the standard “deny everything and hope everything blows over” response they’ve been so forthcoming with recently. If that fails, they’ll probably try to blame gays, or better yet, the secularization of society for creating an environment of depravity or something (even their mindless attacks don’t always make much sense). What a bunch of swell guys!

More priestly abuse surfaces in Brazil

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Slowly but surely, it looks as though the real scope of abuse by Catholic priests around the world is only slowly surfacing. Every other day, it seems as though a new pedophile is being exposed. The latest scandal comes from Brazil, which has more Roman Catholics than any other country in the world. The man in question, Luiz Marques Barbosa, was exposed when a TV station showed a sex tape of him with a 19 year old boy who has been under his employ for over 4 years, and he’s just one of many Latin American religious leaders currently under investigation.

Barbosa (who sounds like a villain in a cheesy Mario Van Peebles action romp) and two other priests are accused of abusing boys as young as 12 years of age. Barbosa continues to deny the fact he’s a pederast, although his only “defense” so far is a confusing jumble of inconsistencies; first, he claimed no abuse is going on, then he isn’t gay, followed immediately by accusing homosexuals of being the real cause of pedophilia, and finally ending by saying he would talk about this in confession only. Fuck I hate that garbage; this has become their hateful de-facto statement the Church makes every time someone mentions the fact that people who work for them are raping children. Even if there was a link between homosexuality and pedophilia (and trust me, there isn’t), the real question on everyone’s mind right now is why the head of the organization systematically sheltered known child rapists from prosecution, and why no one is doing anything about it. This whole business of blaming gays for the problem is nothing more than the typical Church M.O.: blame a scapegoat. If this was the 16th century, they would have just blamed the Jews for casting evil spells on them, and ordered a good old fashion massacre to get everyone’s mind off the real offenders.

It’s nice to see these pedophiles being exposed in religiously orthodox countries; it shows the power of the Church to silence these acts is seriously waning. It’s too early to tell how many more of these pieces of shit are going to be exposed, but it’s encouraging to think perhaps some measure of justice can be had here. To date, no one has actually been arrested, but my hope is the Brazilian government will grow some fucking balls and put abusers where they belong: behind heavy metal bars.