Musket, I'd agree with much of your post of 3:38 AM, although I'd tend to attribute it to the state of development of thinking of our culture.

Then you say: Meanwhile, the Vatican has released a training manual for bishops saying they don't have to report child abuse to authorities. The pope stated that victims of rape should apologise to priests before the priest sanctions abortion. It'll be interesting when civilised countries start prosecuting then.

I'd like to see documentation of this "training manual for bishops." And your statement about rape and abortion is certainly a little inaccurate. And who's going to be prosecuted by civilized countries?

A priest can't sanction abortion, except in rare circumstances where the life of the mother is at stake. If a woman has an abortion "in good conscience" (believing it to be the right thing to do), then there is no sin and no need to confess abortion as a sin - that's been official policy for a long, long time - at least since the Council of Trent in 1545.

And I don't understand the prosecution bit at all.

-Joe-