by H.W. Holdings

Created on: March 27, 2010   Last Updated: March 29, 2010

Theologically orthodox Pope Benedict XVI has been pontiff since April 19th, 2005 which was just four days after his 78th birthday. It was speculated that a younger man might take on the post to replace the deceased Pope John Paul II but the internally respected and externally obscure Cardinal Joseph Alois Ratzinger as he was then called emerged from the conclave as head of the church.

He was the Dean of the College of Cardinals as well as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, crucial posts in the Roman Curia which may very well have sufficed as adequate curriculum vitae for selection as pontiff.

But occupying such offices also placed him in position to have knowledge of embarrassing information on potential rivals. Catholics tend to be reluctant to believe any member of their clergy might harbour ambition or dark secrets or a willingness to use unsavoury means for self-promotion.

It would be most assuring to the Catholic flock and the rest of us to have such suspicions proven completely baseless and invalid. But it is hardly heresy to ask questions that should be asked.

They say Pope Benedict was in charge of investigating pedophile priest scandals in the 1980s and turned a blind eye. The scandal is getting bigger and people are wondering why he did nothing significant or effective when internal memos suggest he knew sexual abuse by clergymen was rampant.

Here is a sickening question which must be asked: Did Pope Benedict use the knowledge he had of the sexual abuse by clergymen to climb the rungs of power in the Vatican via blackmail of those pedophiles within the church?

Interested parties can check on this to verify but from what I have been able to find via research online suggests Vatican insiders never entertained seriously the notion of this man being chosen as the pope amidst the selection of a new pontiff following the death of Pope John Paul II.

A member of the Hitler Youth as pontiff to preserve the papacy after years of bridge-building with the Jewish community over perceived Catholic inaction during the Holocaust?

He had to have consolidated support for his potential papacy in some way and his unremarkable career in the Vatican hierarchy suggests little other than the story of a man who found a way to manouevre himself into a position of immense influence very quickly and conspicuously.

Cynicism and skepticism stoked by a tidal wave of pedophilia scandals already erode the credibility of the old world institution so resistant to change.

Catholic apologists argue the pedophilia scandals have been present in but a small percentage of the massive church's organization. It does not seem that small either to the victims of sexual abuse or the general public.

The mysterious and very suspicious death of Pope John Paul I still prompts questions. The Vatican will never quell criticism with edicts or continued charitable works. It will only restore credibility when it opens itself up to massive international police probe.

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