1. Why can't they kick the online auction people off of Newsvine?

2. Re the affect of the Pope's resignation on Berlusconi's re-election, we can only hope.

Hello folks, the vatican is just another corrupt system being exposed. If you think the Pope resigned due to ill health I've got a bridge to sell you. What pronounced the death knell on Pope Benedict? Could it be his personal implication in the bribery and money-laundering practices of the Vatican Bank, comically known as The Institute of Religious Works (IOR). Or could it be the many investigations regarding the Vatican's misdeeds coming home to roost? In any event, Ratzinger's abdication is unprecedented, you have to go back to the 14th century to find a similar event.

When anything that happens with the elite the answer comes when you follow the money! I think after the dust settles we will actually get to the truth behind the abdication mystery!

The ITCCS of Brussels put out the enclosed letter:

The historically unprecedented resignation of Joseph Ratzinger as Pope this week was compelled by an upcoming action by a European government to issue an arrest warrant against Ratzinger and a public lien against Vatican property and assets by Easter.

The ITCCS Central Office in Brussels is compelled by Pope Benedict's sudden abdication to disclose the following details:

1. On Friday, February 1, 2013, on the basis of evidence supplied by our affiliated Common Law Court of Justice (itccs.org), our Office concluded an agreement with representatives of a European nation and its courts to secure an arrest warrant against Joseph Ratzinger, aka Pope Benedict, for crimes against humanity and ordering a criminal conspiracy.

2. This arrest warrant was to be delivered to the office of the "Holy See" in Rome on Friday, February 15, 2013. It allowed the nation in question to detain Ratzinger as a suspect in a crime if he entered its sovereign territory.

3. A diplomatic note was issued by the said nation's government to the Vatican's Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, on Monday, February 4, 2013, informing Bertone of the impending arrest warrant and inviting his office to comply. No reply to this note was received from Cardinal Bertone or his office; but six days later, Pope Benedict resigned.

4. The agreement between our Tribunal and the said nation included a second provision to issue a commercial lien through that nation's courts against the property and wealth of the Roman Catholic church commencing on Easter Sunday, March 31, 2013. This lien was to be accompanied by a public and global "Easter Reclamation Campaign" whereby Catholic church property was to be occupied and claimed by citizens as public assets forfeited under international law and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

5. It is the decision of our Tribunal and the said nation's government to proceed with the arrest of Joseph Ratzinger upon his vacating the office of the Roman Pontiff on a charge of crimes against humanity and criminal conspiracy.

6. It is our further decision to proceed as well with the indictment and arrest of Joseph Ratzinger's successor as Pope on the same charges; and to enforce the commercial lien and "Easter Reclamation Campaign" against the Roman Catholic church, as planned.

In closing, our Tribunal acknowledges that Pope Benedict's complicity in criminal activities of the Vatican Bank (IOR) was compelling his eventual dismissal by the highest officials of the Vatican. But according to our sources, Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone forced Joseph Ratzinger's resignation immediately, and in direct response to the diplomatic note concerning the arrest warrant that was issued to him by the said nation's government on February 4, 2013.

We call upon all citizens and governments to assist our efforts to legally and directly disestablish the Vatican, Inc. and arrest its chief officers and clergy who are complicit in crimes against humanity and the ongoing criminal conspiracy to aid and protect child torture and trafficking.

Further bulletins on the events of the Easter Reclamation Campaign will be issued by our Office this week.

Issued 13 February, 2013
12:00 am GMT
by the Brussels Central Office

If this is indeed true, we will see as the ITCCS states that they will pursue the indictment.

Interesting times we live in aye, folks!

Could this be the beginnings of the fall of Catholicism?

One question soap box man... Are you even a practicing Catholic??? If so then you have a right to your opinion. If not, dont get involved in other peoples buisness and let God take care of buisness

The ITCCS is not a recognized authority outside of its own self-importance. It has no authority to issue legal arrest warrants or hold trials. They are, simply put, drooling noise-makers. Pay them no mind.

As far as the fall of Catholicism - I'd see it more as the continuing renewal of Catholicism. It is always moving forward, despite what Evil throws at it.

Trust,

Proof please.

The Pope resigning is not unprecedented; Popes have quit before but not in recent times.

Debi,

The answer to your question is "no". The Church has gone through much tougher times than these. People sin; the Church endures.

People sin; the Church endures.

People sin, and the church sins. Cults such as catholicism don't last forever, thank god.

NC - Google search it. I don't know how legitimate this website is but this and a few others reported this about 16 hours ago: http://itccs.org/

Reaper M. Jones, don't give it any credence. The ITCCS also has an arrest warrant on Queen Elizabeth II for "Crimes Against Humanity". It is the work of one Kevin Arnett, who is about as nutty as they come. A nice title, "International Tribunal for Crimes of Church and State" - but no authority whatsoever.

Realistically - if there was an arrest warrant for Pope Benedict, and what the ITCCS is true, the mainstream media would have been all over it in a second. Yet do you find the story on BBC, CNN, MSNBC, even the Guardian? Of course not.

Wow, Debi, it must be difficult living with such hate in your heart. Did somebody in the church actually harm you, are are you just one of the enlightened atheists who regularly grace these pages with their vitriolic crap?

spider:

Since you have no knowledge of my history with the catholic church, your comment is as meaningless and empty as the head it twaddled from.

Hello folks, like I said time will tell on whether the Vatican will have to account for its misdeeds. As we all know pedophilia in the church has long been unaccounted for, perhaps the winds of change are churning up new evidence into this well known criminal enterprise.

Religion is just another method of controlling the masses all the while they steal your money and your children’s innocence. The sexual abuse that has been perpetrated by the Catholic Church on tens of thousands of innocent children is on a scale that lends itself so that even the casual observer has to wonder if it is an accepted ritual within the church. Many people come to the defense of the church stating that it is the celibate role that has lent itself to the wide spread abuse. If so, why are the majority of victims boys?

A study done by The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect found that even though only 25% of citizens in the U.S. are Roman Catholic, 54% of the sexual abuse cases were perpetrated by Catholic priests. The church has paid at least 2.6 billion to settle sexual abuse cases. In 2007 alone the Los Angeles Archdiocese on July 15 announced the largest church settlement of sexual abuse lawsuits to date, agreeing to pay more than 500 alleged victims a total of $660 million. The abuse continues and the wealthy Vatican is easily able to cover these claims. The Vatican even has insurance policies to cover these operating costs.

The minor victims of priest abuse are overwhelmingly boys and teenagers, which is
contrary to the pattern of abuse in the general population.

The problem is not just with the number of priests who molests young children, but in
a Vatican power structure which harbors and conceals pedophiles, hides other
sexual behavior patterns among its clerics and uses the strategies of duplicity
and counterattack against the victims.

Why is it that in most countries the Catholic Church doesn’t have to abide by the same laws that apply to other pedophiles and rapists? And why don’t Catholics see this atrocity as an integral part of their church?

Pedophile priests have molested innocent children in the Roman Catholic Church probably since the beginning of the church. These pedophiles have been protected and their horrendous crimes against children have gone unpunished. It is amazing to me that there are over a billion Catholics. I guess acceptance of pedophilia in the church is the cost of salvation!

An Irish Saint, and I do not remember his name predicted the end of times during the term of the 80th Pope. Care to guess what number the next pope will be. I for one don't believe in fairy tales nor predictions but the end of times for most catholics would be the end of the vatican. This last pope is no stranger to illegal activity it has been a part of his life his entire life,just read his bio.

St. Malachy?

benedictineacc:

Something other than age forced the pope to resign and not die in office, just as every other pope has done since the 14th Century.

In the end, Debi - it will only come down to speculation. The pope says he's tired and so has had enough - I will take what he says as is and thank him for his service as Vicar of Christ. Then I will look to the next pope and the upcoming papal election. Should be fun!

I respect the Pope's decision to 'step down'. I hope they elect someone who is healthy in mind, body and spirit. I would also like to point out that while there are 'subhuman' priests who prey on children there are many, many more who are truly spiritual people. I especially have a fondness for Benedictine nuns (Brede Abbey) and the Jesuits. Thomas Merton, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Father Damion and his work with lepers etc are wonderful examples of Catholicism at it's very best............

When it comes to bull@!$%#, big-time, major league bull@!$%#, you have to stand in awe of the all-time champion of false promises and exaggerated claims, religion. No contest. No contest. Religion. Religion easily has the greatest bull@!$%# story ever told. Think about it. Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man living in the sky who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever 'til the end of time!

But He loves you. He loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can't handle money! Religion takes in billions of dollars, they pay no taxes, and they always need a little more. Now, you talk about a good bull@!$%# story. Holy @!$%#!

But I want you to know something, this is sincere, I want you to know, when it comes to believing in God, I really tried. I really, really tried. I tried to believe that there is a God, who created each of us in His own image and likeness, loves us very much, and keeps a close eye on things. I really tried to believe that, but I gotta tell you, the longer you live, the more you look around, the more you realize, something is @!$%#ed up.

Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed. Results like these do not belong on the résumé of a Supreme Being. This is the kind of @!$%# you'd expect from an office temp with a bad attitude. And just between you and me, in any decently-run universe, this guy would've been out on his all-powerful ass a long time ago. And by the way, I say "this guy", because I firmly believe, looking at these results, that if there is a God, it has to be a man.

No woman could or would ever @!$%# things up like this. So, if there is a God, I think most reasonable people might agree that he's at least incompetent, and maybe, just maybe, doesn't give a @!$%#. Doesn't give a @!$%#, which I admire in a person, and which would explain a lot of these bad results.

So rather than be just another mindless religious robot, mindlessly and aimlessly and blindly believing that all of this is in the hands of some spooky incompetent father figure who doesn't give a @!$%#, I decided to look around for something else to worship. Something I could really count on.

And immediately, I thought of the sun. Happened like that. Overnight I became a sun-worshipper. Well, not overnight, you can't see the sun at night. But first thing the next morning, I became a sun-worshipper. Several reasons. First of all, I can see the sun, okay? Unlike some other gods I could mention, I can actually see the sun. I'm big on that. If I can see something, I don't know, it kind of helps the credibility along, you know? So everyday I can see the sun, as it gives me everything I need; heat, light, food, flowers in the park, reflections on the lake, an occasional skin cancer, but hey. At least there are no crucifixions, and we're not setting people on fire simply because they don't agree with us.

Sun worship is fairly simple. There's no mystery, no miracles, no pageantry, no one asks for money, there are no songs to learn, and we don't have a special building where we all gather once a week to compare clothing. And the best thing about the sun, it never tells me I'm unworthy. Doesn't tell me I'm a bad person who needs to be saved. Hasn't said an unkind word. Treats me fine. So, I worship the sun. But, I don't pray to the sun. Know why? I wouldn't presume on our friendship. It's not polite.

I've often thought people treat God rather rudely, don't you? Asking trillions and trillions of prayers every day. Asking and pleading and begging for favors. Do this, gimme that, I need a new car, I want a better job. And most of this praying takes place on Sunday His day off. It's not nice. And it's no way to treat a friend.

But people do pray, and they pray for a lot of different things, you know, your sister needs an operation on her crotch, your brother was arrested for defecating in a mall. But most of all, you'd really like to @!$%# that hot little redhead down at the convenience store. You know, the one with the eyepatch and the clubfoot? Can you pray for that? I think you'd have to. And I say, fine. Pray for anything you want. Pray for anything, but what about the Divine Plan?

Remember that? The Divine Plan. Long time ago, God made a Divine Plan. Gave it a lot of thought, decided it was a good plan, put it into practice. And for billions and billions of years, the Divine Plan has been doing just fine. Now, you come along, and pray for something. Well suppose the thing you want isn't in God's Divine Plan? What do you want Him to do? Change His plan? Just for you? Doesn't it seem a little arrogant? It's a Divine Plan. What's the use of being God if every run-down shmuck with a two-dollar prayerbook can come along and @!$%# up Your Plan?

And here's something else, another problem you might have: Suppose your prayers aren't answered. What do you say? "Well, it's God's will." "Thy Will Be Done." Fine, but if it's God's will, and He's going to do what He wants to anyway, why the @!$%# bother praying in the first place? Seems like a big waste of time to me! Couldn't you just skip the praying part and go right to His Will? It's all very confusing.

So to get around a lot of this, I decided to worship the sun. But, as I said, I don't pray to the sun. You know who I pray to? Joe Pesci. Two reasons: First of all, I think he's a good actor, okay? To me, that counts. Second, he looks like a guy who can get things done. Joe Pesci doesn't @!$%# around. In fact, Joe Pesci came through on a couple of things that God was having trouble with.

For years I asked God to do something about my noisy neighbor with the barking dog, Joe Pesci straightened that @!$%# out with one visit. It's amazing what you can accomplish with a simple baseball bat.

So I've been praying to Joe for about a year now. And I noticed something. I noticed that all the prayers I used to offer to God, and all the prayers I now offer to Joe Pesci, are being answered at about the same 50% rate. Half the time I get what I want, half the time I don't. Same as God, 50-50. Same as the four-leaf clover and the horseshoe, the wishing well and the rabbit's foot, same as the Mojo Man, same as the Voodoo Lady who tells you your fortune by squeezing the goat's testicles, it's all the same: 50-50. So just pick your superstition, sit back, make a wish, and enjoy yourself.

And for those of you who look to The Bible for moral lessons and literary qualities, I might suggest a couple of other stories for you. You might want to look at the Three Little Pigs, that's a good one. Has a nice happy ending, I'm sure you'll like that. Then there's Little Red Riding Hood, although it does have that X-rated part where the Big Bad Wolf actually eats the grandmother. Which I didn't care for, by the way. And finally, I've always drawn a great deal of moral comfort from Humpty Dumpty. The part I like the best? "All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty Dumpty back together again." That's because there is no Humpty Dumpty, and there is no God. None, not one, no God, never was.

In fact, I'm gonna put it this way. If there is a God, may he strike this audience dead! See? Nothing happened. Nothing happened? Everybody's okay? All right, tell you what, I'll raise the stakes a little bit. If there is a God, may he strike me dead. See? Nothing happened, oh, wait, I've got a little cramp in my leg. And my balls hurt. Plus, I'm blind. I'm blind, oh, now I'm okay again, must have been Joe Pesci, huh? God Bless Joe Pesci. Thank you all very much. Joe Bless You!

Compliments of Mr. George Carlin. RIP

Berlusconi is one of those floating turds that needs to be flushed several times. And that Guy upstairs (or Gal) needs to see this turd flushed.

what the hell. No mushrooms?

? Has either of them been accused of "liking little boys"? Or do you just think all Catholics do?

Mifo, save your breath. Idiots like these are not capable of "thinking" anything rational....they just repeat crap they hear from other idiots.

Over 600 million in payouts to the victims. Sometimes you have to ask who the idiots are

make that billions in payouts, global,systemic abuse, massive coverup by the church leaders, many decades long, thousands of children molested..... and Ratzinger was in charge of protecting the church.

catholics like to ignore this... it isnt easy for them to wrap their clay molded minds around.

The Roman Catholic Church is an International Crime Syndicate.

Good to hear from the other side of the pond. These "news" forums are just propaganda outlets now.

I have to say that between the NBC "propoganda" that explains point-by-point why and how these events are unfolding, and your vague, unsupported assertion that Berlusconi's leadership is "strong", I find the report far more persuasive and likely. And what exactly was "politically incorrect" about the report?

If you're going to defend Silvio, then defend him, don't just lash out at news stories that reflect poorly on him. You're not doing your side any favors.

Dear SF accountant,

is not my target to defend any Italian politicians here. Am just tired of reading what I believe being wrong information about the political situation in my country.

I wanted to reply to Mr Jamieson as follow:

Am reading newspaper from both the 2 major banks and, till now, you are the only one connecting the Pope resignation and the run of a popular politician as Silvio Berlusconi is.

As far as I know, Church was supporting Mr Monti and not Mr Berlusconi.

My impression is that you wanted just to have both of them in the same article to let it be more "interesting" and let the American readers get info about both of them at the same time.

Am sorry but, there's no evidence on what you write and, once again, maybe this is the reason why, you are the only one having this opinion.

Brgds

No Body Cares.

I care.

Couldn't agree more. The thing that bothers me most about Catholicism is the blatant disregard of the 2nd Commandment. (statues of saint this and saint that, that people pray to) You're right about the confessional thing. "Forgive me Father for I have sinned, bla bla bla". "That's ok my son. Say a thousand Hail Marys and you will be forgiven. Leave something in the collection box on your way out and I'll see you next week." WTF.

captn curtass, you should know it doesn't work like that. Or since you think this, you never really knew, or know, the Catholic Faith. And please, don't say, "I went to Catholic School and was an altar boy, etc. etc. etc. I know what I'm talking about!" WTF indeed.

The confessional thing was tongue in cheek. But how do you explain the statues of the saints that people do indeed pray to? I went to public school but did attend Sunday school at the Highland Ave. Congregational Church in Orange, N.J. , sang in the choir and was a member of the youth group from first grade thru 8th. When I was 13 a majority of my friends were Catholic and were going to Catechism so I asked my mother what our religion had in that respect and there was nothing. We went across the street to the church and talked to the Minister and I started doing Bible studies with him a couple days a week after school (without being molested) and after several weeks took a test and became a member of the church. During all that time and all the bible studies, I never once came across the passage where God or Jesus told anyone to make people saints and create statues of them and pray to them. I also never saw the passage where God or Jesus ever told anyone to elect a Pope and Bishops and Cardinals and Priests and Nuns. I did learn that I didn't have to go to church to talk to god. I could do that at the side of my bed or just about anywhere I chose. Church was no longer necessary for me so I left it behind. Some people need that sort of thing and some people don't. The bible studies also told me that I was created in the image of God. The two main things that I took away from all of this are that; a. All religions past present and future, were, are and will be created by man. Christianity started out as a way of life. Man made it a religion. b. After thinking about it for several years, I came to the realization that since I look like God and he looks like me (the created in his image part) then maybe to not have faith in God is to not have faith in yourself. Well let me assure you that I have faith in myself and my ability control my own life and destiny. There is no one up there anywhere waving a magic wand and controlling people's destiny. One more thing, all Christians pretty much read the same Holy Bible, right? But what version is it? The God version, the Jesus version....no, it's the (all together now) King James version. There you have it. God didn't write the Bible. Man did, and that's that.

ps; Have a good day my friend.

Statues are not prayed to. In the end, they are just statues.

The Catholic Church is against scientific progress? Have you told the Vatican Observatory, or the numerous Catholic hospitals and research universities about this? Considering Fr. Georges LeMaitre (Catholic priest, Astrophysicist, and developer of the Big Bang Theory) and Fr. Gregor Mendel (Genetics), I have to question your post.

The Integral - your post sounds more like you are really angry and confused. You have a right to be - considering the trauma your wife has been through. Just remember, God gives us choices in life, He allows us to follow paths. Our lives are like mazes filled with good and filled with bad. What makes a true Christian is how you handle those good and bad times. Getting to Heaven is not an easy task; it is so hard, and so filled with trials and tribulations. I am so sorry about your wife, I hope she is in remission now, but if you make life here on Earth your Hell, then shame on you. Enjoy every second that is Good and thank God for the good. He will help you through the bad too if you let Him and ask Him to. I have suffered so much tradegy too. I treasure every day that I get to wake up and I thank God and I try to always be happy.

benedictineacc,

Are you actually saying that the Roman Catholic Church is a pro-science organization? Really?

The history of the Roman Catholic Church is against science. Ask Galileo about that. Anyone who does not agree with the ludicrous Church teachings is a heretic.

Science - a derivative of scio - to know.

Science says that the answers can be found through research and discovery.

The Roman Catholic Church says that all of the answers were written two thousand years ago when your man talked to God.

Remember your history - when the Roman Catholic Church was dominant it was called the Dark Ages - and with good reason.

Remember - your Gothic churches have no foundation. The people who built them were afraid that they would fall into Hell with the next turn of the shovel.

Remember - your Catholic Church looked the other way when Hitler was murdering millions of innocent Jews.

The history of the Roman Catholic Church is very dark. Rich Popes and Cardianls; while the minions live in poverty.

Good luck with trying to characterize the Roman Catholic Church as a pro-science organization.

Perhaps you should launch another Inquisition to find the Truth.

Here is a question for you: can you please prove that "Life After Death" is something other than a way to extract money out of the minions? Please be specific. Some scientific evidence would help your case a lot. If you cannot prove life after death, then to say that the Roman Catholic church believes in science is hypocrisy in its purest form.

Then how do you explain Georges LeMaitre, Gregor Mendel, the Vatican Observatories in Arizona and Italy, the Catholic research universities, hospitals, the prestigious Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and so on?

Galileo was not condemned for what he discovered. Even the Church accepted what Copernicus had taught decades earlier. It did, however, caution him about implying theological matters to what he was teaching, since he had no knowledge to do so. When he would not stop, they silenced him. Consider the times he lived in, and consider that we know better now. Regardless, Pope John Paul II apologized for the way the Church treated him, and so acknowledges it could have been better.

Life after death cannot be scientifically proven. The Church makes no claims that it can.

The Catholic Church did not look the other way while Hitler murdered millions. Consider how many Catholics were killed in this war, including bishops and many priests and religious brothers and nuns. Think before you type, please. And Pope Pius XII - the slander against him "not doing anything" is completely false and very irresponsible. I would recommend to you a book, "The Myth of Hiter's Pope" by Rabbi David Dalin. You can find it on amazon.

The Catholic Church was indeed dominant (at least in the West) during the Dark Ages. Consider how badly civilization had collapsed after the Fall of Rome, as well as disease, war, and invasions from both the muslims and the vikings - be thankful the Church was there to maintain order and uphold what little was left of society in those times. Consider also that the universities of Europe were founded during this time by way of the Benedictine monasteries. You should be thankful for this, Integral.

The Roman Catholic Church makes no claim that "all the answers" were written two thousand years ago. If you can cite this in the Catechism of the Catholic Church or in the Book of Canon Law, then please do so. And "your man talked to God"??? That is weird.

I do not know about the Gothic Cathedrals. I do know they are still standing and look really nice.

Again, what about Georges LeMaitre and Gregor Mendel? Two Catholic priests who found major discoveries in science. Did they get burned at the stake? No, in fact the Church honors them very highly.

Integral, you claim to be a man of science, yet your words betray you. There is no reason in your words, only hysteria and disturbing hate. I actually feel sorry for your wife. Please, get some knowledge, and don't embarrass yourself online again.

Italy and the Vatican are two independent entities; neither has real authority - and thus, cannot "clean up" - the other.

The Integral

Walter,

The Bible does not meet the criteria of being scientific. It is not even close. That is why it is called religion, not science.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Shouldn't you be asking for Biblical proof-
if your science was any good at all you could tell me what caused the Big Bang, since you can't you have no argument.
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