@John: Are you the guy who played the organ at Knock? If so, you are a legend!!!

careful now.

another troll

Love the hell goggles…. They’ll definitely protect your eyes in the eternal furnace!

To be fair the Church is more than institution.

The abuse of Children is not a reason to reject Christianity. An analysis of the bible and whether you believe God exists or not are the reasons people should or should not attend these things.

You are confusing Christianity with Catholicism; by all means be Christian, follow the bible if you wish but if you are catholic, you are part of he institution that abused children, covered it up and thinks that a sorry will make it go away.

So what your saying is that the 80k people who turned up today support the abuse of children in the past by members of the church. I’m not a strong catholic by any means but please stop lumping all those who are into the same category as the abusers. Yes the leadership of the church has a lot of questions to answer but the practising of religion is not outlawed or wrong. Aim your comments at the abusers.

@john – that’s very Christian of you

@Tom Leddy
I wouldn’t say the 80k who turned up support the abuse of children as such but while Sean Brady is the head of the church in this country they are at best turning a blind eye to someone who was part of the reason abuse was allowed to continue and be covered up for so long.
It’s very difficult to aim comments at the abusers as it’s impossible to know who they are, and its only the church who can put that right.
Sean Brady keeping the position that he does hardly shows a church being open and willing to take full responsibility for its actions.

@David Higgins,

I notice journal.ie had sense in telling you to change your post. We all have our beliefs and reasons for leaving a post on this article. Most of us have restrained ourselves in the way we’ve written our posts. Maybe you should have read your last post before writing it. You might do that in future. Whether you used F@#king in place of the proper spelling earlier it’s still disrespectful especially on this article.

Well said Paul.

I just cannott comprehend how the catholic doctrine can attract such a massive crowd in consideration of the most heinous acts they have committed.
Let me remind you: They have sexually/physically and mentally abused and tortured worldwide.
It disturbes me to think that some people have either no pride, a short memory or are simply brainwashed by the popes cunning and deceptive tactics to herd his flock.

@Paul Anthony Ward

I sometimes agree with your posts and sometimes enjoy them, but unfortunately the one above I do not like. Number one, which is not the most important is what you called ‘the negative types’. I’m one of them and I’m proud. I was brought up a catholic by my parents. Two great people R.I.P. They would be your mother’s generation and many from that generation accepted a lot, sometimes out of fear. I know and can guarantee they would be two very sad people if they were alive today.

I brought my two children up on strict rules. Three things were and are very important to me. Respect, tell the truth and try not to judge people. Unfortunately, I find myself breaking my third rule in this case. I find the Vatican, Pope, the RCC vile and incomprehensible for what they, as a religion, have done to many, many children in the world. They have killed their souls. They have put them in hell, to suffer pain for the rest of their lives. I don’t think the saying ‘suffer little children’ was to mean that they be buggered, raped, molested, made to give oral sex to priests, christian brothers (some).

The very fact that many, many Popes knew that this was going on and for hundreds of years they believed and still believe that they are above the law, it’s like they are claiming diplomatic immunity. I don’t do religion but I would be very spiritual in my own way. I cannot even imagine what this people go through every day in their lives, to be treated less than a dog on the street, and to be ignored like they don’t exist is despicable.

I guess if you have been braiwashed then it makes for a nice day out and good photos.I on the other hand am a victim of abuse and consider the whole idea of this to be in extremely bad taste.

Sheila Byrne.
Well expressed comment.

@ Sheila
I can’t believe that anyone has given a red thumb to your comment. You were not provoking a reaction, just airing a well thought out point. Makes you wonder just how “Christian” some of these do-gooders are???

I think you’ll find your suggestions have already been tried, we called them Marxism, Fascism and de Reich. No God, no religion, no respect for life.

@Paddy Scully

Your message was written to Max but in fact you are aiming it at many people including me. I am not a fascist, or nazi. I do believe that many of the wars that have been fought in the world has involved religion of all types. Individuals that were ‘head’ of those religions thinking that their’s were better than the next one. Nobody owns any country they live in. We live on this earth, to enjoy it, to be happy to experience the fantastic wonders of it, to learn and share. I am not religious but I do believe in equality and respect.

The vatican does not believe in either.

Religion is the cause of most hatred in this world, it breeds hate and discrimination.

I have no religion,no one in my family have any religion. Are you saying we have no respect for life? Religion is the cause of some of the most brutal,violent and horrific acts in history and as for the child abuse? I feel torn apart sometimes when I read about the pain and suffering people,CHILDREN go through!
“no religion,no respect for life” what a ridiculous and ignorant comment to make. Take the bloody blinkers off

Actually Paddy, Fascism was predominantly a Catholic movement. In Italy, Spain and Croatia it explicitly involved clerics from the Catholic church in it’s administrations. Father Tiso, a serving priest, was head of the Fascist regime of Slovakia.
Hitler was a Catholic, and never renounced his faith. The 1st treaty he signed with a foreign power was with the Vatican, giving control of schools in Bavaria to the church in exchange for the dissolution of the catholic centre party.
The greatest achievement of the Roman Catholic is the extraordinary amnesia it has afflicted the world with, and the propaganda with which it has rewritten history.

Paddy,
Thankfully it is possible to have a God and respect for life without having to support a religion especially one as corrupt as the catholic church.

Max it is great to hear from someone knowledgable on the subject matter who can correct the likes of Paddy who looks through Catholic rose-tinted glasses. Is that what the nuns taught you in school Paddy? That fascism and nazism had nothing to do with religion? Hmm, God help us all!

And just were do you think everything came from ??

Wow! The responses to a catholic view are always fierce here. And usually the same respondents. My point is not that people without religion are incapable of good, my beliefs tell me we all have that good character in us (made in the image and likeness etc.). But a lack of a religious belief or the turning away from beliefs leads to hatred. Hitler killed 6m Jews and 5m Catholics, because he had a better way and religion was not part of his agenda. Stalin murdered millions based on his non/anti religious beliefs. I hear an echo of “religion is the opium of the people” in many of your replies.
I am a free mind, the chant that I and my kin are brainwashed, is a hollow way of saying your stupid and I’m bright, so I win.
The reason few of faith would give their views here is because it appears to draw out the worst from people. But it is no harm for a few of us just to say, no matter what you believe, God loves you, and the door is always open.

Paddy, you are spouting the most ignorant tripe that I’ve ever read on TheJournal.ie, and that is really saying something.

Not anything you have said has any basis in fact nor supporting proof for it. Then again, concepts such as facts and evidence really are lost on the religious, aren’t they?

@ Wolfgang Weisen
Just let me say I don’t consider you ignorant. Your idea of facts however are things that agree with your world perspective. The joys of relativism.
I don’t know enough about Tiso to comment, but looks like like a bad sort. Unfortunately many educated by the church, showed their true colours later in life. This is why there is a restriction on priests entering politics. This is also why the church clamped down on liberation theology, which was a distortion of the churches social teachings, but with Marxist traits.
You mentioned the Spanish civil war, it’s worth mentioning that 6000 catholic priests were murdered in the strife because they were priests. So hate towards Catholics is nothing new.
Many Catholics, and nominal Catholics, have done grave wrongs; but the list of good deeds stretches much further.

thank god for Darwin

Staying out of the religious debate – I really like Julian Behal’s photo journalist work.

@Celtic Lady

The sad thing I see in all of this is people like David Higgins calling people like me rude names and getting angry with me and many others. He should be aiming his anger at the Vatican if he had any thought for those victims. Ignoring the pain that these people are going through is so sad. Yes, there were a few people there today but they too are encouraging this ‘diplomatic immunity’ the vatican think they are entitled to.

Enda Kenny, I don’t care if he is the Taoiseach at the moment is encouraging this also. It’s just so wrong, so wrong.

Get a life? Ha ha

Why do our leaders have to make an appearance at this idiotic gig?

Brainwashed when they were children. Very hard to break

I understand people having faith in something. But organised religion that has such a horrendous history from its very beginning well it’s baffling.

I thought it was Fr Romeo Sensini,12 time capped Vatican over 75s footballer

I thought the 80,000 figure came from the number of tickets sold? Croke Park can hold about 87,000 so that would allow for 7000 empty seats anyway. And that’s not counting the people who were seated on the pitch.

I know at least one elderly Catholic lady who either bought or was given a ticket but watched it on TV instead (and still went to Bingo that night incidentally….) So I’m not sure just using the number of tickets as the attendance figure is accurate.

P.