Atheist Dawkins unjustly abuses all the world's Catholics with this comment

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
12/28/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

Incendiary atheist will say anything to get attention.

According to the infamous atheist, Richard Dawkins, growing up Catholic is a form of child abuse worse than sexual abuse. Go ahead and reread that, and let it sit for awhile.

Dawkins is typically angry when it comes to religion.

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LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Dawkins made his outrageous claim in an interview on Al Jazeera. His interviewer, Mehdi Hasan asked him to clarify previous comments he has made that religion equates to child abuse. Dawkins explained, "Horrible as sexual abuse no doubt was, the damage was arguably less than the long-term psychological damage inflicted by bringing the child up Catholic in the first place."

Hasan followed up, "You believe that being bought up as a Catholic is worse than being abused by a priest?"

Dawkins answered, "There are shades of being abused by a priest, and I quoted an example of a woman in America who wrote to me saying that when she was seven years old she was sexually abused by a priest in his car. At the same time a friend of hers, also seven, who was of a Protestant family, died, and she was told that because her friend was Protestant she had gone to Hell and will be roasting in Hell forever. She told me of those two abuses, she got over the physical abuse; it was yucky but she got over it. But the mental abuse of being told about Hell, she took years to get over."

Astoundingly, based on this single comment from a rightfully angry, tragically abused woman, Dawkins has concluded that being raised Catholic is worse than being sexually abused.

His colleagues as well as several British politicians and personalities have distanced themselves from Dawkins, repudiating his comments.

The greatest condemnation appears to be coming from victims of sexual abuse. Recovery from sexual abuse can last a lifetime, and some people never manage to cope with the trauma.

Meanwhile, the vast majority of people who are raised Catholic enjoy happy and fulfilling lives, and are not abused in any way.

While there is no question that Hell is a place of eternal punishment, it is a place of choice, where individuals choose to go by their actions. Specifically, by rejecting God and practicing mortal sin without repentance.

The Catholic Church offers salvation and a path to eternal life and union with God. How can this be abuse?

It isn't.

The simple fact is Richard Dawkins is a very angry man who will say anything he can to stand in the limelight. Even if his comments are abusive to the one billion plus Catholics on Earth.

� 2012, Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Atheist, Dawkins, abuse, Catholic, comment

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1 - 10 of 46 Comments

melony
4 months ago
I'm not a Catholic, but I do enjoy reading in this site. It's encouraging to read the posts of so many devoted people who are willing to stand against the tide of evil that's attacking religion these days. Coming from the UK, it's doubly appreciated. Just wanted to say thank you.
Angele
5 months ago
We give undue importance to M. Dawkins and feed his narcissism
When we make an uproar ... this is his goal
Our comments only fuel his abuses
So please ignore him
Eventually he will drown in his own negativity
Mathew
5 months ago
An aetheist on Aljaseera criticizing Catholic Church or any other churches!! He need an audience and most probably he is going to publish a book in the near future. Being an aetheist doesnot give him the right to propagate false acccusations against the church belief.It would have been better if he commented after stuydying about Christianity and Catholic Church.I see a day when he repent and come back to faith and baptized in a catholic church. He need lots of prayers keep him in your prayers.
Geraldine
5 months ago
May God have mercy on your soul Richard Dawkins.
Sam
5 months ago
Dr. Dawkins seem to be very much lacking in both basic reasoning and Catholic theology.
Maybe he should also warn parents not to teach their kids about fire since it can burn and kill people (thus cause trauma to kids), or stranger danger as they can harm you, etc.
As for someone saying a protestant girl went to hell because she was a protestant, the Catholic Church has never proclaimed any particular human is in hell and never will (she has declared many saints, and does say going to hell is a choice made by man, and many have made that choice, but does not assume to know who is in hell) as she is like her Master, is in the bushiness of salvation.
Lorenzo Gomez
5 months ago
It seems that Mr. Dawkins sputes comments for people with an IQ bellow 80 and on the borderline of being an imbecile; perhaps one should look at him really close and judge him to be so himself. Christ never said you must be Catholic in order to go achieve salvation . . . how could He? . . . Catholicism was shaped centuries later. What He DID say was " No one goes to the Father except through me" ; so one would assume that any Christian who follows his commandments and repents before death does have a good opportunity to achieve salvation. As far as Mr. Dawkins cockeyed story about a young girl being abused by a priest it may or may not have happened and if it did pity the man that did it when he dies.
Gabriella
5 months ago
On the other hand, when people like Dawkins speak up, it forces those who take their religion seriously to look closely at their belief, thus strengthening their Faith.
Dawkins, and people like him, cannot abuse anyone's Faith is we do not let him by not taking him seriously but praying for his conversion.
judy claar
5 months ago
Tom, Interesting post. How come it was printed?

Perhaps they are telling you indirectly, that you may need a few re-writes? Prayerful Blessings...
james
5 months ago
Dawkins hates all christianity. He hates protestantism as much as catholic christians. The reality is on the hell issue is all who believe in Jesus that he died for them and rose again are saved. It is an internal act of faith and nothing else. This is the Biblical truth Jesus died once and for all and all who believe in Him are saved.
Tom
5 months ago
Paul-Emile Leray - this Web site does it too. I would love to answer any all questions posed here but this site refuses to post them. It's a waste of time and unproductive when only one opinion is allowed. I refuse to waste anymore time on this site. Enjoy your closed minded thread. This of course will be edited as well.

Tom

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