Is the Pope a Catholic?

I read this article on the BBC website today, about the Pope worrying that the church might have to start appointing gay people to senior positions. You see I wasn't aware that there was such a ban. I just thought there was a requirement for all clergy (except for married ex Church of England Vicars) to be Celibate, be they gay or straight.

I've no idea if it's true, but years ago, I was told that historically, the Priesthood was seen as a good career for gay Catholics. There was a good reason for this. Priests traditionally are most likely to come into our lives at times of great stress, when we are emotionally vulnerable. Historically with the man of the house going off to fight wars or spending long days working, a Priest who was heterosexual would find himself in a position of huge temptation and with ample opportunity to take advantage of it. Society was far more comfortable with a priesthood who were "not interested". Who knows what they got up to elsewhere? I don't see it as our business one way or the other, so long as they were providing a service to the community.

To this day, many Priests have problems with Alcohol. I happen to believe that this is often due to the unbearable stress of sexual frustration and associated guilt. If I had to lead a celibate life, I'm sure I'd have drunk myself to death years ago. There are many aspects of equality which many people are uncomfortable with. For example, I am far from convinced that the legislation which forced the Catholic Adoption agency to stop placing children, due to the requirement to treat gay couples equally, really was something which benefitted society, especially when there were plenty of agencies which were available and provided the service. Would I have a case for discrimination if I approached a specialist gay dating agency and demanded that they fix me up with a woman? I'm a Roman Catholic, my children have been brought up in the faith, but as I married in a registry office and didn't receive a Church blessing, I don't take communion. I don't feel discriminated against for this. It's the rules of the club.

Society has a bizarre attitude to sex. England may change captains, because the current one chose to put his plonker where it shouldn't have gone. Tiger Woods has lost millions of pounds worth of sponsorship for his "virility". The news is full of stories of other footballers with "super injunctions". To be honest, I don't care what people do in their own homes, behind closed doors, so long as it is consensual and between adults. It's none of my business. I'd much rather the Pope trusted us and allowed us to follow our conscience in these matters. If someone says one thing and then does something else, that is an issue, but if they just get on with their job, who cares. In the good old days, you'd hear old biddies on street corners saying "Oh, that Fr O'Murphy, he's a lovely man" and you know full well what they meant. No one cared.

Is the Pope a Catholic? I do wonder sometimes.

Tomorrow's great question : Does the bear crap in the woods?