Bishop Richard Williamson – Holocaust Denier

February 8, 2009 By mario piperni

Bishop Richard Williamson - Holocaust Denier

It will be interesting to see how Pope Benedict deals with the case of Bishop Richard Williamson in that it will say much of how far the Catholic Church has, or has not, evolved.

In January, Williamson had his 1988 excommunication lifted by Pope Benedict. In an interview last month Williamson revealed that he is a Holocaust denier. His claim is that gas chambers did not exist and that only 200,000 Jews were killed by the Nazis and not the 6 million the world believes.

Bishop Williamson is an ultra-conservative Catholic with antiquated beliefs. Aside from being a Holocaust denier, here is a list of some of his other beliefs.

Jews are enemies of Christ and urges them to convert to Catholicism.
Jews are partially responsible for the “changes and corruption” in the Catholic Church.
Jews seek world domination.
Opposes women attending university.
Women should not wear trousers or shorts.
He is quoted as saying, “A woman can do a good imitation of handling ideas, but then she will not be thinking properly as a woman.”
The US government was behind the September 11 attack.

For his part, Pope Benedict is now asking Williamson to recant his beliefs on the Holocaust before the Church allows his full reinstatement. Williamson has responded by saying he is not ready to do so and must restudy the evidence of the Holocaust – a process, he says, which “will take time“.

The hypocrisy of the Catholic Church to even consider allowing a nutcase like Bishop Williamson back into the Catholic Church is beyond belief. If the Church is to retain any of the credibility of which it is so lacking, it will be in how it deals with situations like the one it now faces with Williamson. Anything but outright repudiation of the man and his immoral beliefs would be a sin.

Comments

Jill says:

February 9, 2009 at 12:33 am

I agree. Williamson, who is one of four to have had their excommunication lifted, should have been excluded from the rehabilitation bestowed by Pope Benedict. The Pope certainly has an agenda but at what cost?

I read in Associated Press Writer Alessandra Rizzo’s article that:

“…Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Williamson’s views were “absolutely indefensible.” But he denied that rehabilitating Williamson implied that the Vatican shared them…”

“…They are his personal ideas … that we certainly don’t share but they have nothing to do with the issue of the excommunication and the removal of the excommunication, Lombardi told AP Television News…”

I also read:

“…While Williamson’s comments may be offensive and erroneous, they are not an excommunicable offense, said Monsignor Robert Wister, professor of church history at Immaculate Conception School of Theology at Seton Hall University in New Jersey.

“To deny the Holocaust is not a heresy even though it is a lie,” he said. “The excommunication can be lifted because he is not a heretic, but he remains a liar…”

WELL !!! I guess the Vatican needs to defend itself but I think that if ever there was a time to recognize that there are exceptions to the rules, this is one of them. If the Church’s interest is to bridge the gap between traditional and liberal catholics, here is it’s chance. Nay to lifting the excommunication for Bishop Richard Williamson.
mario says:

February 9, 2009 at 2:06 am

I don’t believe the Church can ever bridge the gap you refer to but I don’t blame any one individual. I just think that the Catholic Church…or for that matter, any religion…are by the very nature of what they are, forced to exist within the confines of a dogma which does not lend itself easily to adaptation in a modern world.

But hey, I’m an atheist so don’t take my word for it.
jose says:

April 27, 2009 at 12:31 am

It doesn’t really matter what the popes and bishops hold dear. the catholic church is just another cultic faith of the queen of heaven and is therefore an enemy of the G-D of Israel. Ever heard of “BABYLON THE GREAT” of the Book of Revelation fame. That is the church.
church (word)= kirche = Circe (the queen of heaven)
maria sofia says:

April 27, 2009 at 9:34 am

Enemy or not of Israel as you state, it is just another religion… another way of people to unite to get strength from one another… but my spiritualness does not allow me to honor gods or the God that many proclaim in the Torah, the Bible, the Koran, or any literary representations supporting their “religious” inclinations or beliefs.
It was me! says:

May 14, 2009 at 2:08 pm

The Catholics are more interested in flying their Catholic flag higher than JC himself, in contrast to any true interest in insuring anyone is interested in Christ. Their version of Christ serves the Catholic church … They twist the suffering image decade by decade to corner people like less than human subjects (referred to as sheep in a flock) into submission to an absolutely idiotic concoction of a belief system. Gregory was a freakin’ homo idiot. And even today, actually parading around wearing gold hats – and swinging gold images of crosses like a psychologist’s hypnotic pendulum of suasion while children starve blind in this world. Cult – mind altering cult practices. Wonder why the Catholic Church embraced Hitler’s Germany? Don’t think too hard on that one. The day the Catholic Church ends will be a good day for any true God – those people use their ‘version’ of God to do nothing other than manipulate. Look at history … get real!
CelticPrincess says:

May 14, 2009 at 3:54 pm

I won’t argue with much of what you’ve written. For the most part, I agree. But I am not sure that any other organized religion is any better. Religion by its very nature is a narrow-minded, self-serving belief which leaves little room for other interpretations.