Wikileaks: The Pope and the heart of darkness

Posted by Brenda Norrell - August 30, 2011 at 2:23 pm

By Brenda Norrell

US diplomatic cables from the Vatican Embassy expose the rape of nuns by priests and the Pope's downplaying of the sexual abuse of minors by priests. Another cable released by Wikileaks exposes the Vatican's secret support for the war in Iraq.

Further, the Catholic Church's labeling of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as a "dangerous" leftist is revealed in a cable from the Vatican Embassy.

The force of the Wikileaks cables are accentuated by the fact that the Catholic Church stressed the need for secrecy, fearing a backlash if the truth of its agenda became known.

The Wikileaks cables exposing the Pope's stance on the sexual abuse by priests was revealed in the Namibian news forum: http://namibian.me/forum/topics/wikileaks-looking-into-the-heart-the-vatican

On the use of force in Iraq, a diplomatic cable from the US Embassy at the Vatican states the Vatican's support of the use of force in Iraq is critical to gaining global support for the war in Iraq. The Ambassador also stresses the need to keep it a secret, revealing that the Vatican expects a backlash if the truth is known. The cable is dated Sept. 28, 2001:

http://wikileaks.org/cable/2001/09/01VATICAN5095.html#par3 

"THE VATICAN IS FIRMLY CONVINCED THAT ANY REGIME WHICH REPLACES THE CURRENT ONE WILL NOT BE AS SUPPORTIVE OF THE LARGE IRAQI CATHOLIC POPULATION.  IN ADDITION, EVEN IF POSSIBLE MILITARY ACTION IS DIRECTED ONLY AGAINST AFGHANISTAN, THE VATICAN IS GREATLY CONCERNED WITH A BACKLASH AGAINST CATHOLICS (AND OTHER CHRISTIANS) LIVING IN EGYPT, SYRIA, IRAQ, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES, AND LEBANON."

A separate cable concerning President Chavez is from the US Embassy at the Vatican and is dated Dec. 23, 2005. This summary begins the cable:

http://wikileaks.org/cable/2005/12/05VATICAN562.html#par1 

 The Ambassador shared ref (a) points on Venezuela's nefarious influence in the region with Holy See internal affairs chief (Vatican number three) Archbishop Leonardo Sandri December ¶17.  Some points were news to Sandri, but he was not surprised and said he shared U.S. concerns about Chavez and other leftist leaders in Latin America.  An interlocutor from the Vatican MFA as well told the Ambassador that he and his superiors were wary of connections among these leaders.  Neither prelate thought the Vatican would become more aggressive in speaking out against these figures, both because of recent history and the potential for a backlash against the Church.

  

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About Brenda Norrell

Brenda Norrell has been a news reporter in Indian country for 30 years. She is publisher of Censored News, focusing on Indigenous Peoples, human rights and the US border. Now censored by the mainstream media, she previously was a staff reporter at numerous American Indian newspapers and a stringer for AP, USA Today and others. She lived on the Navajo Nation for 18 years, and then traveled with the Zapatistas. She covered the climate summits in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Cancun, Mexico, in 2010.

http://www.bsnorrell.blogspot.com/
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About Brenda Norrell

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Brenda Norrell has been a news reporter in Indian country for 30 years. She is publisher of Censored News, focusing on Indigenous Peoples, human rights and the US border. Now censored by the mainstream media, she previously was a staff reporter at numerous American Indian newspapers and a stringer for AP, USA Today and others. She lived on the Navajo Nation for 18 years, and then traveled with the Zapatistas. She covered the climate summits in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Cancun, Mexico, in 2010.