Rabbi to pope: Use family dinners to defuse abuse crisis

[Liberal_in_LA]

Rabbi to pope: Use family dinners to defuse abuse crisis

By Dan Gilgoff, CNN
April 28, 2010 8:25 p.m. EDT

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach pitched his family dinners initiative to the pope as a way to defuse the sex abuse crisis.

(CNN) -- A rabbi walks into St. Peter's Square, meets the pope, and tells the Holy Father that one way to defuse the sex abuse scandal plaguing the church is for the Vatican to begin promoting a secular version of Shabbat dinner, the traditional Jewish Friday meal.

It's no joke.

A prominent American rabbi, Shmuley Boteach, spoke briefly to Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday about encouraging parents to eat dinner with their children as a way for the Vatican to re-establish its pro-family image, which has been battered by the priest sex abuse scandal, Boteach said.

The brief exchange came after the pope's regular Wednesday address at the Vatican, during which Boteach was seated on a dais along with other Vatican guests. When he met Benedict on a receiving line afterward, Boteach pitched him on his family dinner initiative, called "Turn Friday Night into Family Night."

"I said ... 'If the church embraces an initiative like this, which is positive, it could put a lot of the scandal behind it,'" Boteach said, recounting his chat with the pope. "People will see the church doesn't just speak about opposition to gay marriage and abortion

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/04/28/vatican.abuse.rabbi/index.html?hpt=T2

[JerseygirlCT]

1. This scandal won't be put behind them until they show sincere

contrition and seek reconciliation.

So far, there's a lot of the sort of "I'm sorry you feel that way" BS instead of genuine apology and restitution.

[Bluebear]

2. Yes, Shmuley, a nice homecooked meal will mitigate all the sexual abuse.

[RainDog]

3. I'd say settlements for damages in the trillions would help the church's image

admission of their guilt, of their WILLFUL decision to put children in danger, of their refusal to accept responsibility for the horrific and life-long damage their policies have had on the abused...

that would help.

those who choose to put their children in danger by continuing affiliation with an institution that shelters pedophiles, blames the victims, seeks to make women second-class citizens, and demonstrates over and over a doctrine of hate toward homosexuals need more than a family dinner to fix what's ailing them.

[RainDog]

4. one good thing about this suggestion, tho. it shows Jewish religious leaders are as stupid

as christian ones.