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The Magdalene Sisters + The Catholic Church


After watching The Magdalene Sisters (DVD) and seeing interviews of some of the women who lived there my heart goes out to them. I don't mean to take away from the harm that was done to many but I don't feel his movie portrays the entirety of the Magdalene Asylums. I believe some good came from places like this. You need to take into consideration the place and time. This does not excuse anyone just to put things in perspective. Reading all of the comments seems like there is just a blanket response that The Catholic Church is very corrupt. Which is not true. The Catholic Church has done more good in the world than any other institution in the world.

Jim

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That is true...

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I don't feel his movie portrays the entirety of the Magdalene Asylums.
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I think it does.

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I believe some good came from places like this.
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I believe NO good came from places like this.

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I am forced to agree. As a believing Roman Catholic, I am ashamed such places existed. They were a disgrace to the Church and a crime against humanity, let alone a mortal sin against God.

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No. Simply no.

Torture is torture, abuse is abuse, imprisonment is imprisonment and these "methods" are contrary to the foundations of the Christian belief, i.e. "Love your neighbour as much as you love youself", "He who is without sin cast the first stone", and "As you did it to the least of these my brethren, you did it unto me".

I will never condone cruelty performed in any circumstances and certainly not in the name of God. Apart from being against everything that a humane perspective on our existence on this globe should perscribe, it's a sacrilege or rather, it should be, because, clearly, the Catholic Curch has different views on the subject, - as has the OP, obviously. The "place and time" don't enter into the equation, Jesus teachings were around much longer than those places of hell.

What good can come from torture, from sexual and spiritual abuse, from imprisonment? Ask those who survived their ordeal what "good" it did them. Some of them have been willing to go on hunger strike in order to force the authorities to finally admit that their treatment was nothing but shameful. The Taoiseach Enda Kenny himself finally described the laundries as "the nation's shame" (19 February 2013, Kenny officially issued a full state apology to the women of the Magdalene Laundries).

And just to remind you of the facts: through the centuries, members of the Catholic Church have also gone to war, burnt "witches" and "heretics", and (more recently) raped countless innocent children.

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"And just to remind you of the facts: through the centuries, members of the Catholic Church have also gone to war, burnt "witches" and "heretics", and (more recently) raped countless innocent children."

True. And so have Protestants, Jews, Buddhists, Moslems, Hindus, atheists and every other belief system, secular, and religious, that has gained any significant power and influence in history. As for going to war, so what? We have never been a pacifist religion.

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Funny thing is that Magdalene asylums are a Protestant invention and came to Ireland just like any other example of British imperialism. Of course, the Irish Catholic Church realized enslaving women for life was a nice source of money and adopted the practice as its own. But who was running the ones outside Ireland? Wikipedia says there were 300 asylums in England and 20 in Scotland in 1900. The last one in London closed down in 1966, about the same time this movie takes place. Are we to believe these were shiny happy places and just vanished smoothly one day? Or were they all, without exception, horrible Papist run dens too? In any case, you hear the Irish government insincerely and insufficiently apologizing about this thing, but where's the British government? And lo, yes, it never fails to produce someone using it to claim how horrybad the Irish and Catholics are while Protestants are miraculous saintly Christians who build Heaven on Earth everyday in comparison. Wanna clean houses? Start with your own.

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...atheists have never burnt witches...they don't believe in witches.

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And a lot of them were unfairly sent there for ridiculous reasons - like being raped! Why should the raped get punished? Or being too flirtatious in Bernadettes case. And remember reading somewhere that runaway children and orphan girls and sometimes even girls getting punished for SKIPPING SCHOOL would be send there! W.T.F???!










Ashmi any question

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If you are so deluded as to imagine that the RC church is anything but a vile, corrupt, evil damnable pile of *beep* listen to the testament of this poor woman who was tortured for years as a nun in a catholic convent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WkKmU_W8NU

"Which it will be ready when it's READY!" Preserved Killick, Master and Commander

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what about it was good? even in the time it was set in? do explain. i don't think you can justify anything of the situation

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"the Catholic Church is very corrupt. Which is not true. The Catholic Church has done more good in the world than any other institution in the world"


I think that the Church does some good. But to reject the idea of the Church being corrupt since it was born as institution is just silly.

Of course it is corrupted. Its pure politics. Like 1 plus 1 = 2.

Politics - corruption
Simple

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Perhaps you could clarify your post by sharing what you feel was left out of the film? You indicate the movie does not portray the "entirety of the Magdalene Asylums" With all due respect, what "good came from places like this"? Have you researched the harsh conditions in which these women and children lived? Have you had the opportunity to read about the recent discovery of a mass grave in Tuam, County Galway, Ireland? The skeletons of over 800 babies/children were discovered hidden in a septic tank. The government was aware as far back as 1941 that the women and children living there were suffering from malnutrition in addition to various aliments which were treatable but went unaddressed and ignored.

Additionally, I believe you are excusing what occurred in the Asylums by using "place and time" as a reason to qualify and excuse the horrendous treatment these young woman endured. You use the time period as a reason to excuse atrocities and violence that occurred to young women who's crime was "sexual promiscuity" (very subjective) or pregnancy without benefit of marriage. Whether it occurred 100 years ago or today, what happened was wrong. For what it's worth, many of the Asylum/Laundries we are referring to were in operation in the last century-the 1920's through the 1970's-we're not talking about the Middle Ages.


Additionally, in your comments you criticize those who offer a "blanket response that the Catholic Church is very corrupt" But then in the next sentence, you offer your own blanket statement by writing that "The Catholic Church has done more good in the world than any other institution in the world." I would like to know by what standard? Frankly, I don't think one could offer a broader statement than the one you ended on. It's seems very contradictory.

I appreciate that our opinions regarding the treatment of these women differ, however I ask you to consider researching what really occurred in these asylums. There is a lot of information available online. It is not necessary to condemn the Catholic Church as a whole in order to understand that what happened to these women was wrong. I have no desire to criticize the Catholic Church as a whole or to insult your Religion. I urge you to read the articles from the links I am providing in the hope it will promote a better understanding of the Asylums. It will take less than 15 minutes of your time. With education and mutual understanding we can prevent this from happening to women ever again. I can tell by your writing you are a kind hearted person. Cheers.

Christina

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2651484/I-thought-Id-seen-Philomena-And-I-nuns-secret-grave-800-babies-By-Martin-Sixsmith-exposed-Sisters-sold-children-fallen-girls.html

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/international-reaction-to-mother-and-baby-home-revelations-1.1820426



"Gentlemen you can't fight in here!" "This is the war room!" Dr. Strangelove

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The sad situation in Galway is actually why I watched this movie last night.

While the Catholic Church has done some good they are very corrupt. Just because a bad person or group does something nice it doesn't make them good. Even an evil person like Hitler has most likely done nice things (well to his family and friends).

It's a shame that the women were abused and put in these horrendous situations when men are just as guilty as they were.

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Even an evil person like Hitler has most likely done nice things (well to his family and friends).


I'm sorry, but I had to address this. No, he didn't. He had his sister murdered because she didn't fit his ideal of what Germans should be, because she was mentally disabled and living in an asylum. There are only two good things that he ever did. The first was to create the V.W. Beetle, because he wanted Germany to have something they could be proud of. The second was that he refused to allow his army to use any type of poison gas. It is speculated (and has been since my childhood) that the reason for this is because he was exposed to them in World War I.

At any rate, the man was horrid, evil man who cared about no one but himself.

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Oh wow I didnt know about his sister. That's terrible. :(

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Actually, it was Hitler's second cousin once-removed (Aloisia) that was gassed. It is unclear whether Adolf even knew about it. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4187823.stm
His younger sister Paula died in Austria in 1960, aged 64. She remained a fan of her older brother to the end.
http://en.metapedia.org/wiki/Paula_Hitler

Blowin' the changes!

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You believe some good came out of places like this? Seriously? No good came out of places like this until they were shut down!!!

Further, why is it that only women were put in these places? Why is it always women being blamed, when MEN were just as culpable? There's a saying, "It takes two to Tango." I'm so sick and tired of hearing how it's the woman's fault, and the woman needs to be modest, and the woman needs to do this, and not do that, and blah, blah, blah. When are people going to assess the blame to men as well? And yes, those were all rhetorical questions. I know the answer to them. Never.

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I thought I'd respond to all of the post and try to explain why I said that some good came out of places like Magdalene Sister Asylum Laundries. And that the Catholic Church is a force for good in the world.
Unwed mothers was looked down upon up to the 60's. I didn't say this is okay but the world over it was considered shameful. Women's liberation came up in the 60's and things improved. (I guess)
But in Ireland in the 1900's a woman with a baby and no husband to help the best society felt was a place like Magdalene Asylum.
I would like to use a comparison. Here in the US up to the 70's there was a place for the mentally ill to go. We had large institutions. There were people that had serious mental problems that needed a place to live. I have heard of terrible things done to people there by the people that worked there. But I feel for the most part these institutions has helped the majority of people there. Likewise I feel the same is true for the Magdalene Laundries for the most part it was better than the alterative.
Here is some of the things that the Catholic Church has done Developed University System, Legal System and laws, World's largest charity, Hospitals, and much more.
I would like to see the people involved that abuse the women and babies killed that they are brought to justice.

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my greatest satisfaction, having watched this movie and watched the interviews, is knowing that all those that ran these laundries (nuns and priests alike) will burn in hell

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Not very Christian of you...

Blowin' the changes!

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their behaviour has nothing to do with my christianity

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I thought Christians were supposed to love their enemies, forgive etc etc.

Blowin the changes!

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if that's true, why doesn't God let everyone into heaven?

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Hell unfortunately doesn't exist, but that's a nice thought.

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Frack the catholic church and anyone who supports them:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn0tPRjVBvw

Which it will be ready when it's READY! Preserved Killick, Master and Commander

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Unwed mothers was looked down upon up to the 60's. I didn't say this is okay but the world over it was considered shameful.

Maybe in Catholic Ireland, certainly not in America, at least not to that extent (I was shocked to learn that this story took place in the 60s). And by the way, it's because of religion that unwed mothers were looked down upon. Religion (especially historically in the Catholic Church) has always strove to force conformity to a rigid code of ethics that often targeted women and children and was rife with double standards and hypocrisies. The Catholic Church (and religion in general, with its diabolical need to amass followers and compel conformity) has absolutely done more harm than good.

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