ROME, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The former archbishop of Milan and papal candidate Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini said the Catholic Church was "200 years out of date" in his final interview before his death, published on Saturday 9/ 1 /12.
The above information is published in this Diary today only to point up my contention that the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, be it located at the Vatican or in the Boondocks of rural India, still adheres to its methods of intimidation as used against those who speak out in regards to what the Church does not approve of.
In a previous Diary (http://www.dailykos.com/...) I related that that Diary was an update to the Diary "India Skeptic Faces Arrest 4 Busting Catholic Miracle" posted by me onTue Apr 24, 2012 at 03:16 PM PDT.
HERE,A REVIEW OF THAT UPDATE: reveals that a claim of religious outrage was filed against Dr. Sanal Edamaruku who had sought to develop scientific thinking, the spirit of inquiry, reform, and humanism IN INDIA by exposing supernatural claims by Indian Godmen & other Fakirs.
The outrage claimed by the priest of Our Lady of Velankanni Church, and representatives of the piously incensed Association of Concerned Catholics (AOCC) had demanded that Edamaruku publicly apologize for having the audacity to say out loud that water flowing from a statue in their church was a leak in the sewage system and NOT — as the Indian media and the Church had loudly proclaimed — a miracle.
Dr.Edamaruku had flatly refused to surrender to their demands so they filed a blasphemy case against him under existing Indian law, : "On 11th of April, charges under Section 295 A, Indian Penal Code, had been filed against Sanal Edamaruku in at least three Mumbai police stations: (http://www.rationalistinternational.net/) and subsequently he has received phone calls from an inspector from the Juhu police station, who urged Sanal Edamaruku to come in to the station to get arrested." This allegedly puts him at risk of a possible three year in jail term as well as legal costs.
TO BRING INTERESTED READERS UP TO DATE ON THIS UNFORTUNATE SITUATION:
Sanal Edamaruku has seen it to be wise to FLEE FROM INDIANA to avoid arrest.
As I understand his situation from PZ MEYERS writing at http://freethoughtblogs.com/...
he has been on tour in Poland. Dr. Meyers has written that,”Sanal Edamaruku, President of Indian Rationalist Association, stayed in Poland from 30th June to 20th July, hosted by Polish Rationalist Association (Polskie Stowarzyszenie Racjonalistów, PSR).
Further, During his stay in Poland Sanal Edamaruku gave lectures in most of the PSR’s branch cities and took part in PSR’s actions.”
Dr. Meyers did not say where the myth buster is currently located however I understand that he will be speaking in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Ireland and Britain during September and October 2012.
It certainly appears to me that Sanal Edamaruku is a victim of aggressive & potentially dangerous harassment ,to his personal welfare, by particular members of the Catholic Church in India. However, as I can interpret from the now deceased Cardinal Martini's anti-mortem statement, that is nothing new for the Catholic Church.