Politics | 02/20/2009 11:15 am
Holocaust-Denying Bishop Booted by Argentina

Pope Benedict XVI may have backtracked a bit on his stance on Holocaust-denying Bishop Richard Williamson, but the firestorm is far from over.
Argentina’s government has ordered Williamson — who has been living there for five years — out of the country within 10 days, or else. Officials say it’s because he gave misinformation on his immigration forms, and because his comments on the Holocaust "profoundly insult Argentine society, the Jewish community and all of humanity."
Meanwhile, 50 Catholic Democrats in the House of Representatives are formally asking the Pope to fully repudiate Williamson’s views. Williamson thinks only 200,000 to 300,000 Jews were killed during World War II — not the estimated six million, many of whom were gassed to death. He is one of four bishops from the ultraconservative Society of St. Pius X whose excommunication was lifted by the Vatican last month.
"We do not question your reasons for revoking the excommunication of Bishop Williamson or your right to do so, but we fail to understand why the revocation was not accompanied by an emphatic public rejection of his denial of the Holocaust," the U.S. lawmakers wrote.
The Boston Globe has a great story today on two Catholic brothers who enrolled in Williamson’s Connecticut seminary a year ago. They say he was unapologetically anti-Semitic — even called the Holocaust "the biggest theatrics known to mankind" — and had a "horrible attitude" toward women.
"I have a sizable nose, and he would say to me, ‘Rizzo, are you baptized, or are you a Jew?’" Rev. John Rizzo, who is now based in New Zealand, told the Globe. "There was another seminarian named Oppenheimer, and he would say: ‘Oppenheimer, I don’t like your name. If you keep it up, there’s a gas chamber waiting for you at the boathouse.’" Not only is that offensive, it’s tacky.























69 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment
Certainly does, but what else is new, they also deny those who were and are sexually abused by priests - Boston Archdiocese simply doesn’t answer the victims’ emails any more. It’s rampant everywhere, in other churches, groups, associations, too …
It is shameful that he was re-instated and the…infallible Pope…should apologize to the Jewish community. I am a Presbyterian & every time the Roman Catholic community does something embarassing I still cringe; it reflects on Christians as a whole.
Im just guessing here…..
If he was excommunicated because his views were wrong….. what happened to make his views right enough to have him re-instated?
He went to confession, Roger. Like the fathers of 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 kids who divorce and get an annullment! The dioceses merely say, "he never tried to get the marriage to gel, so an annullment helps the wife ‘move on …"
What the hell???????????????
Just what does that make the children??? I think it starts with a "b."
In later adulthood, watching America put a church, or a bank on every corner, and turn it’s back on humans, that churey is Birchey.