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‘Is Pope Benedict XVI Gay?’ Wonders Andrew Sullivan

by Nick Rizzo | 10:19 am, August 19th, 2010

» 12 comments

Prominent gay (and Catholic) blogger Andrew Sullivan seems to think the Pope might be gay. Why does he think the notoriously homophobic Benedict XVI plays for his team?

He writes:

At times, it seems to me, his gayness is almost wince-inducing. The prissy fastidiousness, the effeminate voice, the fixation on liturgy and ritual, and the over-the-top clothing accessories are one thing. But what resonates with me the most is a theology that seems crafted from solitary introspection into a perfect, abstract unity of belief. It is so perfect it reflects a life of withdrawal from the world of human relationship, rather than an interaction with it. Of course, this kind of work is not inherently homosexual; but I have known so many repressed gay men who can only live without severe pain in the world if they create a perfect abstraction of what it is, and what their role is in it.

While I’m not remotely qualified to opine on whether the purity of the Pope’s theology is a sign of his repressed homosexuality, Sullivan is right that Benedict is a clothes horse. And even were he to want to, the former Cardinal Ratzinger would be unable to to persuasively defend himself from Angelo Quattrochi‘s assertion that he is “simply the most repressed, imploded gay in the world.” As Sullivan notes, “Ratzinger’s command that gay priests should actively lie about their orientation makes any public statement about this on its face lacking in credibility.”

Sullivan is careful to say that there’s no evidence that the Pope has ever acted on his impulses or explored his sexuality, and is therefore not a hypocrite. As Ratzinger himself wrote in 1992, “An individual’s sexual orientation is generally not known to others unless he publicly identifies himself as having this orientation or unless some overt behaviour manifests it. As a rule, the majority of homosexually oriented persons who seek to lead chaste lives do not publicise their sexual orientation. Hence the problem of discrimination in terms of employment, housing etc, does not usually arise.”

So the Pope may be gay, but he has not engaged in gay behavior. He has not sinned, according to his own belief system. Shortly after his 1992 statement, however, he met Georg Gaenswein, a young Bavarian priest who would become his personal secretary. Colm Toibin describes Gaenswein as “remarkably handsome, a cross between George Clooney and Hugh Grant, but, in a way, more beautiful than either.” I would not go so far, but you may judge for yourself. To me, he looks more like a cross between Seth Meyers and Nathan Fillion, and that’s still pretty good. Gaenswein and Benedict, both Bavarians, are around each other all day; they even take an afternoon nap at the same time. They eat together and pray together, so one speculates whether they share a chaste love for each other as well. Says Gaenswein: “I know who the Holy Father is and so I know how to behave appropriately. There are always some situations, however, when the heart beats a little stronger than usual.”

Perhaps this is all just vicious innuendo. I hope so. Not so much because I don’t want Benedict to be a hypocrite. (He’s already blamed the sexual abuse of children by priests on liberalizing mores towards homosexuality. He placed the Church scandals surrounding such sex abuse on par with other challenges facing the Church such as the ordination of women.)

No, I just don’t want to live in a world where Mel Gibson‘s father is sometimes right.

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Andrew Sullivan, Angelo Quattrochi, Pope Benedict XVI

BatBoy

Is Andrew Sullivan an idiot?
Puter Boi

BatBoy said:
Is Andrew Sullivan an idiot?

Yes

Sullivan writes:
“The prissy fastidiousness, the effeminate voice, the fixation on liturgy and ritual, and the over-the-top clothing accessories are one thing.”

You know…for someone who screams and yells about straights stereotyping gays…Andy sure does a lot of it himself….Andy is a very strange person….
http://apostrophejones.com Apostrophe jones

The Pope needs to hire Robert Shapiro , Gary Martin Hays and Gloria Allred and take Sullivan for everything he’s got , including his nasty little beard . Yes , Sullivan is an idiot , but still typical , lefty loon .

THE POPE’S NOT OFFLIMITS
TO ANY TV CHANNEL
INCLUDING OLBY AND THE OTHER DIMWITS
…..FOX IS EVIL !…………………………….
Moderate

“Sullivan is right that Benedict is a clothes horse.”

You people are destroying the clothing industry, everyone will be dressing down now because dressing up will make people assume you are gay. You are destroying your own kind by putting clothes designers out of business, everyone will be wearing raggedy blue jeans.
http://apostrophejones.com Apostrophe jones

If journalism were Woodstock , Sullivan would be this guy . http://www.wavygravy.net/
greg454

Sullivan may be a jerk, but the Catholic Church has been at war with the gay community since the Inquisition, so there’s a lot of bad blood between the two groups.
Puter Boi

Apostrophe jones said:
If journalism were Woodstock , Sullivan would be this guy . http://www.wavygravy.net/

OK….there should have been a “spewage” warning to go along with that link….Now I have to clean the coffee off of my monitor….sheeeeeeeeeeeeesh….
naoma

Georg Gaenswein Yes. Quite a handsome fellow. I LOVED his comment concerning the Pope. :,,,the heart
beats…” What a comment. I have no idea, nor do I care if the Pope is gay. But the pedophile priests keep
getting moved around. Vatican is certainly “taking care of them.” I really know not how anyone can belong to
an organization such as the Church. Had a case in my hometown where the Mother let the Priest stay overnight
with her young son. I do not believe some of these people know what MOLESTATION means. They can ask
me and I’ll give them the details in graphic language.
More Liberty

“At times, it seems to me, his gayness is almost wince-inducing. The prissy fastidiousness, the effeminate voice, ”

Maybe Obama’$ gay then
murphy0071

Particularly during adolescence and early adult phases, homophobia presents itself mostly among those who fear their own homosexuality. Research shows many “heterosexuals” vehemently opposed to homosexuality, using scientific measures, respond the same as homosexuals. Physicians and psychologists tend to see these individuals as self-loathing homosexuals. Anti-homosexual religious zealots are either unfamiliar with or deny the voluminous scientific research on sexual orientation. The most vehement are often found to be hiding their natural homosexual desires (i.e. Rekers et al.) The heads and founders of a leading conversion organization Exodus International left so they could have a homosexual life together.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Helen-Nordo/100000884291530 Helen Nordo

God save the Vatican! The selfish men who used the Priesthood to hide behind their pedophilia, will burn in hell. I was so upset when it was discovered that such men were performing sexual acts on innocent boys. It also upset & distressed me when I noted that there was no hurry from the church to prosecute these men. This must have been a horrendous ordeal for these boys,, now men, who were used as sex objects for the pleasures of sick males who hid behind priestly attire. If the Pope is gay, then I can only conclude that in every institution where children gather, they are always targets for predators, but to have them use the church for such deeds is inconceivable. I pray for those boys, ,now men, that must go through life with such memories.I am a catholic & attended catholic school being taught by catholic nuns. I now wonder if they were aware of the disgrace that would befall them, or if they had any knowledge of such behaviors. God Bless our religion, may it survive this madness!
http://none pyrope

Helen Nordo said:
God Bless our religion, may it survive this madness!

I do NOT believe the Pope is gay. I believe he is a reformer. The Catholic church has brought a lot of this inuendo on itself by hiding the fact that too many priests were homosexual and were preying on children within the church. It will take a long time for the Catholic church to rid itself of this awful past but it CAN be done.