The problem of paedophile priests probably prompted the Pope to vacate the Vatican

As my opponent seems to think defamation of character is paramount for his argument, I will begin by addressing his montage of Benedict XVI related anti-catholic vitriol.VitriolBenedict XVI is a Nazi: Except he's not (1) unless of course he is cunningly hiding his Nazism behind a firm condemnation of it and his visits of synagogues on holocaust memorial day, no doubt to celebrate(2). In any case, I would be surprised if this obvious Nazi really pulled a quick one on the ADL, for them to praise him so highly.He lifted the excommunication on Williamson: Let´s be a bit clearer on this, he lifted the excommunication on the four bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X. They had been excommunicated, not because Williamson holds to historical revisionism, but because in accepting ordination without papal permission they incurred automatic excommunication until such a time as they recognized papal supremacy.(3) They did, and the excommunication was lifted. This was not a reflection on what he thought about all the views held by each of those bishops, but a reality in cannon law. In spite of this he mentioned in his aforementioned interview with Peter Sewald, that had he been aware of the declarations by Williamson, he would have probably set his case apart from that of the other three bishops. The lifting of the excommunication, incidentally, does not mean they have been rehabilitated in the Church. Williamson, as well as the other SSPXX members have no canonical status in the Church and are suspended a divinis (they do not have ecclesiastical permission for their ministry).(4)He signed the order to begin the beatification process of Blessed pope Pius XII who is thought to have ignored the holocaust:Actually, he declared him venerable, he is already blessed, but Bl. Pope Pius XII is hardly guilty of what the uninformed accuse him of, and no serious historian will hold to these accusations. In fact, the Nazis considered abrogating the concordat upon the election of Pacelli (5) the man behind Mit Brennender Sorge (6).Anti-Jewish theology (like talking about the bible and such): It is so patently ridiculous to hold that remembering the biblical episode in which the Holy Family (Jews, mind you) were forced to flee Israel due to the massacre by Herod of the innocents (also Jews) that it really deserves no further comment.Benedict VI also hates Muslims: Which is why he was the first pope to visit a Muslim holy site and opened intense and unprecedented religious dialogue with leading Muslim intellectuals. (7)But, Regensburg!: (8) Seriously. Read it. It would do you well. No anti-Muslim rhetoric, simply a scholarly speech on how violence has no legitimate roll in religion.Benedict XVI hates the gays: In spite of being instrumental in writing the following in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: (9) See paragraphs 2357-2359.He says homosexuality is against natural law as per Church teaching (gasp): Homophobia is, by most people, defined as the hatred of homosexuals due to their sexual orientation, not the belief that homosexuality is sinful. One can, and the Church indeed does, separate sin from sinner. The Pope is the paladin of the pedophilesBenedict XVI protected homosexual pedophile priests:This is quite simply a lie. As Cardinal Ratzinger in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith he was the most active in addressing these cases. On his ascension to the papacy, he reformed cannon law in order to make it simpler to defrock priests and to make it a canonical offense not to immediately put those accused of these crime in the hands of the judicial system.(10) He also pressured several bishops into stepping down in those cases in which they had been less than up to par in their handling of the crisis in their diocese. The pope denied abuse had taken place and tried to buy the silence of the victims (Denef case in Germany): The pope never denied abuses had taken place, this is simply counter factual. Hence the lack of sources. As to the Danef case, all references to His Holiness Benedict XVI in which he is accused, it is either as a "part of the system"or vaguely as head of the CDF. At no point is there any proof of any knowledge of or involvement in a coverup.Addendum: Paolo Gabrielle was prosecuted for trying to expose corruption: Paolo Gabrielle took classified documents from the desk of the Head of State and was prosecuted for this crime under Vatican law. If President Obama's personal secretary was to take documents from his desk, photocopy them and send them off to the world, whatever his intentions, he would no doubt also be prosecuted. Paolo Gabriele was a good, if simple, man who was surprised by the political power plays in the curia and was determined to expose them in order to defend the pope, as per his declarations. The pope, due to his close personal affection for his butler, soon pardoned him, and allowed his family to continue living in the Vatican, although without access to official documents for obvious reasons.Argumentum ex Vitriol1: Pro suspects most Catholics are appalled by the abuse cases and expect those involved in such crimes ought to be brought to justiceRighto2:a. The Catholic Church teaches homosexual behavior is sinful, and most Catholics would argue those engaged in sinful behavior should not be sheltered by the pope.Righto b. Discontent of 118b Catholics with the Pope covering up the abuse of children was communicated through the bishops to the cardinals and the pope would have reached the conclusion that he had lost the respect of his followers.Except, as we have seen, there was no such coverup by the pope, and as most Catholics are not gun-ho about believing every accusation hurled against the Holy Father it is quite doubtful all or most of them are as misinformed as my opponent.3: The pope's handling of the scandal makes the position of the pope untenable, but Vatican secrecy makes it so we have to read between the lines to find out why an 85 year old man would say he is too weak due to his age to jet about half the world, meet with thousands of people, protect and teach the deposit of faith and govern an international organization. Obviously it is because of the pedophiles. (See argumentum ad sanity)Argumentum ad SanityPro makes reference to the historical precedents of papal resignations. We have indeed had popes who lived quite long lives, and as recently as pope Leo XIII have had very long reigns due to this fact. The situation, however, is quite different now than it was up to the 19th and much of the 20th century. Up to now, popes have largely stayed in Rome, and have governed the Church from a distance. Starting in the second half of the 20th century, and particularly with Bl. pope John Paul II (although this was also the case with Paul VI), the pope is expected to have a much more intense agenda. This includes constant trips around the world, meetings with thousands of representatives of different countries, ad limina visits, as well as handle the administration of the largest organization in the world. When Bl. John Paul II fell ill many close to him advised him to abdicate also, but he decided that his illness would be a witness to the sanctity of human life even in illness, the value of the ill and the sacred duty to care for them. Benedict XVI is not sick. He is old. There is another, much more logical conclusion one can reach from his statement that the increasingly rapid changes of the world and the demands of the Petrine Ministry are too taxing for a man who, due to his old age, is increasingly weak: that he is telling the truth. Anything else requires something of a febrile imagination.Sources(1) http://bit.ly...(2) http://bit.ly...(3) http://bit.ly...(4) http://bit.ly...(5) http://bit.ly...(6) http://bit.ly...(7) http://bit.ly...(8) http://bit.ly...(9) http://bit.ly...(10) http://bit.ly...