Hi Bosco Firstly, to respectfully correct you, the two padres did not express an opinion about the question Is Consensual Sex OK? Nor did I. What both padres did however, was to pooh pooh the question and effectively opted out of offering a view that, as moral guardians to the faithful they could have been expected to respond---especially as it is obvious that, Goanet is not exactly alien to their reading interest. Alternatively, they could have entirely avoided entering the substantive issue i.e. even very peripherally. This they did not do. Instead, intentionally or unintentionally, they effectively endeavoured to demean and debunk the question itself that focused on an entirely legitimate and important moral issue of contemporary times. Secondly, I did not vilify the two padres at all. I was merely prompting them to engage in the contemporary world of thought and ideas and not hide from these, including Catholic Goan casteism. Two further things: Fr Loiola had indicated that his memory was not as good as it was in the past and requested me to remind him of my questions. As I do not hold padres in much awe except where respect may be deserving in my judgement, I had no hesitation in pressing home my questions relating to the Church. I therefore want to suggest that, the lack of answers of any kind whatsoever (including even a private note to me) re an inability to answer my questions for any reasons whatsoever, does provide ammunition I suggest, to my contention about the complicity of the Church with casteism in Goa. I can also add that I do hold certain priests in the highest regard for privately informing me about the malignity of casteism and the Catholic Church in Goa. I also have much respect for those Goanetters who privately regularly supply me with info on the issue of caste and the Catholic Church in Goa. I regret if I am a thorn in the side of the Church but that thorn and my tenacity will remain as long as the Church tries to be stupidly secretive about things that most Catholic Goans well know about already. Why on earth can the Catholic hierarchy that is answerable to all kinds of questions in Goa not come clean on this particular vexatious issue? Let me now just refer to my relatively undemanding questions but confine myself to just two of the five I had posed. From memory, I had asked whether it was time for the Catholic Church in Goa to apologise for the fact that priests were only drawn from the Brahmin caste and that the church was entirely discriminatory on this issue for centuries? My hope was that an honest rather than an evasive explanation (typical for most racist institutions), would be provided. Another question was perhaps more of an intellectual one. Why was it not possible for the Church to remove the stain of caste while at the same time removing the stain of original sin at baptism? Now, these questions are hardly the stuff of nuclear physics and many a secondary school child in Goa, I am sure, could have a go at such questions and maybe our World Goa Day leader could be persuaded to generate a competition to which I would happily provide a prize for the best answers! So, why are the answers not forthcoming from the Goa Catholic Church hierarchy or indeed, the Bishop himself where the buck surely stops? I will be very happy to respond to further questions from your good self as well as from others. Regards Cornel
Bosco D'Mello <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: RESPONSE: Everybody is entitled to their opinion on 'Consensual Sex' or any subject. Our opinions are influenced by various inputs - values, education, social, religious, reading, communication, etc, etc.... You and I may not agree with the two padres on this issue, nevertheless, it does not deny them the right to express their opinion. While it may appear illogical or inconsistent with the times to you and I, there was nothing illegal in whatever it is they expressed. Do we have to vilify them??
