On June 6, 2007 A German man attempted to bum rush the Pope-mobile during a procession through St. peters Square. The assailant was quickly apprehended by Vatican authorities while the Pontiff, blissfully unaware of the occurrence, continued to wave his way through the square.
Could the events in Rome involving the pope and unidentified man who attempted to cross a blockade to reach the pontiff on June 6th be evidence of a loss of trust in the Catholic church? And is the Church, on the heels of a various scandals, prepared for further attacks on its reputation?
According to the authorities the man had no intention of hurting the Benedict. Being in a state of psychotic panic, the man was only trying to attract attention to himself using the Holy father as a Proxy.
Initially, there was a lot of speculation about the reasoning behind the man actions. Some thought that the attempt was politically motivated. Some take offence to the Pope's history as a Nazi Youth, others think that he has been to lenient with Catholic priest accused of molestation.
The the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has decided to pay out $660 USD to molestation victims, in response to the surge in claims against the Church. Some have viewed this move as a full omission of guilt on the part of the papacy. while others consider it the first steps in mending the breach in trust that have rocked the Church
The Catholic Church has played down much of the criticism fired at Benedict since he has taken the position left vacant by Pope John Paul II. But, there has been no shortage of activist and media pundits digging into the new Pope's past.
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