Priest denies spying on Pope John Paul (Admits taking money)

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=5734849&cKey=1114764629000

ROME (Reuters) - A Polish priest accused of spying on the late Pope John Paul said he had taken money provided by a suspected secret service agent, but denied he had been a spy.

"I was never an agent. You can call me foolish or naive, but not a spy," Father Konrad Hejmo said in comments published in Italian newspaper La Repubblica on Friday. snip

Hejmo did not specify why he thought he was given the money. The paper quoted him as saying he was hard-up and "there were kind-hearted priests who gave me money".

The Vatican has declined comment on the affair.

more

[Solly Mack]

1. Aren't you supposed to be "hard up" when you take a vow of poverty?

[dryan]

5. Correction....

only members of religious orders (Dominicans, Franciscans, etc.) take vows of poverty. Diocesean priests or priests that work in the Curia do not take a vow of poverty. In fact in many Dioceses they receive a set salary. If not, they are dependent on stoll fees.

[Solly Mack]

6. "Hejmo's religious order, the Dominicans" (quoted from article)

"Hejmo's religious order, the Dominicans, said their Polish chief Father Maciej Zieba would travel to Rome next week to talk to the priest."

Doesn't he qualify then?

[NNN0LHI]

10. I guess it does qualify n/t

[Solly Mack]

11. Thanks! Have you seen the story in GD about Bush Inc

using the Geneva COnvention to deny the ACLU the torture pictures?

[ClintonTyree]

2. Gee, the Vatican is as sleezy...

as Congress. When you get paid from outsiders to gather information on insiders, I think that pretty much qualifies as spying. Maybe the Catholic Church has a different language (besides Latin) for describing these things.

[Tesla]

3. Man he's good!!

"You can call me foolish or naive, but not a spy,"

He must have graduated from the Cheney School of Twisting Words Around!!

[Dhalgren]

4. Now the Church will transfer him to another diocese

where no one will know his history, right? Then later, he'll be accused of spying again, right? But he'll just be "naive" or "foolish" once again, right?

[Solly Mack]

7. teehee

lolololol

[PATRICK]

8. Dominican equals doctrine patrol

equals Ratzinger as a quick bureaucratic connection, but who was spying on who for what? The Cold War battles he was embroiled in make this not very astounding. This guy keeping a teaching job in the order would be more serious.

The typical "naif" spy response by the way. Something like "I was only holding it for someone else argument" one hears from teens caught with pot. The guy should be defrocked for lousy argumentation at least.

This far far too little of the story, almost everything that is NOT important.

[dArKeR]

9. I can't wait to see the report, "Priest used spy money to buy Child Whores