Stretching the truth!

When I was a child growing up in the toxic environment of brainwashed fearful catholic bigots, I was always  aware that what was important to them was what we were seen to be doing, rather than what we actually did! I was charged very early in my life with the responsibility of not letting down the image of being a catholic!  I was being "watched" !!!

Not only by that cruel  omnipotent executioner in the sky, (who loved me!) and by all of his "saints" but by everybody else! EVERYONE would be watching me and , knowing I was a catholic,  would judge any transgression, no matter how minor or human and that  would reflect badly on the church.

Admittedly this was a time when catholics saw themselves as a persecuted minority, but  nothing has changed. Still there is a "What can I get away with" culture, which has very little to do with common decency or morality. 
I have said before how there was a "hierarchy" of "sins" some with more serious consequences (in a next life) than others. So there was effectively a list of rules. As children we were taught that whatever was on that "list" was what would send us straight to hell. Most people soon learned how those rules  could all be stretched and manipulated, to justify pretty much any behaviour they chose to indulge in. I remember when the "no meat on Friday" rule applied, the family would   justify eating meat, if you were ill, had been ill, were looking after someone who was ill, or were working and needing more energy,  or at school equally in need of  more energy. 
 The "Fasting in Lent" rule was the same, and actually pretty much any rule could be manipulated, regardless of how immoral or lacking in human decency it was. The "joke" between adults in the family was "have it and tell it" meaning do what you want, then go to confession.(make sure no one outside the church sees you though, that would let the church down!
They would discuss their own "ways around things" as if it were a virtue! It seemed that the creativity of avoiding the consequences of "sin" was much prized!

Different rules applied to children of course, who needed to be taught how sinful they were, should not have that "rod spared", and should be totally obedient.

As I watch all the various promises and feigned sorrow of the church's hierarchy regarding those lives that have been destroyed by their priests violations, it is fairly obvious to me that they are still hell bent on what they can "get away with" and their ONLY agenda is still the image of the church. 
Anyone with any decency or integrity would be saying "We will do as MUCH as we possibly can to atone" (and then DO it!)  They would act with humility and a degree of shame! 
The church will do as LITTLE as they can get away with! Offering crumbs (and renege on even that!) They will act from a position of arrogance and grandiosity.
They will constantly STRETCH  the rules to justify their immorality!
They tell us priests  are celibate!! despite far more of them "stretching the rules" to include several mistresses,secret children, and multiple boyfriends.
They say that if priests  could marry, there would be less child abuse! "stretching the rules" to suit their own purposes when we all know that pedophiles are not created because of  celibacy!
They dig their heels in over issues that don't really concern  them, but would save lives,  like contraception and stem cell research, but "relax" their rulings on things that suit their purposes, and don't really matter, like "relaxing" the rulings on catholics marrying non catholics, and condescendingly offering women "forgiveness" for past abortions!  
Then they tell you they are the keepers of truth and decency! But the facts  tell us very much otherwise! So keep your elastic "lists"- I like facts and statistics! here are some REAL  ones to be going on with!