"If God is a woman, can one of you ask Her:
Why is She so mean?"

You'd be mean, too, if you were constantly being abused.

"Why does She constantly destroy large swaths of civilization?"

She is both the Creator and Destroyer. Ever hear that line about "nature, red of tooth and claw?"

"Why does She insist on men being the majority of leaders around the world?"

It's the fault of the men and that Jehovah upstart that they put in Her place.

"Why did She allow women to be persecuted for millenia?"

See above.

"Why does She allow feminists to gender-specify Her?"

Some feminists identify with Goddess-only groups, like Dianic Wicca. Most other Pagan peoples believe in male and female dualities, where both are equal. Women who identify as Dianics are often rape and/or abuse survivors who have suffered greatly at the hands of men. Can you really blame them for not wanting ANY part of a male deity, even one who respects their sexuality?

Some added information about Ms. O'Connor

"Almost from the outset of her career, however, O'Connor was a controversial media figure; in interviews following the LP's release, she defended the actions of the IRA, resulting in widespread criticism from many corners, and even burned bridges by attacking longtime supporters U2, whose music she declared "bombastic."

"On American shores, O'Connor also became the target of derision for refusing to perform in New Jersey if "The Star Spangled Banner" was played prior to her appearance, a move which brought public criticism from no less than Frank Sinatra, who threatened to "kick her ass"; she also made headlines for pulling out of an appearance on the NBC program Saturday Night Live in response to the misogynist persona of guest host Andrew Dice Clay, and even withdrew her name from competition in the annual Grammy Awards despite four nominations."

"However, any discussion of the record's creative merits quickly became moot in the wake of her most controversial and damaging action yet: after finally appearing on Saturday Night Live, O'Connor ended her performance by ripping up a photo of Pope John Paul II, resulting in a wave of condemnation unlike any she'd previously encountered. Two weeks after the SNL performance, she appeared at a Bob Dylan tribute concert at New York's Madison Square Garden, and was promptly booed off the stage. "

"In the late 1990s, Bishop Michael Cox of the Independent Catholic group performed the ceremony of priestly ordination on O'Connor. The Roman Catholic Church believes that ordination of women is impossible, and that a person simulating the sacrament of ordination incurs latae sententiae excommunication.[24] The bishop had contacted her to offer ordination following her appearance on the RTÉ's Late Late Show, during which she told the presenter, Gay Byrne, that had she not been a singer, she would have wished to have been a Catholic priest. After her service of ordination, she indicated that she wished to be called Mother Bernadette Mary."

Thank you Sinead for this and other writings. I have admired you and your music since I was young. And even if I don't necessarily agree with your views or how you express them I am fond of your vitality, boldness, and devotion to the search for what is good, true, and beautiful. I love it in interviews when you smile; I have the same reaction when I see James Baldwin smile in footage from the 1960s and 1970s. For me, this smile affirms the possibility of hope despite the depths of suffering.

Hi Sinead,

So happy that the Washingtonpost has run your articles.

You took a lot of heat when you tore up the pictures of the Pope way back when but I was right there with you on that, you were way ahead of your time. You rock. Your are intelligent, and beautiful and deserve a lot of respect. Pay no mind to the meanies on this blog. They are just a bit behind the learning curve, kind of like the followers of the Catholic Church who do not stand up for themselves and demand that the Church change and grow or take responsibility for it's failures and ignorances, but in fact allow the Church to continue business as usual through their silence.

I am sorry that there are so many "religious" folk so intolerant of others' views. Well, I must confess I am intolerant of ignorance and that includes most religious folk. But not this wonderful woman priest.
How difficult is it to be aware that: 1) denying women equal status in the church is wrong? 2) denying clergy the opportunity to marry and have children is evil? 3) all these "celibate" [yeah, how many of them actually are) men telling all the rest of the church members how to live is absurd.
There is no one as intolerant of the current Catholic Church as one who left it behind decades ago over stupidity, ignorance and downright evil. Count me among them.

So very sad...This woman is so out of touch with reality and a prisoner of her own illusions. She is making a mockery of religious beliefs instead of surrendering to the God she has been waging war with for so long. God will win, my dear, God will win.

Sinead O'Connor, lololololol. The queen of irrelevance. The only thing she is "known" for is one song and her SNL debacle a quarter of a century ago. Why is this even on the site? Oh wait, because she is going to run off left-wing talking points and slam religion. My bad, what was I thinking?

Sinéad O'Connor will be on Paradigms Sunday, April 4, 2010 8 PM EST on http://WBKM.org featuring a musical retrospective and an interview. The show will will be available as a podcast 4 hours after the broadcast at http://paradigms.bz.

Sinéad discusses her development as a person, her faith, the role of religion, the Catholic Church's role in covering up child abuse by priests, and some of her hopes for humanity.

Yup. Sinead O'Connor. I was going to say "Who are Quinn and Meacham going to get next, Jeremiah Wright?" And then I looked on the right side of the page and, lo and behold! there he is!! The one who doesn't hesitate when speaking of America to take the name of the Lord in vain, infront of his con gregation, women and children and all. The millionaire Jeremiah Wright.

Sinead O'Connor? Sinead O'Connor??? are you kidding me?? Quinn and Meacham must be getting pretty desperate in their attempts to marginalize Christianity.

Define "reality."
Posted by: trippin
___________________________

Donald Trump's hairdo.

I think the real question here is, does the Pope s--t in the woods?

If God is a woman, can one of you ask Her:

Why is She so mean?

Why does She constantly destroy large swaths of civilization?

Why does She insist on men being the majority of leaders around the world?

Why did She allow women to be persecuted for millenia?

Why does She allow feminists to gender-specify Her?

?first ones newest the with ,order reverse in comments the are Why

Is there a girl or woman that doesn't belong to the so called judeo-arab god?

Don't be silly, God doesn't have time for a boy- or girlfriend. She/he/it has too much to do checking the peníses of millions of Jews and Moslems to verify that they are properly cut, while watching them to see that they are not eating "forbidden" foods. And then there are all the Christians. God needs to be on the constant alert in case any of them have impure thoughts (which, given the behavior of the Catholic Church recently should keep her/his/its hands full ...)

If God gets a girlfriend she'll need to be Lesbian.

>

Because is a desperate act of survival. I watched the interview to an author who claims to have the "evidence" of an afterlife and similar, and his witness are people who suffered the same act of desperate survival and lived to tell their stories.

To me "the spiritual world" in no other that things which vibrate in a different frequency and we just can't detect their presence. There is no more than ONE universe, and existing things settled in different frequencies. God must be a being who can cross them without problem.

About a girlfriend for him...so far, his last one was a prostitute, just look how humanity is a mess up... :-0

"Actually, near-death visions are not spiritual. They are caused by the massive release of dimethyltryptamine, a psychedelic substance, from the pineal gland prior to death or near-death."

How does that make it not spiritual? Spirituality and physicality aren't mutually exclusive.

If you were raised in the Catholic Church, you should understand the rules. They have not changed. Being ex communicated is still law. Celibacy for Priest is still law. Divorce is still not allowed unless, you get the marriage annulled. The wealthy seem to be good at it. Contraception is not allowed. People like to debate these laws stretch these laws but in reality nothing has changed. One thing that is becoming apparent is pervert priest is law, and is not about to change. Nor is the law doing anything about it. Looks like the problem is here to stay.

Sinead O'Connor is a priest? Some of you are very happy to defend this position.

OK, let me put it to you this way. I'm the President of the United States. Why? Because I say so, darn it; also, my wife crowned me president (we have crowns in my presidency). My first act is to not sign the health care legislation that heretical Congress passed.

What do you mean you don't take me seriously? This is MY reality. Define reality, anyway.

Don't know about all this near death stuff, but I surely want tickets to that concert.

Yes, Roman Catholic splinter groups are usually referred to as "Protestants"

Actually, near-death visions are not spiritual. They are caused by the massive release of dimethyltryptamine, a psychedelic substance, from the pineal gland prior to death or near-death.

"Ms. O'Connor is a priest in her own mind; not in reality."

Define "reality."

"Very nice article. But perhaps she (God) already has a boyfriend."

Or maybe she has a girlfriend. Who knows?

Isn't she the one whose music career went into the trash can after she tore up a picture of the Pope while standing on the SNL stage?

I could use a girlfriend, except I've been so busy working like the devil I don't have time to look for her. If she finds God, great. If she finds me, I'll work like the devil for her and it's time again to go get some work done. It will all work out in the end. In between it's all a lot of work in.

"Ms. O'Connor is a priest in her own mind; not in reality."

God is a god in her/his own "mind," not in reality.

WaPo writes:

"Sinead O'Conner is a singer, musician and mother of four. She was ordained as a priest by a Roman Catholic splinter group called the Latin Tridentine Church, taking the clerical name Mother Bernadette Maria."

*****************************************

WaPo, get your facts straight. Report accurately. Write accurately.

The Latin Tridentine Church may have splintered off from Catholicism as many have done since 1519 BUT, THEY ARE NOT ROMAN CATHOLIC!

Ms. O'Connor is a priest in her own mind; not in reality.

This article from Ms. O'Connor didn't have the relevance or punch yesterday's did. Side B is never as good as Side A...

People cover their nose when they pass near the rotten filth.

Self imposed madness have no cure.

And spreading mischief in the society is worst than to kill.

Can you keep nonsense under the lid?

I'm guessing God would love to have you as a friend, even as crazy and as Irish as you are!

I'm guessing God would love to have you as a friend, even as crazy and as Irish s you are!

I love to listen to your songs Sinead, but you should not make the mistake to suggest that a god exist.

Your god is not death.

He/She/It simple never existed, so he/she or it does not need a whatsoever sort of a friend.

It would be better to except the truth and that is that we humans are nothing more than an unfortunate cosmic accident with a lot of fantasies with which we cover up our biggest fears.

Very nice article. But perhaps she (God) already has a boyfriend.