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Suing the Pope
First charge in International Court
In what is perhaps a prelude to similar suits that might be brought against the Catholic Church when the new International Criminal Court is established, an artist in Germany has filed a suit against Pope John Paul II for his stand against using condoms. Ananova news service reports that Karl-Friedrich Lentze has filed his case at the International Court in The Hague.

Lentze argues that the Pope “should be made responsible for the deaths of countless people” since, according to Lentze, the Pope’s stand against condoms, as part of centuries of unchanging Catholic teaching, shows “significant contempt and arrogance towards human life.” In an apparent effort to show that he is not motivated by hostility toward the Pope, Lentze added: “Of course, he should be spared from having the likes of Milosevic in neighboring cells”—a reference to deposed Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic, who is now on trial at The Hague for war crimes.

Critics have warned that the statutes of the new International Criminal Court to be set up under the auspices of the United Nations are vague enough to allow similar lawsuits, brought by individuals or groups who disagree with the policies of the Church or other organizations.