Christopher Hitchens’ Critique of the Catholic Church

If you’re asking yourself, “Who is Christopher Hitchens? And why do I care?” Well, Hitchens was a journalist and author, who also emerged as one of the most prominent voices in the atheist community.

It doesn’t matter what side of the religious argument you fall on, Hitchens was a formidable debater, and although I’ve seen possibly every video he’s ever been in, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him “lose” an argument. I’m not saying that he changed the minds of theists who listened to him. But he definitely left an indelible impression.

One of Hitchens’ frequent topics, and a weapon in his arsenal against theism, was the Catholic Church and the various crimes it committed and covered up over the centuries. Before you get mad at me for alleging that, I’m not! The Pope himself has apologized on behalf of the church for some truly, truly heinous crimes. Hitchens just refused to let anyone forget it, and he added to the list several things he thinks they still need to apologize for.

I was curious as to all of the accusations Hitchens made across a great many of public speaking events, so I decided to catalog everything he said across a series of videos and documents, to make a single authoritative list of the allegations. I’m not aware of this existing anywhere, even from Christopher himself. And since he died years ago, if I didn’t do it probably no-one would.

Legendary actor Christopher Hitchens memorial; influential writer and public intellectual. — Christopher Hitchens memorial photo with dates 1949-2011 for remembrance.

Here are the sources I chose to base the compilation on in case you’d like to listen to Hitchens directly:

#TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read, in case you didn’t know…)

Hitchens argues the Catholic Church is not only NOT a force for good, but an institution that actively harms people and purposefully blocks justice. His arguments include:

The widely covered abuse crisis a few years ago was not a few bad priests, but a Vatican-directed cover-up with the Pope bearing responsibility.
He cites a record of alliances with fascists, persecution of Jews, the Inquisition, and the Crusades, and says apologies ring hollow because the Church claims a divine mandate and exclusive truth.
He condemns the Catholic Church’s social doctrines that: ban condoms, fueled AIDS deaths, stigmatize homosexuality, restrict contraception and abortion, undermines women’s empowerment, and keeps people in poverty.

Bottom line, the Church spreads sectarianism, blocks free inquiry, and slows human progress.

But Are His Points True And Valid?

Well, that’s what I wanted to know. So I did just a shitload of work and research, employing multiple AIs to help with the data gathering and analysis, as well as to cross-check my work and ensure it was validated from multiple sources. If you’ve got nothing better to do, you can jump to any point in the document, or just read it as I’ve laid it out below.

The Child Abuse Scandal and Allegations of Institutional Cover-Up

A central theme is the systemic nature of child abuse within the Catholic Church and the alleged orchestration of a cover-up by the Vatican, with specific culpability attributed to Pope Benedict XVI from his time as Cardinal Ratzinger.

Nature of the Scandal: Institutional vs. Individual Crime

Hitchens refutes the narrative that the scandal is attributable to a few rogue individuals. He asserts that the abuse was institutionalized and that the primary crime of the hierarchy was the systematic cover-up and protection of predators.

Core Accusation: The Church’s leadership knowingly protected child predators, obstructed justice, and prioritized its institutional reputation over the welfare of children. Hitchens states, “It’s not like the old slogans used to say Vatican protects pedophiles that was bad enough… it’s now the pope personally.”
Institutional Response: The pattern involved moving predator priests from one parish to another, ignoring pleas from victims, and forgiving the criminals rather than ensuring they faced legal justice.
Insufficient Papal Apologies: The Pope’s responses, such as his pastoral letter to the Irish people, were criticized as inadequate. Hitchens notes the “Irish people’s disappointment that no one was asked even to resign, let alone to face a jury on this.” He argues the Pope cannot call for resignations as it would implicate himself, stating, “if he does that he’s he’s calling for his own impeachment.”

Specific Cases and Evidence

Several specific cases are cited as evidence of the cover-up and Ratzinger’s direct involvement.

Case / Location	Details	Ratzinger’s Alleged Role
Boston, USA	Cardinal Bernard Law was accused of covering up for pedophile priests. Facing prosecution, he fled the US jurisdiction.	Pope John Paul II gave Law a sinecure in Rome as the Supreme Vicar of the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. Law, a “fugitive from justice,” was then a voting member in the 2005 conclave that elected Ratzinger as Pope.
Wisconsin, USA	A priest at a school for deaf children was accused of wrecking the childhoods of 200 students.	Pleas were sent directly to Cardinal Ratzinger. His response was reportedly to forgive the priest before he died, with no justice for the victims.
Oakland, USA	Father Stephen Kiesle committed sex offenses against two boys. The local bishop requested he be unfrocked.	In a 1985 letter, Cardinal Ratzinger refused the request, citing the need “to consider the good of the universal church” and the “detriment that granting the dispensation can provoke.” Kiesle went on to re-offend. This letter is referred to as a “smoking gun.”
Munich & Verona	Reports from these cities, along with Wisconsin, directly implicated Ratzinger, making it clear “the man who is now calling himself the pope was the person individually responsible.”	Details of his role in these specific cases are mentioned as being part of the body of evidence against him.

My Fact Checks

I’ve added hyperlinks to each of the facts alleged, and all of them seem true.
“Fled the US jurisdiction” and “fugitive from justice” are not supported by official records. This is Hitchens’ assertion, but it’s not an unfair accusation that the church moved someone away from jurisdiction before charges might have been brought.
- The Massachusetts AG’s 2003 report condemns the handling but does not state he was charged or fled prosecution.
- Safer wording: “resigned and later took a Vatican post in Rome.”
Not directly related, but Stephen Kiesle ALSO was drunk driving and murdered someone in 2022!!!

A History of Institutional Crime and Weak Apologies

Hitchens argues that the abuse scandal is the latest manifestation of a long history of institutional wrongdoing, for which the Church has failed to make genuine amends. He contends that an honest defense of the Church must begin with “a great number of heartfelt apologies and requests for contrition and forgiveness.”

Acknowledged Sins and Criticized Apologies

While acknowledging that Pope John Paul II made 94 public recognitions of error, Hitchens critiques the form and substance of these apologies.

List of Apologized-For Crimes: The Crusades, the Inquisition, persecution of Jewish people, injustice towards women, forced conversion of indigenous peoples, the African slave trade, the condemnation of Galileo (in 1992), silence during the Holocaust
Critique of Apologetic Language: The apologies are described as “evasive and euphemistic.” They often use phrases like “some Christians fell into error,” which avoids institutional responsibility.
Lack of Genuine Contrition: Ratzinger’s comment that indigenous peoples in Brazil were “silently awaiting the arrival of the church” is cited as an example of an insincere apology.
The “Service of the Truth”: Hitchens identifies the core problem as the Church’s belief that it possesses a “god-given right… to tell other people what to do.” He quotes the Pope’s statement that historical violence was committed “in the service of the truth,” makes a genuine apology impossible.

Un-Apologized-For Crimes

Hitchens provides a list of historical actions for which he believes the Church should beg forgiveness.

Alliances with Fascism:
- The Concordat with Adolf Hitler (1933), the first treaty Hitler ever signed, which gave the Nazi party a “clear run” in exchange for a church monopoly on education.
- The Lateran Pact with Benito Mussolini, the first treaty signed by the fascist dictator.
- Clerical protection for fascist puppet states in Slovakia (Father Tiso) and Croatia (Ustaše state).
- Support for the regimes of General Franco in Spain and Antonio Salazar in Portugal.
- The German church asking for Hitler’s birthday to be celebrated from the pulpit every year until his death.

My Fact Checks

The allegation that the Catholic church asked for Hitler’s birthday to be celebrated annually is hard to validate. I found only one reference in Vanity Faire. But it’s not something Hitchens made up, so it’s a fair statement.

Critique of Church Doctrine and Social Policy

Hitchens condemns several core Catholic doctrines as inhumane, irrational, and directly harmful to society, particularly in the developing world.

Sexuality, Contraception, and Public Health

The Church’s teachings on sexuality are presented as a central and destructive obsession.

Condoms and AIDS: Hitchens argues the Church’s stance against condoms is directly responsible for mass death. He states to the Archbishop of Abuja, “the preachings of his church are responsible for the death and suffering and misery of millions of his brother and sister Africans and he should apologize for it.” He further notes that Pope Benedict XVI’s later concession on condoms for male prostitutes demonstrated that the Church’s absolute prohibition was untenable.
Homosexuality: The Church’s doctrine is described as “disgraceful, it’s inhuman, it’s obscene.” Hitchens rejects the “revolting piece of casuistry” of “hate the sin… love the sinner,” arguing the Church condemns people like Stephen Fry “not for what he does… for what he is.” He connects this stigmatization to the high rate of suicide among gay teenagers.
Empowerment of Women: Hitchens identifies the “empowerment of women” as the “only one cure for world poverty.” He argues that the Catholic Church, by opposing contraception and a woman’s control over her reproductive cycle, has “set its face” against this solution.

Other Challenged Doctrines

Limbo: The doctrine concerning the souls of unbaptized children is called a “hellish… cruel and stupid disposal problem solution to a non-existent problem” and a “piece of Augustinian sadism” that inflicted a form of psychological torture on parents.
Sale of Indulgences: Hitchens cites the offer of “remission from purgatory or hell” to attendees of a Catholic Youth Festival in Sydney as a blatant, modern-day sale of indulgences.
Bishop Williamson: The readmission of Bishop Roger Williamson, a Holocaust denier who believes “Jews did Kill Christ”, is presented as a “crying scandal,” showing that Pope Benedict XVI prioritizes “Church Unity” over truth and decency.

My Fact Checks

Everything verified and hyperlinked.

Religion as a Source of Global Conflict

In a broader critique, Hitchens argues that religion, while not the sole cause of all conflict, is a potent accelerant that poisons and retards civilization.

Religion as a Divisive Force: He posits that sectarian religious identity has “gravely retarded” societies by forcing people to kill each other based on “what kind of Christian they are” or “what kind of Muslim they are.”
Case Studies:
- Belfast: Decades of sectarian warfare between Catholics and Protestants, enshrined in a segregated school system.
- Baghdad: The destruction of Iraqi society by “parties of God” who make it a religious duty to “blow up the mosques… of other Muslims.”
- Beirut: A sectarian constitution defining citizenship by faith, which has “retarded, bankrupted, beggared, disfigured and degraded” what could have been a pluralistic society.
- Bosnia: The recrudescence of Catholic and Orthodox fascist parties, leading to medieval barbarism.
- Bombay: The rise of a Hindu nationalist party that persecutes minority citizens.
Conclusion: Religion is described as a human invention that “is created… by a species half a chromosome away from the chimpanzee,” and it clearly shows its flawed, man-made origins. A mass adoption of secular principles is presented as the only way for the human species to advance.

Final Comments

That last section was what Hitchens kind of summed up, so there isn’t really anything to fact check. But overall, after spending a LOT of time investigating these statements, it is amazing that literally every single claim he made was based on fact.

All of Christopher Hitchens’ comments, and even his blatant attacks, were logically formed, historically accurate, supportable arguments. I didn’t find him to fall victim to fallacies or exhibit bias – keeping in mind that there is a difference between an opinion held based on supportable evidence, and one based on emotion.

I know Hitchens was prone to emotion and attacks, but it was precisely because he felt his arguments were so well supported, and the counter-arguments were so evasive and unsupportable, that he would become angry.

Now if you read ALL of this, frankly I’m shocked. Maybe drop a comment so I can see who had the patience to actually do it. :-)

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Christopher Hitchens’ Critique of the Catholic Church

#TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read, in case you didn’t know…)

But Are His Points True And Valid?

The Child Abuse Scandal and Allegations of Institutional Cover-Up