Greg Bentley was raised a Roman Catholic for 32 years, and there were parts of the religion that he said he was uncertain about. “As a Catholic, you’re raised with the Bible as part of your religion, but if you’re
Greg Bentley was raised a Roman Catholic for 32 years, and there were parts of the religion that he said he was uncertain about.
“As a Catholic, you’re raised with the Bible as part of your religion, but if you’re not reading it, then you’re not aware of the contradictions it presents,” said Bentley. “Once you crack open the Bible, you think. ‘wow, I didn’t know that.’”
Bentley then followed the former Roman Catholic priest Richard Bennett as he traveled the world giving talks on Catholicism. Bennett spent 21 years as a parish priest, and after studying the Bible, decided to leave the church. Bentley would attend his talks and tape interviews between Bennett and people who had questions about the religion.
Bentley has compiled his footage and turned them into a series of one-hour shows airing on Ho‘ike Community Television, public access channel 52 every Wednesday at 9 p.m. called “What Every Catholic Needs To Know.”
“I filmed in different parts of the world and talked with people about life and their experiences with the church,” Bentley said. “It’s not an exciting program. It’s an informative program on current issues in Catholicism.”
Bentley said some issues raised are sex scandals with pedophiles, abortion and excommunication.
“It’s like an awakening in these interviews. Former priests talk about why things happen in a general sense. People talk about the sex scandals, but they talk about why they happened,” Bentley said. “The Roman Catholic Church deals with abortion and divorce differently than other churches do. A lot of Catholics have a real battle with it.”
He said he has enough shows to air for a year, but may do more filming this summer.
“If there are locals that want to share their story, I might film here,” he said.
Bentley hopes that “What Every Catholic Should Know” will help “connect the dots” for Catholics who may have questions about their faith.
Lanaly Cabalo, lifestyle writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 237) or lcabalo@kauaipubco.com.
