Here are some “odd” stories circulating today:

Woman Sues Priest For Luring Her Into Sex With ‘Collar And Viagra’

Excerpt:

A woman is suing her parish priest, claiming he lured her into having sex that he said was “ordained by God.” Instead, she says, he took advantage of her when she sought spiritual solace after her divorce.

Judith Rodrigues-Lytwyn filed her $25 million lawsuit in Brooklyn state Supreme Court. She says the seven-month affair left her feeling “severe stress” and “shame.”

The 50-year-old parishioner charges the priest with using his collar — and Viagra — to seduce her.

She had gone to confession at Our Lady of the Snows Church in Queens and told the priest about her divorce from an abusive husband, when she says he began “encouraging her to engage in a sexual liaison with him to assist her in overcoming her pain associated with her husband and because it was ‘ordained by God,”‘ according to the lawsuit. (Source)

Church Members Protest Church-Run ‘Hell House’

Excerpt:

For the past 17 years, some members from the Trinity Church in Cedar Hill have put together the ‘Hell House.’ They call it an alternative to traditional haunted houses, but some believe that it goes too far.

… “We are just appalled,” said Tommy Houghteling with First United Methodist Church in Richardson.

… “What we do is a real life scenario taken from real life from a date rape scene to a drunk driving scene,” said Carlos Oritz Director of the Hell House.

… “One skit is a girl on Facebook,” says Houghteling. “She meets a friend and gets rapped and the demon says she deserved it.”

Houghteling tells CBS 11 News that the message Trinity Church is sending to the young members is that if you struggle with certain issues then God has no place for you.

However, Trinity Church says that’s not the case.

“We don’t do it to scare people. The scary part about the Hell House is the reality that we portray. That is the scary part,” says Ortiz. (Source)

Vatican To Screen Out Homosexuality, Personality Imbalances

Excerpt:

Candidates for the Catholic priesthood should undergo psychological tests to screen out heterosexuals unable to control their sexual urges and those with strong homosexual tendencies, the Vatican said Thursday.

A new document was the second in three years to deal with the effects of a sexual abuse scandal that rocked the Church six years ago.

It said the early detection of “sometimes pathological” psychological defects of men before they become priests would help avoid tragic experiences.

…Rectors could not force candidates to undergo psychological testing, but the main purpose of the document seemed to be to encourage its use to avoid future scandals. (Source)