Not one to shy away from voicing his opinion, Joe Rogan has described Vatican City as a place that is 'filled with pedophiles and stolen art' in a recent episode of his infamous podcast show.
The host of The Joe Rogan Experience made the remarks during episode 1848, with fellow comedians Francis Foster and Konstantin Kisin.
At one point during the show, the guys started talking about the world's smallest sovereign state, and the alleged crimes that have taken place within the Vatican.
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Situated within Italy's capital city of Rome, the Vatican is home to the Pope, who is just one of its 453 full-time residents.
The catalyst for Rogan's comments about the Vatican seems to have stemmed from a conversation about scandals in the world - and how - in his opinion - some get more air time than others.
"Even the outrage about things you should be outraged about, like Jeffrey Epstein, that outrage was balanced. Right? Sort of. Right?" the 54-year-old pondered.
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Regarding Vatican City, Rogan said: "It’s a country filled with paedophiles. It’s a country filled with paedophiles and stolen art.
"It’s a small, like hundred yard - like what is it? A hundred acres, I think. Yeah. It’s a hundred acre rather, country inside of a city filled with pedophiles."
Rogan's comments are nothing new as there have been numerous scandals involving the Catholic church - and alleged cover-ups that have been conducted at the behest of the Vatican.
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Decades worth of historic sexual abuse committed against children has been uncovered over the past 20 years - most notably by the Boston Globe.
Their investigation into alleged wrongdoing on the part of the Catholic church, which was dramatised in the award winning movie Spotlight, showed how the church allowed pedophile Priests to continue working unpunished.
Kisin said Rogan could get sued for libel if he made those claims in the UK, because he would literally have to prove the Vatican is 'filled with paedophiles'.
Well, Rogan said in response that 'you can kind of prove that', in reference to the Globe's landmark investigation.
Between 2004 to 2014, the Catholic church defrocked 848 priests for the sexual abuse of children, with another 2,572 priests also sanctioned.
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Later in the same episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, the three men were appalled to discover the age of consent in the Vatican used to be just 12 years old.
Kisin said: "I hope that's not true," only for the UFC commentator to reply with: "Oh my God, it's true," upon seeming proof of the fact online.
The state's age of consent has since been raised from 12 to 18 under the leadership of Pope Francis, who remains in place at the Vatican.
The pontiff has also generated headlines for his recent trip to Canada, where he publicly apologised to indigenous people for the horrific abuse they faced at the hands of Catholic priests historically.
Featured Image Credit: The Joe Rogan Experience/YouTube/Eye35.pix/Alamy Stock PhotoTopics: Joe Rogan, UFC, US News, Spotify, World News
