The Audacity of the Pope

Thomas

Thomas

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Interesting article from The New York Times about the politics and philosophy of the latest Papal Encyclical from Benedict XVI — "Caritas in Veritate" ("Charity in Truth").
 
Seems to me the guy doesn't know what he's talking about.
When a pope criticizes legalized abortion, liberal Catholics nod and say that yes, they agree, it’s a terrible tragedy ... but of course they can’t impose their religious values on a secular society
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seems he has conservative and liberal mixed up...here in the states liberal catholics vote pro-choice.
“Caritas in Veritate” has been no exception. It’s a “social” encyclical, in the church’s parlance, covering issues ranging from globalization and the environment to unions and the welfare state. Inevitably, liberal Catholics spent the past week touting its relevance to the Democratic Party’s policy positions.
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now it may be there positions, but in reality their position is that gov't should mandate charity thru taxes...as study after study shows it is republicans and conservatives that put up both the highest dollar amounts and highest percentages of charitable contributions.
Why should being pro-environment preclude being pro-life? Why can’t Republicans worry about economic inequality, and Democrats consider devolving more power to localities and states? Does opposing the Iraq war mean that you have to endorse an anything-goes approach to bioethics? Does supporting free trade require supporting the death penalty?
These questions, and many others like them, are the kind that a healthy political system would allow voters and politicians to explore.
But for now, at least, you’re more likely to find them being raised in Benedict XVI’s Vatican than in Barack Obama’s Washington.
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the fact is this liberal/dem, conservative/rep is actually media and political hype... very few Americans (like very few catholics) toe the party platform or line.... most of us take part in the buffet, picking and choosing the policies we agree with and those we don't. And of course our words don't always match our actions.
 
The CC has the wealth of a developed country. Why do the workers on the ground have to go cap in hand to the likes of Francis to raise very modest sums for children's education in Africa? When the CC speaks of people being more charitable and of wealth redistribution it wants to be the collector and distributor. But history shows this old Nazi bank is a lot better at its vampirism than really helping people. The American CC alone is alleged to have $4 billion in bullion in Fort Knox... perhaps it should try putting its money where its mouth is.
 
Despite Tao's expected response, there is a point to be made here.

In the states the Catholic Church is closing churches on a fairly regular basis, moving folks to other churches, combining churches, etc. Whether the church has lost congregation due to attrition, or demographic moves (city to suburbs, country to suburbs etc) they have been closing churches much to the chagrine of those who've gone their for decades...

The question is what are they doing with them, donating them to nonprofits? Turning them into community centers... to me that is a huge portion of that wealth Tao speaks of and yup...to quote Gandhi....be the change you wish to see in the world.
 
no, I agree with you wholeheartedly... It is precisely because Rome is a whore with no conception of hypocrisy that most people completely ignore what it says...

The church is not Rome, as I have said here often... the church is the people... yes, rather than give money to the church you should give it to someone who definately will do something useful rather than buy gold statuettes and ruby rings for the plebs to kiss...

... a while ago, how long I do not know, I posted something cynical on a thread alerting us to some child soldier misery... I said... ha, we can't do anything about it, so what's the point, or words to that effect...

It was only later I realised my cynicism hampered my quest...

I have spent years trying to find a way to do something that benefits humanity... I tried religion, tried most of them, but none of them were perfection...

I have spent a few months wandering in a religionless wilderness...

then I realised... it wasn't religion I was after...

we can all sit back on our asses and cry about how bad everyone is and how bad everything is, and wait for God or the Pope or Politicians to save us, but they cannot... religion, like society, works because of of ordinary people...

yes, the church should be there to serve the people- often it does not, and it merely serves itself...

yes, the CC is very wealthy- one of the wealthiest organisations in the world. It is wrong that "we", the little people, have to raise money to do things that need to be done while the church could simply walk in and fix things, but it was much the same in the time of Christ- the church leaders of his day were the same as they are now, sometimes more concerned with managing their media profiles than attending to the real needs of their flock.

This isn't just a problem for the catholics- this is a problem of all religions, and most secular organisations too. The government is also rife with this self-serving egocentricity. People want power. Most people with the top jobs really want to be there for their own sakes.

But... when I was a child, I was the poorest of the poor for a while... it came to harvest festival time, and my headmaster took me to church and gave me 2 big carrier bags of food. That food didn't come from the church of Rome, that food came from the church of the people, ordinary men and women who looked in their cupboards and gave something with the intention of helping someone who was less fortunate than them...

would they behave that way without their churches, and temples, and synagogues and mosques..? perhaps, but they first have to be shown the way...

what is it the zen-heads say about "fingers", and "moons?"
 
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