This week in religion, the Catholic Church is cannibalizing itself. We guess that's what happens when a substantial part of a religion's ritual involves eating flesh and drinking blood. Enter the House of God on this holy day, children. And wipe your feet.
According to anecdotal evidence bubbling out of Vatican City, it seems that Pope Benedict XVI is making enemies of his subordinates even faster than he's offending the world's minorities.
“People feel disoriented,” a senior Vatican official confided last week. “It’s a feeling common to both traditionalists and reformers. Our impression is that there isn’t anyone at the wheel.
High-ranking Catholic officials are surprised the pope has gotten a bit aloof, unwilling to meet with guests or discuss controversial decisions with other political and religious leaders. We think it's a natural demeanor for someone who's worshiped like a god, housed in a palace and in charge of 1.2 billion followers, but the officials can't understand him. Especially his aggravating willingness to forgive hateful, hateful bigots.
…the 81-year-old German pontiff has provoked outrage and a rebuke from Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, by revoking the excommunication of four breakaway bishops from the ultra-conservative Society of St Pius X. They included a British bishop, Richard Williamson, who has denied the existence of Nazi gas chambers.
Benedict then named Father Gerhard Maria Wagner as the Bishop of Linz, in Austria. Wagner had preached that Hurricane Katrina was retribution for the activities of abortionists, prostitutes and homosexuals in New Orleans.
Perhaps ol' Benny doesn't mind the Holocaust-deniers so much because he himself has quite a storied history of hate, once calling Islam "evil and inhuman" and homosexuality a "destruction of God's work." Which is exactly what Jesus must have meant when he said, "Judge not lest ye be judged."
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Jossip: pick on Muslims with your anti-religion slurs the way you do Catholics and they will fix your sorry ass.
You just don't get it, do you? Jossip critisizes muslim fanatic leaders and cruel muslims just like it does unfit Christian leaders. It's doesn't call every religious follower of Islam evil. That's all. It has the same respect for Christianity.
all religions say that if Bert and Ernie are gay then they will have hell to pay.
that's why I'm an atheist, man.
As a Catholic I read this and am embarrassed, but the fact is part of being human is sometimes being wrong. This does not reflect on all Catholics these are individual people who made mistakes or choices and will one day hopefully wake up or pay the price. The important thing is that there are many just people out there who regard these activities with disgust and pity.Please do not judge all by the actions of few.
^ It's sad that someone has to say that.
And, don't worry, people realize that as long as the said group is a Christian group, not a Muslim group.
What a delightful chapeau!
Anywho, say what you will about Pope John Paul II, but at least he was a man of the people. This moron sits in his ivory tower and dictates like an emperor, rather than a pontiff.
This article is intellectually dishonest. What it lacks in length it makes up for with inaccuarcies. The Pope is not worshipped as a man let alone as a god. The Pope is not unwilling to meet with people of various opinions…ex. Senator Pelosi. The quotes at the end were cherry picked and taken out of context and as far as the excommunicated bishop is concerned, he was originally excommunicated for something different than his view on the number of Jews killed during the WWII genocide. He is being educated on this matter and has remained suspended.
Benedict doesn't dictate like an emperor, he dictates like a German professor. Which he is.
he dictates like a German professor
He dictates like a German something; a something he was during his youth. Now I wonder what that was…
That headgear is looking a little ratzy, i mean ratty, isn't it.
"officials can't understand him. Especially his aggravating willingness to forgive hateful, hateful bigots."
It's not his willingness to forgive that is revolting. It is his willingness to welcome and embrace. If Bishop Williamson recanted and sincerely asked for forgiveness, it would be the Pope's duty as a Christian to forgive him. Just as it would be his Christian duty to forgive a priest who has abused children. But forgiveness and protection are not the same thing. By welcoming Bishop Williamson into the Church, the Pope has sent a strong message that Williamson's opinions are not out of line with Catholic teaching. That was a major error on the Pope's part, at best incompetence on a grand scale. Even worse was his delay in setting the situation right. This made it appear that he reacted only after Merkel ordered him to. Pope Benedict XVI has irreparably damaged his own reputation and credibility, as well as that of the Church. He's going to be remembered in terms of his offensive blunders, both by Catholics and by non-Catholics.
Here's the thing people don't seem to understand. Excommunication is extremely serious! Its not something you hang over people's heads so that they take back every bad or bizarre thing they've ever said. Look at it this way: If a man is found "not guilty" of murder but we hear that he denied the genocide of the Jews…should we then pretend he was actually "guilty" of murder because he may be anti-semetic? Of course not. This would be totally unfair. Would it mean our legal system or Judical branch welcomes anti-semetic views? Obviously not…and no one would suggest this. This bishop Williamson was excommunited for being a schismatic. He expressed regret for this and sought for his excommunication to be recinded. He is still suspended and is being helped to realize the extend of Jewish suffering during WWII. The excommunication was not reinstated as some people wanted.