Memo to U.S Catholic Bishops: Your Latest Ruling Means That Two Great Saints Could be Sizzling in Hell
They've done it again, folks.
In a resoundingly adopted statement called "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citiizenship," the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has just ruled that Catholics risk eternal damnation if they vote for any candidate who supports "an intrinsic evil, such as abortion or racism."
Your excellencies, let me remind you what Saint Thomas Aquinas -- one of the greatest saints in history of Catholicism -- said about prostitution.
First of all, he found it unequivocally evil because it violates natural law and fails to provide for the care of offspring. He called it a "sin committed directly against human life" and therefore a "mortal sin" binding the soul to spiritual death.
But guess what? He also thought civil authorities should tolerate it. And for backup on this point, he quotes another great saint -- Augustine.
"In human government," Aquinas writes, "those who are in authority rightly tolerate certain evils, lest certain goods be lost, or certain evils be incurred: thus Augustine says [De Ordine 2:4]: 'If you do away with harlots, the world will be convulsed with lust.'" (SUMMA THEOLOGICA 2-2.10.11).
Unlike the bishops, Aquinas and Augustine both understood the difference between sin and crime, between divine law and human law. Since human law aims not to promote eternal salvation but to ensure temporal order, it cannot -- says Aquinas -- "forbid all vicious acts" (SUMMA THEOLOGICA 1-2.96.3).
So, your excellencies, are you ready to damn Augustine and Aquinas? Or would you rather try to see the difference between sin and crime?
To see that difference is also to see the difference between SUPPORTING a sinful act and OPPOSING THE CRIMINALIZATION of it. Do you believe we should criminalize divorce, adultery, idolatry, and the killing of innocent civilians -- including children -- in bombing attacks on our enemies? If not, may I infer that you support all of these things?
But if you don't support divorce, adultery, idolatry, and the killing of civilians in bombing raids, why do you claim that any politician who does not want to criminalize abortion "supports" it?
Fortunately, you stop short of telling Catholics that they WILL be damned if they don't follow your orders, and you don't threaten to excommunicate anyone. You leave God to judge each one of us.
So just what DID he do with Aquinas and Augustine?
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The Boston Globe ran a front page article (11/15/07) where Cardinal Sean O'Malley decries the democratic party as being "insensitive" to the Catholic Church's position on abortion and other "moral issues". This, of course, was no coincidence as it was timed to follow closely on the heels of this "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship". Furthermore Cardinal O'Malley stated that it "bordered on scandal" that any Catholic voter would support a candidate who supported abortion rights. Wasn't John Kerry threatened with excommiunication because of his pro-choice record?
When is this church going to emerge from the Dark Ages???? When are they going to recognize that sexuality does not and will not fit into their little box of monogamous heterosexuals who are virgins when they marry; don't use birth control, don't masturbate, don't engage in oral or anal sex, will be together forever and will therefore never need worry about unwanted pregnancy, herpes, HPV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, HIV, will never ackowledge or act on an attraction to someone of the same sex?
What both democrats and republicans consistenly fail to acknowldege in the discussion of abortion is that the issue is really about UNWANTED PREGNANCY. Eliminate unwanted pregnancy and you eliminate the issue of abortion. I remain solidly a pro-choice, but that does not mean I am pro-abortion. What a heart-wrenching decision that must be! But I am pro-informed decion making. THAT is the real issue!!!! And this administration and the right wing republican party do not believe that young people today are capable of making informed, responsible and mature decisions about sexual behavior and parenting, beliveing that "abstinence only" is the answer for all issues having to do with sexuality.
The Catholic Church needs to take a long hard look at themselves and recongize that their long and illustrious history of sexual repression is directly responsible for the sexual abuse scandals that have cost so many innocents their self-esteem, their happiness and ability to form healthy long-term relatonships.
From a Christian point of view, all shall be judged according to their works, it's as simple as that!
In arrogance mankind attempts to second guess God, but God doesn't even think like mankind. People often say, why does God allow this to happen, or that to happen, allowing men women and little children to starve, measuring such matters in human terms, emotionally, logically etc; and still unable to understand Gods thinking on the subject, and failing, in many instances, to observe that it is mankind that allows many of the horrors on this earth to continue in cyclical fashion, due to the selfish uncaring nature of many of the rich nations, who, self evidently, prefer to spend billions on wars and weaponry, for the sake of oil and money, walking up to their necks in the blood of innocents and serving soldiers, sacrificed like pawns for the sake of those who's only thoughts are for personal profit and stuffing more blood stained dollars into their already bulging bank account!
As for those who tell you what you should believe and do, I would say think and reason for yourself. As often as not, it's a case of do what I say, not as I do, so let your conscience be your guide in all things, exercise your freedom of choice, your God given right!
wasnt there something i read here like YESTERDAY about nuns diddling little boys? and i dont think im mistaken in thinking there has been some discussion over the last few years about priests diddling little boys. and then being covered by the church. who are these people to pass these pronouncements. clean up your own church, make reperations, punish the ones involved, then maybe the catholic church will have some credibility.
Given the same set of circumstances, this being just one example, who do they think god would judge more harshly. The woman having the abortion, or the woman bringing a child into an already overcrowded planet, knowing the child was either unwanted, or would not be able to be provided for adequately, therefore burdening the rest of society to care for it in some form or another throughout its childhood and possibly on into adulthood (most likely incarceration because it never stood a chance).
I believe god will judge us, not on whether we use this gift of knowledge, be it for safe legal abortions, stem cell research, cloning, or things yet to be learned, but rather, we will be judged on how we use it. Be it for good or evil. I believe we will be judged most harshly if we do nothing with this knowledge we have been blessed with. Shame on those catholic bishops. And they wonder why so many good people have abandoned the catholic teachings these past 30 plus years. They need to catch up. Things are much different today then they were when these teachings were first practiced. Either adapt to the times, or parish.
Apparently such sins don't include covering for pedophile priests and betrayal of their followers for God knows how many years. These are the people we should listen to?
I would love to see the "Christians" - and most especially the Catholics, for I once was one, come forward with this simple approach: Tolerate human failings, for we are all human. Be ruthlessly intolerant of all who would exploit those human failings for personal gain, for they are parasites.
"Fortunately, you stop short of telling Catholics that they WILL be damned if they don't follow your orders, and you don't threaten to excommunicate anyone. You leave God to judge each one of us.
So just what DID he do with Aquinas and Augustine?"
I'm willing to bet that he did with them what I think he's going to do with the rest of us. Let us in, because if you read the line "For God so loved the World...." You begin to concieve of the God that Jesus actually spoke of....
The Catholic Church has the most comprehensive understanding of complex biblical issues ever compiled - yet they cannot seem to understand that issues like abortion are complex social dilimmas.
Ohg.
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Religion is such nonsense. In a better world, the U.S. would spearhead a U.N.-led project to eliminate ALL superstition, especially religious influence on governments.
Religion, like nationalism, is merely a mutated form of tribalism -- the philosophical vestige of primitive humans dancing around a campfire and worshiping their tribal leader.
But now the tribes have nuclear weapons.
I remember reading that Christians must not resist evil, that evil must have its day. I also remember reading that men of the cloth should not involve themselves in the things of the world. I also remember reading that all men had free will, in other words permitted by God to choose for themselves what path to walk. Therefore, the Christian should be guided by the word of God and not the word of man, paying particular heed to Matthew 15: 8-9
Like talking to the wall; Good luck with that.
Organized religion is a sin.
But it's not illegal...
Any man who walks around in the 21st Century in a skirt, rejects personal marriage, condones perpetual secondary citizenry to 53% of the human race, and demands fealty just has absolutely no believability in this universe.
Until they also make similar pronouncements about candidates risking eternal damnation for supporting other actions against official church doctrine such as war, the death penalty, divorce, adultery, eating meat during lent, etc. their hypocrisy will be noted. Of course if they did there wouldn't be any "good" Catholics qualified to run for office.
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Posted November 15, 2007 | 07:10 PM (EST)