Pope Opens Mouth, Inserts Foot

Filed in National by on December 23, 2008

“And there is christian bashing . . . ” — Mike Huckabee

Ah, it couldn’t be Christmas at the ol’ Delaware Liberal without some good ol’ Catholic bashing. Pope Benedict compares saving the rain forests to saving the homosexual. Beauty.

The tropical forests do deserve our protection. But man, as a creature, does not deserve any less.  What’s needed is something like a ‘human ecology,’ understood in the right sense. It’s not simply an outdated metaphysics if the Church speaks of the nature of the human person as man and woman, and asks that this order of creation be respected.

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Comments (35)

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  1. And why would you think that the Pope specifying what Catholic doctrine is would be classified as putting his foot in his mouth? Is this something new, or something that you did not know?

  2. nemski says:

    Your correct about the dogma, but my original title was a little too Donviti. 😉

  3. RSmitty says:

    The Pope needs some time at the Festivus pole!!!

    What a freaking disgrace. Intolerance is why so many people have been alientated from Western religions. People can say it’s about deity, about requirements of faith, etc. No, it’s intolerance. Intolerance easily turns more people away at the gate than any requirements of faith.

    The Pope may have been attempting to say that in Catholic/Christian doctrine, homosexuality is a sin, but from that article, he failed to alienate the action from the person. That promotes bigotry and intolerance. Unfortunately, that is all too typical…stereotypical at that.

  4. anon says:

    Cut His Holiness a break… maybe he is just finally trying to tell his priests to stop sleeping with boys.

  5. jason330 says:

    I think that is pretty conclusive proof that the Pope is a closted gay.

  6. Disbelief says:

    Has anyone sent Him the South Park episode on Priests and child molestation?

  7. El Somnambulo says:

    El Somnambulo is intrigued by this term “Human Ecology”. Why?

    When El Somnambulo was matriculating at the Universidad de Guadalajara, the athletes took what were referred to as ‘gut’ majors, majors so easy that they would always stay eligible.

    At the time, the ‘gut’ major was sociology. In recent years, it has been ‘kinesiology’. If you can spell it, you’re eligible.

    Last week, El Somnambulo is watching a hoops game on ESPN Deportes, and half of the players are majoring in “Human Ecology”. By definition, that’s a ‘gut’ major, but what is it? The Beast Who Slumbers guesses that it’s kinesiology by another, easier to spell, name.

  8. Is there some underlying christian fear that if society turns a blind eye to homosexuality… then everyone will just run out and start having wild gay sex orgies in the streets? Crowds of dudes turning towards the first dude they see and making out like two horny teenagers after prom… Times Square on New Years sized orgies and mass hysteria.

    I swear, it is like they are afraid we’re all going to go gay because it is now allowed, and society will just fall apart because noone makes any babies anymore.

    Get a grip.

  9. Truth Teller says:

    Who in the hell still listens to a guy who believes in the Naked Lady and the Snake

  10. cassandra m says:

    majoring in “Human Ecology

    I’ve heard that this is a major in Sim City.

  11. anonone says:

    Intolerance is why so many people have been alientated from Western religions.

    Not enough people have been alienated from theist religions, western or otherwise. All major religions that promote a belief in God are intolerant by definition. Just read their books.

  12. I love this new pope! Jesus has got nothing on this guy!

    I say we make a change.

    The father, The Ratzinger and The holy ghost!

  13. RSmitty says:

    All major religions that promote a belief in God are intolerant by definition.

    Intolerance begets intolerance.

    I don’t know anonone, in conversations past, I can’t help but to think there is more to this than indirectly pointing out old testament doctrine.

    Tell that to the many homosexuals who find solace within western religion. Are you accusing them of being in denial or self-depricating while persuing their religious beliefs?

    Hold the interpreters at fault, for the new testament, which is based on acceptance of the person, but not of the actions, is conveniently compromised by those in authority. I am guessing it is perverted (purposely used word) by certain leaders out of fear from within themselves.

    It’s quite obvious I am a church-goer (a practicing Christian), but one who feels a homosexual deserves no more scorn than me for being a heterosexual. I’m not so blind to think that this is a universal belief among others, but I also am not so blind to take the easier contra argument to think I am the only one who sees it this way.

  14. anonone says:

    Are you accusing them of being in denial or self-depricating while persuing their religious beliefs?

    Yes, absolutely. Anybody who professes a belief in god or gods or fairies or leprechauns or Zeus other supernatural deity is in denial of both modern science and history.

    And it isn’t just the old testament – I refer to the “sacred” books of ALL the major western theist religions. Much of the new testament was written by a confessed murderer who was extremely intolerant of anybody who did not agree with him. Yet christianists call him a “saint”.

  15. El S wrote:

    El Somnambulo is intrigued by this term “Human Ecology”. Why?

    Pope Benedict was speaking at a Curia address, so he was almost certainly using either Latin or Italian; your point is a translation problem.

  16. RSmitty says:

    Case dismissed, eh, anonone?

  17. anonone says:

    Case dismissed, eh, anonone?

    If the defense rests. 🙂

  18. RSmitty says:

    Yes, absolutely. Anybody who professes a belief in god or gods or fairies or leprechauns or Zeus other supernatural deity is in denial of both modern science and history.

    Not all. Leprechauns evolved from fairies who evolved from prehistoric lady bugs. We all know that, even religious folk!

    😛

  19. Rod says:

    Hey what do you expect from a man(?) when he first became Pope and wore jeweled Prada slippers in public. This guy is a nut case from the get go.

  20. Mike Protack says:

    The Pope also speaks out against war, hunger and torture. He does this with courage and commitment not political talking points or political agenda.

    Is he ‘off his rocker’ when he speaks passionately of feeding and clothing the poor? or only when his beliefs do not match yours?

  21. anonone says:

    Let him sell some of the Vatican artwork and real estate to feed the poor. Let him encourage birth control and condoms to help prevent unwanted pregnancies and HIV. He is not courageous; he is a power-hungry coward. What has this former Nazi-youth done that is courageous? Nothing.

    Yes, the leader of religious pedophiles is off his rocker. All the time.

  22. John Feroce says:

    I want nothing to do with the Pope’s comments, but I will point out that you guys on this blog have no balls when it comes to speaking out against Muslims.

    How are their religious leaders doing in the tolerance department?

    Here’s where a lot of those theocracies stand in case you needed a refresher (from Religion Facts):
    “Same-sex intercourse carries the death penalty in five officially Muslim nations: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mauritania, Sudan, and Yemen. [3] It formerly carried the death penalty in Afghanistan under the Taliban, and in Iraq under a 2001 decree by Saddam Hussein. The legal situation in the United Arab Emirates is unclear. In many Muslim nations, such as Bahrain, Qatar, Algeria or the Maldives, homosexuality is punished with jail time, fines or corporal punishment. In some Muslim-majority nations, such as Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, or Mali, same-sex intercourse is not forbidden by law. However, in Egypt gays have been the victims of laws against “morality”.

    In Saudi Arabia, the maximium punishment for homosexuality is public execution, but the government will use other punishments, i.e. fines, jail time and whipping as alternatives, unless it feels that homosexuals are challenging state authority by engaging in a gay rights movement. [4] Iran is perhaps the nation to execute the largest number of its citizens for homosexuality. Since its Islamic revolution in Iran, the Iranian government has executed more than 4000 people charged with homosexual acts. In Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban homosexuality went from a capital crime to one that it punished with fines and prison sentence, and a similar situation seems to have occurred in Iraq.”

  23. nemski says:

    John made a funny. John hates Muslims. John doesn’t understand that there are many more Catholics in the United States (yes, John that’s where we live) than Muslims. Once again, John made a funny.

  24. anonone says:

    Excuse me, John, but I speak out against all theistic religions and their unfounded beliefs.

    And, by the way, there are christianists in this country that wish we had similar penalties for these “sins” in this country that the islamists you cite have in theirs.

  25. jason330 says:

    “Human Ecology” I think it has to do with weaker humans being eaten by stronger humans.

  26. jason330 says:

    One of the classes is hunting Hobos.

  27. John Feroce says:

    “Once again, John made a funny.”

    Like I said, you have no balls to call them out. You can’t do it can you? Sit by in silence and ignore the facts.

    Guys like you are a dime a dozen, you hide behind your computer rather than say the truth as it applies to all who project hate.

    I don’t hate Muslims asshole, I suggest you do…at least gay ones or are you going to say something about their atrocities finally?

  28. John Feroce says:

    “John hates Muslims. ”

    and one more thing Nemski, why do you say I hate Muslims? Is it because I wrote a post on a 56yr old guy marrying an eight year old and think that it should be illegal?

    If you support that, you’re sick in the head.

  29. Rod says:

    Mike get real, they don’t feed and cloth the poor. They make a gesture to the poor with food and clothing that is all. The catholic church has spent more of their 2000 years hating and murdering, (the crusades, the inquisition, the crusade against the cathars, constant bickering with the Byzantine church, World War II Pius XII gives lip service to the Italian jews but does very little to speak out about the atrocities against the Jews. Cut me a break, many men in the church and the vatican hide behide thier collars. Jesus never hid, shame on Fr Ratzinger, shame on the Curia who listen to him.

  30. anonone says:

    Gee, only 400 years later:

    “Galileo Galilei is going from heretic to hero.

    The Vatican is recasting the most famous victim of its Inquisition as a man of faith, just in time for the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s telescope and the U.N.-designated International Year of Astronomy next year.

    Pope Benedict XVI paid tribute to the Italian astronomer and physicist Sunday, saying he and other scientists had helped the faithful better understand and “contemplate with gratitude the Lord’s works.”

    In May, several Vatican officials will participate in an international conference to re-examine the Galileo affair, and top Vatican officials are now saying Galileo should be named the “patron” of the dialogue between faith and reason.

    It’s quite a reversal of fortune for Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), who made the first complete astronomical telescope and used it to gather evidence that the Earth revolved around the sun. Church teaching at the time placed Earth at the center of the universe.

    The church denounced Galileo’s theory as dangerous to the faith, but Galileo defied its warnings. Tried as a heretic in 1633 and forced to recant, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, later changed to house arrest.”

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/23/vatican-rewrites-history_n_153232.html

  31. R Smitty says:

    Honestly, I don’t call them out, because I don’t know enough about it. I know what I hear in the news, but as is with most things, that should hardly represent a full reference of knowledge.

  32. cassandra_m says:

    How are their religious leaders doing in the tolerance department?

    This is just misdirection. We call out the intolerant Christians in the US because they have some political clout left and are working pretty hard to codify their intolerances and bigotries. It seems plenty reasonable to neutralize one’s own fundamentalists before taking on everyone else’s.

  33. John Feroce says:

    “It seems plenty reasonable to neutralize one’s own fundamentalists before taking on everyone else’s.”

    Did the Vatican become a US territory while I was sleeping? I guess I missed that.

  34. cassandra m says:

    Another bit of silly misdirection. Folks in the Vatican are providing some aid and comfort to those here who are trying to codify their intolerances and bigotries.

    Besides, you’d think that a President you supported who was supposed to bring freedom and democracy to the world would have asked his friends in the Middle East to get with the program while they were vacuuming up our money.