Pope says 'backward' US conservatives replaced faith with ideology
euronews.com
Pope Francis condemned the "very strong, organised, reactionary attitude" in the US church and said Catholic doctrine allows for change over time.
Pope Francis has blasted the “backwardness” of some conservatives in the US Catholic Church, saying they have replaced faith with ideology and that a correct understanding of Catholic doctrine allows for change over time.
Francis’ comments were an acknowledgment of the divisions in the US Catholic Church, which has been split between progressives and conservatives who long found support in the doctrinaire papacies of St John Paul II and Benedict XVI, particularly on issues of abortion and same-sex marriage.
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EDIT: Do I really have to say that I'm not a Christian before arguing from their point. Didn't you muppets notice the blasphemy I added?
So that humanity can learn:
Then we'd be mindless puppets without free will. The guy, however, doesn't want to be admired by automatons but people who could decide otherwise.
It's the ole "if you slip your crush a love potion, is it actually love" problem and, indeed, no, it's rape.
What if you tell your crush they need to love you or you will throw them in a lake of fire to suffer for eternity while you enjoy sniffing the smoke?
That seems abusive. And maybe somewhat unhinged.
I really don't want to play Christian apologetics here, yes the whole thing is unhinged, and no I'm not even a Christian, this is all just comparative mysticism for me and I like The Sandman much better.
But specifically as to the hell thing the doctrine of denominations differ, e.g. Lutherans think that faith is not required before you have proof, that is, until you're standing at the crossroads of afterlife, heaven on one side and hell on the other. Capability to tell the both apart is something you probably should have taken some time to learn on earth, though.
It is possible to make Christianity make sense if, and only if, you interpret things just right. And it will put you at loggerheads with practically all Christians. Been there, done that, either they fall silent or they unleash the full force of their neuroses to ignore you, little in between.
And, of course, originally hell didn't even exist it was a question of oblivion vs. spend the afterlife in the radiance of god's presence. Not sure exactly where in the transformation from Judaism to Christianity that one happened but at the very least the vast majority of stuff about hell is bible fan-fiction.
Actually Hell is only a lake of fire on pop culture. In theology it is a state of depression persisting throughout the afterlife brought on by seperation from the divine.
Lol how does having that knowledge untainted message take away free will? To your example if someone doesn't know rape is illegal that doesn't mean it's a free pass if they rape someone and vice versa just because people know rape is illegal doesn't mean there aren't people raping other people out there.
Because knowledge is proof and in Christian understanding that would zonk your mind due to god's purported properties. Think of it like the ultimate high-ball, you'd instantly become a junkie.
What are you even saying? Just a long winded way to say "durrr you no comprehend God's will cause you silly stupid hoomen"
I mean there's a lot of things I don't understand, and don't think I can possibly understand, that are way smaller than how Christians describe god.
They understand it more like a consequence of physics, as a logically necessary property. Like a fat man jumping on a trampoline full of kids, sure they're still going to bounce but it won't be their bouncing, any more.
Which is my point, their god if they exist clearly isn't omnipotent, otherwise the dude could do anything from turning the frequency down to something us wittle itty bitty silly hoomens could understand or vice versa increase our mental aptitude and make us 'smarter'.
I mean he did by sending a less fat guy down (the one who got nailed to the cross). But jumping on a trampoline with Jesus doesn't constitute proof of the whole trinity shebang.
And yes the whole omnipotence thing breaks down as soon as you try to break logic with it. The Stoic take on that stuff makes a lot more sense: The gods are benevolent and the hardness we suffer is a product of their non-omnipotence, however they gave us that divine spark -- reason and wisdom -- to be able to get on top of things. They furnished the world to be as perfect as they could, the rest is up to us. Of course for the Stoics philosophy comes first, religion is simply some mythology to tack on afterwards.
I mean yes that idea has been in many religions since we were shitting on the grass living in huts. Greek mythology, Aztec mythology, Chinese mythology, Japanese mythology all follow similar lines of thought where you try to gain the attention of what ever god you're seeking favor from by doing X thing(s)(sacrifice of some sort, leave food/drink as offering, slaughtering other gods followers). But even that doesn't prove anything especially if they were truly benevolent why wouldn't they reveal themselves? And not just through a human but ACTUALLY reveal themselves.
Pagan gods do? I mean it's all biology/psychology but with plurality still intact instincts can self-portrait as archetypes, thereby more strongly influencing adaptation, seen either in dreams, visions, or projected out onto the world, also other people. The difference to ancestral cults (correctly understood) is merely sorting genetic knowledge (or better put expectations of the world) into categories so it's easier to spot. Read Freud for the basal instincts, Adler for the social ones, Jung for the actualising ones. Also, Panksepp.
Also, Thor exists. Proof: Christian churches have lightning rods.
Oh, thinking of it, that stuff is the one big truth contained in Christianity: The personal god / the priesthood of all believers. The rest is just fucking confused. Meister Eckhart definitely had something but it's kinda like Buddha trying to teach while avoiding getting burned at the stake so the conceptual framework is rather impenetrable as everything had to be cast into pre-existing doctrine.
Symbolic allotting of resources to an instinct, nourishing it, and, erm, pathos. Don't do the last one that's mania and gods are perfectly content with you sacrificing some time and mental space, the ritual is for you, not them. In any case if it loses its magic just because you wrap it in a materialist explanation it's not the real deal, yet you can repeat "I'm doing psychology" as mantra as much as you want when connecting up at that level but it's still going to feel religious -- because that's the quality of the qualia you see in that area: Magic happens because you didn't expect things. Otherwise it wouldn't feel that way, it's the sound of your mind getting a good knead-through.
They don't reveal themselves, no one ever saw the gods and presented definitive proof. it's always stories conveying that they saw them or as you say "visions in their head". Guess what, I have a vision in my head of being a billionaire surrounded by a Haram of hot models all wanting to fulfill my every desire. Oh...gee...it's just a vision and not reality.
And you should read up on your gods, there are gods that absolutely want tributes, trinkets, and sacrifices in exchange for favors, hell Satan wants your soul for eternity in exchange for what ever you'll agree too according to the Christian texts. But whether you get peace or what ever reaction from performing said ritual means nothing to the actual intent of said ritual which is giving tribute to that specific god. Even in Christianity the prevailing belief is by worshipping god you will gain their favor and be granted a place in the magical eternal kingdom of heaven. That in and of itself is paying tribute in a ritual.
...to the gods that's exactly what I said. I get the distinct feeling that you didn't even read 10% of what I wrote.
"Don’t do the last one that’s mania and gods are perfectly content with you sacrificing some time and mental space, the ritual is for you, not them"
These are your literal words.
Yes. The ritual is for you (the ego) not for them (the instincts). To bring yourself into a mindstate where you aren't so pre-occupied with everyday stuff and the external world that you're ignoring messages from deeper inside yourself.
If you can switch channels without ritual then all the more power to you. Buddhists rightly caution against attachment to ritual, however, that doesn't mean that you can't use them -- only that you shouldn't get attached, lest things become performative. But attachment to "I will never sprinkle rice" (or what have you) is the same trap, easily itself an (internal) ritual.
An all knowing all powerful God is incompatible with free will.
Those ascriptions are incompatible with logical consistency in general. But a Christian would say: God chooses to not use power.