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About LinkBacksSo, he's been there for a year. What do people make of him? Does it matter what he says or does? Does anyone care?!
So, he's been there for a year. What do people make of him? Does it matter what he says or does? Does anyone care?!
"To stand inquiring right, is not to stray,
To sleep, or run wrong is"
- John Donne
Suprisingly low-key. Most people thought he'd be a fire-and-brimstone hardliner and a tad bug-eyed. Instead we've had a slight softening of the line on contraception teaching, especially in AIDS-ravaged Africa. And not a lot else.
Maybe he's just allowing a decent amount of time to pass from the death of JPII before trying to put his own stamp on the Papacy. Or maybe he's not the extremist loon a lot of the media tried to paint him as. Or maybe he is saying loads of things, but nobody in this country actually cares any more what some old dude in Rome thinks. Or maybe the Conclave appointed him specifically as a caretaker Pope to do as little as possible for a couple of years while they try to come to a consensus on what the direction for the Catholic Church should be in this day and age.
Probably too early to say.
Je suis un loo-lah
Yeah, he's been fairly quiet. I thought (well, the press made me believe) that he wouod have offended someome by now.
He's been grand. Oh, the "liberals" havent been happy to have something to complain about. Poor Vincent Browne! I still don't buy his magazine much because of his infantile views on God.
Though media shy, the man is not inactive. A doctrinal theologian, it is towards that end that one must look to assess his record.
So far he has done much to remove the taboo surrounding sex while still maintaining the Church's position on sex for sex's sake- which is to say it is bad. Also, his statement that charity should never be issued on condition of religious observance but rather out of pure love is important. And he abolished limbo, which was an embarrassing admittance of past error, and a move that took a degree of courage to make.
You have to trawl through quite a bit of information to find the gems. They don't quite have the ring of, "young people of ireland, I love you," but there's a lot of substance to the things he pens.
All in all, I think he has been impressive. He is tidying up the Church's theology effectively and clarifying some issues that have been murky in the past. I think some people actually wanted a pontiff that frothed at the mouth and condemned people to hell fire from his balcony. You can get that in the Bible belt of America if you want. We won't be able to form an accurate opinion though unless he lays down a sizeable change that might give an idea of direction. The last Pope reintroduced indulgences, which was a fair clue to the conservative undertones that directed his papacy. Pope Benedict XVI is still playing with his cards to his chest.
[size=7]Pope Benedict's Cards[/size]
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the internet, we know this is not true.
Much like his 'landsmännin' Dr Merkel, Benedict has specialised in gaining popularity by doing nothing of note. No big gaffes so far. All very low key and unspectacular. There's nothing in the world worng with that by the way. The Church did not need a beta version of John Paul II.
The soundings he has made since his elevation have not been as controversail as those he made as head of docterine. I doubt his veiws have changed but rather that he recognises his role as largely cremonial figure within the church who needs to unite rather than divide the church.
The recent soundings from the Vactain regarding condom usage has certainly defied his reputation as a stauch conservative. I doubt JPII wouldn have allowed that debate to even take place.
His media poytrail after his election (specially in the British media) was way over the top and boarded on anti-German rascism at times.
"Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative."
Oscar Wilde
Ah, it was all above board really.Originally Posted by eurocrat
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the internet, we know this is not true.
Which views would those be?
Some people get into a tizzy because he calls Church doctrine 2,000 years of making stuff up and the Lord's Prayer gobbledygook. It doesn't bother myself personally- opponents should keep a level head and engage his substantive challenges rather than taking the bait and jumping into the role of the morally outraged.
Though, his Irish Times colleague, Patsy McGarry, lays down far better and more thoroughly thought out challenges in my opinion. His tsunami article, in which he claimed no God could exist who oversaw such suffering, was a positive contribution to general theological debate. Vincent Browne's articles are generally simple nit-picking around the edges which provide for little constructive debate.
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the internet, we know this is not true.
Pope Benedict is OK and is acting much more like a traditional Pope than JPII was.Some people get into a tizzy because he calls Church doctrine 2,000 years of making stuff up and the Lord's Prayer gobbledygook. It doesn't bother myself personally- opponents should keep a level head and engage his substantive challenges rather than taking the bait and jumping into the role of the morally outraged.
Though, his Irish Times colleague, Patsy McGarry, lays down far better and more thoroughly thought out challenges in my opinion. His tsunami article, in which he claimed no God could exist who oversaw such suffering, was a positive contribution to general theological debate. Vincent Browne's articles are generally simple nit-picking around the edges which provide for little constructive debate.
Can't say I agree with wiping out Limbo though.
What happened to the souls of all the poor babies within?
Europa Conventus Delenda Est
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