Man does not live on bread alone, but from every word issued to another atheist reporter.
In other words, another week, another papal interview with several “What the flock?” quotes?
Before I start, let me stipulate that just like before, if you turn your head 30 degrees to the left and squint, everything the Pope says can be squared with Catholic teaching, as if that still matters anymore.
Let’s start off with the biggest “Really?!?!” quote.
“The most serious of the evils that afflict the world these days are youth unemployment and the loneliness of the old. The old need care and companionship; the young need work and hope but have neither one nor the other, and the problem is they don’t even look for them any more. “
Really? The most serious evils afflicting the world? Surely Miley Cyrus should have made the list, no? If not Hannah Montana, then, oh I dunno, millions o’ dead babies annually? Maybe them over youth unemployment? I am sure I just failing to understand the context here, again.
It’s a joke I tell him. My friends think it is you want to convert me.He smiles again and replies: “Proselytism is solemn nonsense, it makes no sense. We need to get to know each other, listen to each other and improve our knowledge of the world around us.
To which I tweeted “‘Cause Jesus said “Go therefore and make disciples…listen and improve your knowledge of the world around you!”
The Crescat at Patheos (Both noted for their radical traditionalism, right?) seems to agree when she similarly wrote in response “Ha. Ha. Lulz. You mean this bit of nonsense. — “Go therefore and teach all nations…”
I think there is a real danger of confusing proselytism with evangelization.
CCC The missionary mandate. “Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be ‘the universal sacrament of salvation,’ the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men”:339 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and Lo, I am with you always, until the close of the age.”340
Your Holiness, is there is a single vision of the Good? And who decides what it is?
“Each of us has a vision of good and of evil. We have to encourage people to move towards what they think is Good.”
Again, it can be seen with certain context to be true, but the context is lacking and the takeaway as clear as the truth here is muddied.
Perhaps the Pope’s grand secret vision is that when nobody really knows what the Church teaches anymore and when we stop trying to convert people, suddenly everyone will believe it?
Gotta go now, gotta get on that youth unemployment thing.
October 2, 2013 at 3:13 pm
To August…I agree with many of your points..Particularly your concern for young people not knowing the church and obsessed with materialism .The only "crowd" that matters to me is the one inside the Church..I am not sure about this "love" crowd you speak of..
October 2, 2013 at 6:10 pm
The people who screw up the liturgy and can't catechize to save a life. The homilies are filled with how much Jesus loves me just the way I am, which is a relief because, apparently, that means I can stay home on Sunday morning and just avoid the mega-dose of syrup. By declaring nothing profane, they make it rather hard to experience the sacred.
October 2, 2013 at 6:17 pm
Jonathan, thanks for posting that CDF doctrinal note upthread. I blogged it here: http://culbreath.wordpress.com/2013/10/02/how-not-to-evangelize/
October 2, 2013 at 6:49 pm
Well, Stephen, at least those who were graced to have been born have the opportunity to repent and gain heaven. Imagine the crushed souls of those who urge their girlfriends, daughters, and wives to abort their babies. If abortion were illegal, most of them would probably not have that sin on their souls.
You see, killing innocent unborn babies leads to loneliness, don't you think? A child that might have been there to comfort and keep company with an elderly mother or father is not there.
Bringing people to the Church who believe in and indulge in abortion, contraception, and so on, is not the way to save souls. The pews are full of such people. Are they any safer in their willful ignorance and disobedience than the average atheist?
October 3, 2013 at 3:07 am
Oh great, Obama loves the pope, especially his comments on abortion.
I'm sorry but this is bad, really bad. Like antichrist around the corner bad. there i said it.
October 3, 2013 at 4:34 am
To Gretchen.."The pews are full of such people" From you it sounds like there is more house cleaning is in order, You seem determined to rid the Church of more scoundrels. The Pope, the Holy See a descendant of Peter, seems to embody everything that you protest…Very troubling