Poll: U.S. Catholics want a younger, more liberal pope

[BigBlueCane]

Any of the issues you mentioned is more important than the millions of unborn children that are slaughtered around the world each year?

Well which life is more important? Those of the unborn of those of the living and suffering? Not a question I can answer but the problem that people have is that the perception is the Church is obsessed with gay marriage and contraception but doesn’t come out enough on other more pressing issues.

 

[Auntie_A]

LOL. Most of what they want is impossible, which simply highlights their ignorance or hubris, the need for properly educating them in the faith, and the irrelevancy of their opinions until they know what they are talking about.

So well said, Mr. Drebin. Many people/pollsters think that opinions are like pennies; you can stack them up and buy something with them…so we arrive at our opinions quickly and poorly, never really knowing how to form one.

I wish we could learn more, teach some, and express our opinions less. What would that look like?

 

[Auntie_A]

Well which life is more important? Those of the unborn of those of the living and suffering? Not a question I can answer but the problem that people have is that the perception is the Church is obsessed with gay marriage and contraception but doesn’t come out enough on other more pressing issues.

Two points:

1.) Why must the argument be “which is more important?” I didn’t know that humans were that pitted against each other. We are all important: unborn, living, suffering, dying…

2.) I frequently hear the word “obsessing” when describing the Catholic Church’s stance on abortion and other issues of morality. I think society is doing the obsessing in its lack of moral reason and the Church merely responds to help us find our way in the dark.

 

[JamesCaruso]

Well which life is more important? Those of the unborn of those of the living and suffering? Not a question I can answer but the problem that people have is that the perception is the Church is obsessed with gay marriage and contraception but doesn’t come out enough on other more pressing issues.

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

 

[Jeanne_S]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

 

[jwinch2]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

Exactly right. One might also ask why the Church is being forced out of adoption services and her work to prevent human trafficking all because of the issues of gay marriage, etc. Who really has the focus on these issues?

 

[Elizabeth502]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church -]could/-] does say one sentence about either of those topics and the media -]would spin/-] **spins ** out thousands of articles…People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way.

(With slight modifications, mine. )

 

[New_World_Man]

Watched WGN news today and they had some renegade nun from Chicago on. They were doing some protest because of the typical complaints(women should be priests,abortion,contraception,gay rights). To my shock,they also say she has escorted women INTO abortion clinics! This is who we are supposed to listen to?
Get real tired of every MSM discussion being about how the Church needs to "change"for liberal(not talking politically)Americans and western Europeans. What selfishness.

 

[Morwenna]

Exactly right. One might also ask why the Church is being forced out of adoption services and her work to prevent human trafficking all because of the issues of gay marriage, etc. Who really has the focus on these issues?

 

[LisaA]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

Thank you…I hope BBC will read your post since mine said the same thing in effect. It’s the MSM that is obsessed with gay marriage and women’s uteri not the Church. The Church’s position regarding these issues is consistent and unwavering. The essential focus is on the dignity of every human being whereas the current culture spawns a tide of objectifying and using of people for recreational purposes. Unfortunately with the minimal attention span of the average American, the screaming headlines about how the Church is mired in the Dark Ages connect far too well. The baloney being spread today about the Church, Pope Francis and the priesthood would keep Oscar Mayer in business for decades.

If only we could get more to read Theology of the Body or various encyclicals that explain the logic and reason and plain old biology as well as theology behind the Church’s teachings on these issues. Truth is beauty and beauty is truth…with apologies to Keats. But there is nothing beautiful about the lies alive and well in our hook up, shack up culture.

Lisa

 

[CMatt25]

That’s what you claim, to be liberal. There is only one way to live a moral life, according to the precepts and doctrinal teachings of the one Church, the Catholic Church. If She changes, She will cease being Truth.

Those who claim to be liberal make claims for, ordaining women, allowances made in contraceptive use, choice of death for unborn children, etc. Many of these things people accept in the name of social justice. Social justice such as health care, feeding the poor, housing, and these social justice issues do not trump life. We can’t serve God by feeding the poor with good conscience without protecting the unborn. There are none poorer than the unborn, none more hungry than those who are aborted by their mothers, none more homeless than those sucked out of their mother’s womb by “doctors”.

You call your self liberal and align yourself with these atrocities then call me a conservative by standing faithful to the gospel. I use your term and you call me out.

Lapey, I guess you’ll have to make up your own mind if you want to use the terms or not. As I’m not the one who said “I do not see liberal and conservative” and then proceeded to use “my term”.

 

[onmyknees]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

Exactly!!!

 

[CMatt25]

Well which life is more important? Those of the unborn of those of the living and suffering? Not a question I can answer but the problem that people have is that the perception is the Church is obsessed with gay marriage and contraception but doesn’t come out enough on other more pressing issues.

Well another poster said Francis will be on the “more emphasis side” of the poor. Which if it comes to bear fruit, by my book when I read in Matt 25 what Jesus said about obtaining righteousness and eternal life in relation to serving the lives of the poor and the sick, can be nothing but a good thing.

 

[epan]

Well, at the age of 76, he doesn’t exactly promise much in terms of vigor or longevity. But let’s see how it goes. I wish him the best, while I question the wisdom of the college of cardinals. Time will tell.

 

[JamesCaruso]

Well, at the age of 76, he doesn’t exactly promise much in terms of vigor or longevity. But let’s see how it goes. I wish him the best, while I question the wisdom of the college of cardinals. Time will tell.

Hopefully, it wasn’t the wisdom of the college of cardinals but instead the guidance of the Holy Spirit, not to say it couldn’t be both.

 

[ephesians4]

The Church is not obsessed with gay marriage and contraception, the liberal media is. The Church could say one sentence about either of those topics and the media would spin out thousands of articles.

So you really believe the Church is not already working with the poor and suffering-- no let me rephrase that-- is not already the number one organization in the entire world that is working with the poor and the suffering?

People only have the perception about the Church because the media paints it that way. While the Church constantly works to help the poor and suffering everywhere, the media chooses to focus on its pet issues of the day-- gay marriage and contraception. Your criticism should be of the media which is so shallow it spends all its time on non-issues-- instead of allowing the Catholic Church to teach what it believes to its members it launches a full scale campaign to portray the Church as out of touch, oppressive, speaking hate speech against homosexuals, and denying women their reproductive rights.

Excellent post. I think there is a massive number of people wishing to attack Christianity at the moment, and since common practice these days to discredit someone without regard to their character is to use some violation of “PC rules” to
start a witch-hunt, it is not an entirely staggering coincidence that this is happening against the church.

I suppose “homophobia” is a great banner to organise a witch-hunt under, given the current climate, so its use against the single biggest Christian community on the planet probably makes sense.

 

[Lapey]

Well another poster said Francis will be on the “more emphasis side” of the poor. Which if it comes to bear fruit, by my book when I read in Matt 25 what Jesus said about obtaining righteousness and eternal life in relation to serving the lives of the poor and the sick, can be nothing but a good thing.

The Church has been acting out in the real world Matthew 25 since day one. Nothing will change here, there is nothing to change. What hopefully will change is the factions of the Church that forget about the “least among us”, the “least of my brethren”; those who cannot do anything what so ever to defend themselves; the unborn and the aged. There are none poorer than the child in the womb forgotten by his/her mother, none more hungry, none more in need of clothing, none more deserving of ours and God’s mercy.

Francis was asked by God to “rebuild My Church” from the inside out. I pray this is exactly why our new Holy Father chose this name. We are split by the very things you bring up CMatt. You talk as though it is an either or, I speak of abortion and other issues and you assume I forget about the gospel.

If we choose to feed the poor and care for the sick, then we have Catholics fighting for abortion rights, contraception, and same sex “marriage” we are liars. Either we are the Church of Jesus Christ or the Church of man and world, “cannot serve both God and mammon.” We must live “in the world, not of the world.”

You choose to put yourself outside of the Church; the Church has not cast you out. You choose your liberal political views over the truth of Jesus. You are Catholic and always will be, even though you choose to look at Her from outside. I pray you learn the whole teaching on conscience taught by Mother Church. You know the sections in the CCC, I’ve shared them in their entirety many times with you; sadly as we see this day come you still choose the one section that states a person is bound to follow his conscience and continue to ignore the requirement to properly form that conscience, and the affects of an erroneous conscience.

This is why there is no liberal or conservative, no republican or democrat, there is only truth and there is only one known as Truth, Jesus. Your term liberal is in your description of your affiliation to religion. To me, a Catholic obedient to the Church and her leaders seeing your profile list what you serve, “liberal”, I can’t help but feel sad. Sad because I know you are Catholic, at one time a daily communicant and you choose liberal over His Church. It is more important to you to proclaim your desire to be a liberal more than your desire to be Catholic and His disciple.

I pray once again you take my words for what they are, fraternal correction by your brother and an invitation to reconsider.

 

[Lapey]

That is true but what happens is people see the church with an ultra obsession with gay marriage, contraception and abortion (granted all topics that have their own merit) yet they don’t come out, visibly, with the same fervor and passion on things like immigration reform, climate change, women’s rights (not reproductive), and for the poor. To many people those issues are more important or more pressing than it is whether or not we should use condoms or not.

Immigration reform is needed, borders should be open but monitored; however, this is not on the same playing field as abortion. Global warming or climate change, as it is labeled now, is not even the consensus among the scientists, so you want me to put as much effort for that as I put in fighting against abortion? Do you really think the two issues are any where close to being equal or even similar? Sorry, not buying that bull. Women’s rights, please explain this one because as far as I know women have the same rights as men, where is my error?

There is only one demographic which does not enjoy civil rights in the USA and for most of the world, and that is the unborn; that group of human beings are not even allowed to be born, some estimates are as high as a third of all pregnancies end in abortion.

Your arguments speak more for the other side than yours. The topics you bring up pale in comparison.

 

[Lapey]

Not in the slightest. I’m telling you what the perception is.

You need to venture out past MSNBC. Their perception is confused by secular liberalism. They hold disdain for church teachings and Mother Church because of them.

 

[Lapey]

Well which life is more important? Those of the unborn of those of the living and suffering? Not a question I can answer but the problem that people have is that the perception is the Church is obsessed with gay marriage and contraception but doesn’t come out enough on other more pressing issues.

In the way you listed it, I would say the unborn. They are the “least among us”, and the “least of My brethren”; wouldn’t you agree? They can do absolutely nothing to defend their self, absolutely nothing. They cannot defend their self in any way shape or form, even against their mothers.

There are none that you mention more important than contraception, its use and acceptance has fostered this culture of death. It cheapens life by demeaning the same women that you claim to want to give equal rights to. It makes them objects of pleasure and lessens the sanctity of marriage and the marital embrace. When this fails, society will fail; history has shown this and we are repeating history.

However, your argument is a straw man argument because it is not an either or, the Church does do both. Just some in the Church choose to ignore the scourge of abortion in the popular name of “choice”. It is a noble thought in some circles. But this is what God says;

Isa. 49:15

Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.