Polluting the environment is now as sinful as abortion and pedaphilia?

[Abu]

coco2
during Mass a priest from the pulpit said the coal mining was a sin….then the next week he said that the actual coal miners weren’t sinning but those who work for the company ( other than the union guys) were sinning.

This is the sort of dissent and twisting of Catholic social teaching which is so harmful to the Faith. It indicates what could be poor seminary formation which unfortunately still exists here and there, and the devastating effects of the secular hype which makes the environment a god. The fact that non-union members were targeted seems to indicate an enormous prejudice.
If there are glaring management and safety concerns in any particular location, the place to express indignation is the local and federal authorities responsible for safety supervision there, not in the pulpit.

Have you had sound homilies against, contraception, abortion, euthanasia, IVF, forcing Catholic institutions to provide contraceptive or abortion advice, etc.?

the Bishop then put up a pamphlet called “On This Holy Mountain” and it was about basically the evils of coal mining, particularly mountain-top removal, safety problems, and basically how unjust the coal companies can be to their workers.

In this day and age, it sounds over the top, but without all details no more can be said.

Individuals are responsible for the ethical and moral responsibilities in free enterprise whose laws of economics based on cause and effect have been developed by the Catholic Late Scholastics, and which arose in the Catholic monastic estates in the ninth century. It is this wealth creation which has transformed untold millions from destitution to a reasonable standard of living.

Have you had any pamphlets from the Bishop on the vital issues, or similar, which I listed for homilies above?

Of course there is absolutely nothing wrong with coal mining per se, and the sooner we get the expansion of nuclear energy, the better off will we all be. BTW, carbon dioxide is a wonderful gas for enabling healthy, vigorous plant growth.

 

[bearer]

Ok, let’s say coal miners aren’t doing God’s work. How far do we take this? Depending on where you live and how you get energy, do you use electricity? If you turn on the lights in your home you are supporting those “not doing God’s work” . Do you get your energy from nuclear plants? Oh boy, we have seen what harm those can do to thousands of innocent people at a given moment. Natural gas? Uh oh, not so good either. Should we start living like the Amish with no electricity?

What about our cars? Cars, trucks, planes, boats, trains ALL cause pollution. Is it a sin to drive a car around now? Where are the lines drawn, if they can determine that.

So it is a sin if you work for the coal company in management, not a sin if you work for the company as a Union worker. Not a sin if you turn on your lights and use up the resources? Give me a break, this sounds like hypocrisy to me.

The bottom line is that we’re all sinners regardless, that no one man is above the rest, and that one person’s sins do not excuse the sins of others. I’m not here to point the finger, just to remind people to keep things in perspective.

No matter what each of us does in our lives, we must consider God first, no matter how inconvenient it is to our earthly pursuits. He created the earth and gave it to us. The least we can do is respect the planet for what it is–His Creation.

 

[puzzleannie]

A number of sources have been posted. Did you miss them? The OP posted the article she had read, and another poster posted links to Zenit. And for good measure, here is the actual article from L’Osservatore Romano interviewing Bishop Gianfranco Girotti. It is translated from the Italian.

blog.acton.org/uploads/penitentiary_interview.pdf

yes the only one that interests me is the one from zenit rebutting OP’s contention

 

[shaky]

The bottom line is that we’re all sinners regardless, that no one man is above the rest, and that one person’s sins do not excuse the sins of others. I’m not here to point the finger, just to remind people to keep things in perspective.

No matter what each of us does in our lives, we must consider God first, no matter how inconvenient it is to our earthly pursuits. He created the earth and gave it to us. The least we can do is respect the planet for what it is–His Creation.

Well if we all sit around watching TV or playing computer games burning electricity. That will not help on the environment. There are lots of worldly pursuits. we could spend more time with God studying his written word. Talking to God=praying+ Listening to God his rhema word and talking to others about christ and his church and leading them to it.

 

[bearer]

Well if we all sit around watching TV or playing computer games burning electricity. That will not help on the environment. There are lots of worldly pursuits. we could spend more time with God studying his written word. Talking to God=praying+ Listening to God his rhema word and talking to others about christ and his church and leading them to it.

Hehe, you do realize you’re preaching to the choir, don’t you? Go tell the rest of our brothers who aren’t here on the forums. I will too.

 

[Michael_Francis]

Thanks to all who participated. This thread is now closed.