Are you American first, or Catholic first? What is more important? Your Catholic religion, or your politically conservative beliefs?
This is precisely what I was trying to draw out about the description of the priest’s homily described in the OP. I am a Catholic who tries to align my political ideas with the teachings of the Church. To have a discussion about social justice which mentions 5 issues none of which is abortion, the greatest social injustice of all, and considering the 5 issues mentioned, I would conclude that the partisan first, Catholic second is the priest if his homily was accurately described.
because you brought up so many interesting points, I decided to answer more broadly than simply explaining my tactic. Probably we should take any individual points up in their own thread(s) so as not to derail this one with extraneous issues.
I am not asking any of this to be uncharitable, or condescending, but the Catholic Church has always called for social justice.
But, social justice as defined by whom?
Abortion – A Matter of Human Rights and Social Justice: “The right to safe abortion, to determine when and if to become a parent, and the right to healthy sexuality is an issue of both human rights and of social justice.”
Abortion Fund for Social Justice. (Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for them)
[sic]
The only difference now is you have a Pope who is calling louder, and some clergy are responding in term.
Priests like the one described have been talking like that for decades now. In fact, young people in the 1960s would leave the Church, thinking that engaging is social justice work was sufficient, not understanding the point of going to Mass.
Many of the things you’re speaking are injustices, certainly, but here’s the thing… There’s two sides to every argument. Things are seldom black and white as much as they are black and black.
And there are two sides to the issues he brought up too. For example,
higher rates of incarceration among blacks? Supported by many prominent black people as they watched drugs ravage their communities.
Would we have illegals here in the first place, if their nations could provide for them, and their economies weren’t often ruined because of first world exploitations?
Do you know how long it has been since the First World “exploited” less-developed nations’ resources?
Do you know how much the US pays Mexico annually for oil? Do you know that the Mexican government does provide health care for its citizens? Perhaps if the US had taken care of its own poor and not shipped their jobs off to other nations, the poor here would not be using so many drugs, thus funding a corrupting and violence-fueled drug economy in Mexico which is reportedly driving Mexicans to illegally escape to the US.
Would ISIS even exist, if not for Western manipulation of Middle Eastern politics?
Does the destablization of ME governments somehow excuse ISIS from beheading Yazidi and Christian men and selling their wives and daughters as sex slaves?
Would those hospitals that closed because people couldn’t pay their ER bills, if healthcare was actually affordable or even provided by the state?
Last I heard, 56% of the illegal immigrants in the US were from Mexico, where they have state-provided health care.
Maybe when you look at the world, you see good and evil.
Yes, actually I do. I also see the chance for redemption, the opportunity to grow in holiness, neither of which seem to be on the radar of those priests like the one described.
But I just see a fallen world, with no clear heroes and villains,
What is the difference? Why are there no heroes in your world?
On 9/11, Father Rutler was walking on the streets near Wall Street. As the police and fire officials passed by and saw his collar, they stopped and made their confessions.
They knew where they were going, and they knew their chances of getting out. And they went anyway. They are heroes.
In November 2015, an Islamic militant attacked and killed people on a beach in Morroco. The Moslem workers at the hotel ran out to protect the tourists, forming a human shield and telling the gunman that he would have to kill them, Moslems, to get to the others. They are heroes.
but a world that I believe we can make better with love and compassion. But in order to do that, we need to break down the barriers around our own hearts, and far to often those barriers are political ideologies.
We cannot make the world a better place without first making people better people, by showing them the love of God and praying for their conversion. Answering evil done by force with an attempt to place good by force is not an answer.
very insightful…bravo.
A few of the Knights walked out. (just from the homily, not the whole Mass)
I’ll have to remember that one.
it is truly a shame that the term “social justice”, like many, has been hijacked by those seeking more power in the political process.
FWIW - I’m on a Scripture study email group and the sentiment (and recollection) from those that were in attendance is exactly the same.