February 16, 2012
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Condemning the Catholic Hierarchy
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
Religious Freedom means Freedom FROM Religion as much as it does Freedom FOR Religions. With that in mind, I would like to rant about the Catholic Church. To condemn the Catholic Church is not the same as condemning all religions. Why? The Lutherans do not try to impose their beliefs on the actions of society. Nor do the Episcopalians, nor do the Baptists (usually), nor do the Mormons, nor do the Christian Scientists. But the Catholic Hierarchy does.
And here, I will make a distinction between the Catholic Hierarchy and the Catholic congregants. So what is said about the abusive behavior of the Catholic Hierarchy does not necessarily apply to the individuals who are Catholics. The individuals believe in contraception. The Hierarchy does not. The individuals I know do not feel their beliefs should be imposed on all of society. The Hierarchy does. Just as the Hierarchy is different from other religions and other denominations, so too is it different from the individuals within the church.
Freedom of Religion means that one is free to believe whatever they want. Freedom of religion does not mean they are free to do whatever they want including actions contrary to what is best for society. We allow people to believe in Voodoo as a religion, but we do not allow them to sacrifice goats and chickens. We allow Mormons to believe what they want, but we do not allow them to practice polygamy. We, as a society, will allow the Catholic Hierarchy to believe whatever they want, but we will not allow them to impose their beliefs in such a way that it dictates the actions within our society. The Catholic Hierarchy does not have the right to tell me what to do or to determine what does or does not happen to me. Their beliefs cannot be used as a reason for society’s laws or practices. There may be a correlation between a religion’s beliefs and the laws of society, but there must not be a cause and effect relationship. A religion may believe in monogamy or not believe in murder which may be in accord with the laws in society. But the reasons for the laws are not because of the religious beliefs – there is only a correlation and not a cause and effect.
If one takes off their blinders of provincialism and look at other countries and how they are governed, they will see the practice of Secularism. (Norway,Sweden, even the Catholic countries of France and Austria). Secularism does not try to do away with religion. It allows religions to flourish and promotes Freedom OF Religious Beliefs. However Secularism does not allow the laws and actions of society to be the result of religious beliefs. No religious belief is used as a reason for a law, nor are exclusions based on religions allowed. Everyone, regardless of religion, is treated equally. Good Governance is based on doing what is best for all of society – not what is best for any one religion.
The approach besides Secularism is Pluralism which tries to accommodate to many and all religions. This is impossible and should not even be considered a rational approach. Under Pluralism, each religion tries to grasp more power than all the others and chaos reigns. And this is what happens here in the US with our Pluralistic approach. And the Catholic Hierarchy are hell-bent to obtain as much power and influence over our society as possible.
The Catholic Hierarchy needs to learn their place. When John F. Kennedy ran for President and became first Catholic President, he was very careful to explain that he would not be taking orders from the Vatican in his governance. What happened to that? Now we expect the Bishops from the Vatican to order our Government around and tell it how it should enact its laws. (For example, I give you Newt Gingrich.) The Catholic Hierarchy should butt out of our Government and be happy that they are allowed to believe whatever they want to believe. I am not a Catholic and I do not appreciate the Catholic Hierarchy trying to tell me what to do, or how to do it, or influence what others can and cannot do for me. As far as I’m concerned, the Catholic Hierarchy is anything but Christian and should be ashamed of itself for its actions. It is a shameful institution.
Comments (14)
I think I’m misreading the second sentence of the last paragraph because I’m running on 2 hours of sleep. Kennedy wasn’t the first Catholic to run for president. I think that was Al Smith.
@godfatherofgreenbay - Thank you. You didn’t mis-read it – I mis-wrote it. I have now changed it to “and became the first Catholic President”
from a religious point of view… god gave us free will and how can we make those choices when the church has a hand in politics??? everybody wants their cake their way. I personally like pie. =)
very well put. you made the point perfectly. i’ll add something i’ve said before, Vatican City is a sovereign nation. you don’t go to Italy to get to Vatican City. you go through Italy to get to Vatican City. the Catholic clergy gives its allegiance not to the sovereign nation called the United States but to the sovereign nation called Vatican City. they have no more place in dictating to us their laws or economic philosophies than we to to their country’s.
on a related note someone or some group within the Vatican has leaked documents showing turmoil and corruption within the Vatican. as if we needed more, so much for being infallible and a moral authority over the will of other nations.
nicely done !!!
Your red text on a black sparkly background is not conducive to easy reading. I’ll probably give it another go later
@TheSutraDude - Thanks. I agree that they are more than a religion, they are a country with, I believe, an American Ambassador. The Vatican, as a religious organization or as a State, has no business trying to control our society.
Good post. The “Church” should be the servant of the State, not the other way around. Also the “Church” should be offering hope, not demanding servitude from the people.
Neatly expressed. Thumbs up man!
I didn’t realize that Catholics, in general, were under attack!
You’re wrong, though. It’s not just Catholics. Prop 8 passed primarily because of the Mormon Church, and the majority of people who support exactly what you blame the Catholic hierarchy for are evangelical protestants.
No matter how popular it is to single out Catholicism, it is hardly unique among western religions.
@explorer9360 - They aren’t. It’s the Catholic Hierarchy that is doing the attacking. This post was to get people to realize that attacking nature of the Hierarchy and even try to stop them.
Everyone had fond thoughts about the Catholic Church before the Present Pope was selected. The Catholic church was kind of upset with the Clergy who sided with the poor in Central America and some folks believed the Catholic church had a potential to address a voice that is less repressive.
What would need to take place in the Catholic Church for reform? I would hope the Nuns try to split off from the Church….
The issue of Abortion is a position the Catholic Church has painted itself into a corner. To not approve of birth control pills is kind of the life starts at the fertilized egg principal. That may be the last straw for true Christians.
Basically the elderly will have to rely upon Stem cell research and the Church may also lose the elderly vote too.
@PPhilip - The Catholic Church is a far cry today than it was in the days of Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement. And as you suggested, also the Liberation Theology in Central and South America. These movements have been sufficiently squashed by current Catholic Hierarchy that they are used only for historical references – not contemporary ideals.