Because of the example he sets:
This is what I expect on Social Media. Or a middle school locker room. Or an elementary school playground. Not from the spiritual leader of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
Note there is no humility. No concern. No caring about those who might have been hurt by what he said. He clearly doesn't care. And there's nothing our modern age loves more than someone who affirms our right to care or not care based on expediency.
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| Rolling Stone: this time being prophetic |
Pope Screwtape the First strikes again.
ReplyDeleteYep. I don't speak to claims that he is some heretic or not, since I'm not that schooled in Catholic theology. And I'm not saying I think he is wrong about everything. But in terms of behavior, he's one of the worst religious leaders I can remember, and that's saying something.
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ReplyDeleteDave:
We've endured bad or incompetent popes before and the Church survived. Francis strikes me like certain old Italian men I've known who are so determined to have things their way they cease to care whether it's the right or efficient way. Like him they had a hard, narrow upbringing in one place or neighborhood that they never left (in their minds, at least). He was never a diplomat, never a theologian, and like Scrooge and Marley his mind never traveled beyond a certain "hole", in this case urban Argentina and the Jesuit culture of his time and place. He's the narrow one, not us.
Yes, we've had bad popes over the years. And it could be due to things like you mention. I wonder which popes in history, however, were so focused on changing the Church's teachings or the Church's application of its teachings to this degree.
DeleteYou're on the money, Dave. Based on the intentional dancing with heresy that this Pope continues to engage in that is punctuated by his studied ambiguity in place of clear teaching of Church doctrine, what he have in the person of Pope Francis may very well turn out to be the worst Pope in history based on his abject failure to fulfill the primary teaching mission of anyone who becomes the Holy Father. He said he intended to make a mess (I missed this in the list of job requirements for Pope) when he first became Pope, and he has done just that. What a harmful and sad legacy, and all because he wrongly assumes that he is so much more enlightened than any of his predecessors who defended and clearly articulated the Faith that he simply refuses to do all too often while simultaneously pushing heterodox and worldly claptrap. God help us.
DeleteHeretic? We give him too much credit. You have to be a Christian to be a heretic.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I can't say if the person is in his heart a Christian. I can say he seems far less concerned about such matters compared to his concerns about more political and social ideologies.
DeleteLook at that stupid gushing Rolling Stone cover. Yeah, "the times they are a-changing", except for those idiots at Rolling Stone, who are permanently stuck in the sixties.
ReplyDeleteThe generation that won't let go. I remember when Reagan was elected and how those teachers and professors I had who were boomers were chomping at the bit for that old generation to just go away.
DeleteThe Pope as with Joe Biden is baptized as a Catholic. Baptism leaves an indelible mark on ones soul that cannot be removed. So no matter how bad of a Catholic they are, through the ritof the sacrament of baptism, they are still Catholic. We are not the ones to determine who is or is not still a baptized Christian. God is.
ReplyDeleteI apologize for the lack of an identifier. I have tried to provide one in the past, and was unable to complete the necessary process. I'm old and I don't understand computer stuff very well. "G. Poulin" is my normal handle. Having said that, I must respectfully disagree with Bob B. We have every right to determine for ourselves who we wish to recognize as a brother in Christ and who we don't. The fact that someone has received the rite of Baptism does not mean that he is still in communion; he is perfectly capable of placing himself outside of that communion, as, in my opinion, Francis has. I don't regard him as a brother in Christ. I regard him as an atheist, which he manifestly is. The indelible mark on his soul doesn't help him, but only bears witness against him. It tells us what he was supposed to be, not what he is.
ReplyDeleteThat's no problem. You can just write 'G. Poulin" at the end of a post. This particular forum is not user friendly, and quite frankly I probably couldn't figure it out if it wasn't my own blog (and populate my name automatically). It just helps if you end up with several who are Annon - especially if they disagree. Thanks though for the clarification.
Delete"The fact that someone has received the rite of Baptism does not mean that he is still in communion; he is perfectly capable of placing himself outside of that communion, as, in my opinion, Francis has."
ReplyDeletePeople who are excommunicated are still Catholic but no longer are able to receive the sacraments except the sacrament of penance. We must make the distinctio between a good and faithful Catholic and one who is NOT a good Catholic. Baptism through the sacrament of the Catholic Church makes us Catholic. Ever wonder why those who have been away from the Church their whole lives can still have a Catholic funeral? Baptism for life as a good or bad Catholic. Catholic none the less.
When you say that, do you mean once baptized, the person is essentially heaven bound no matter what? Or is it possible to be a bad Catholic who pays an eternal consequence, but nonetheless as a Catholic?
DeleteI mean that we become Catholic and it cannot be taken away. But it is NO guarantee of salvation. I believe greater responsibility is placed on Catholics since we are afforded sacraments which give us special graces. We refrain from receiving the sacraments at our own detriment. Baptism makes able to receive the other sacraments of the Church which help in our salvation, but it is not a guarantee.
ReplyDelete"Baptism makes us able to receive the other sacraments of the Church which help in our salvation, but it is not a guarantee. "
ReplyDeleteSacramental grace is a certainty, but it depends on our working with God's grace.
BobB, someone who is excommunicated, or who has manifestly become an atheist or joined a denomination or another religion, and gave no indication before his death that he wished to return to practising the Catholic faith, is NOT allowed to be given a Catholic funeral.
ReplyDeleteThis is why I don't call him pope, even thought I acknowledge he is the valid office holder. Pope means "father," and there's nothing of a father about the man. He's a small, petty man in an office he is not fit for. And nothing more.
ReplyDeleteIf he is a father, to us American and more broadly Western Catholics he is an abusive one. Worse, he has sanctioned an entire swath of the Church who frequently rejoice that he is trashing those Catholics over there, who are never as holy or awesome as we are.
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