Still not a fan...

...of his Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.

In his 'first clear pronouncement on gay marriage since his election', Benny has certainly asserted his stance on certain contentious issues within the Catholic Church.

The Pope also condemned divorce, artificial birth control and trial marriages, saying all of these practices were dangerous for the family.

"Today's various forms of dissolution of marriage, free unions, trial marriages, as well as the pseudo-matrimonies between people of the same sex are instead expressions of anarchic freedom which falsely tries to pass itself off as the true liberation of man," he said.

I don't agree that the expressions of anarchic freedom to which he refers are attempts at the true liberation of man.  I see them as more of an unfettering from the restrictive chains with which the church would like to confine its members.

People are thinking for themselves a little bit more these days.  There is a ever-increasing disinclination of the huddles masses to gobble up the answers, swallow the Truth and follow the Way as set forth by church doctrine.  Keeping in mind, of course, that this ever-increasing mass is still in the vast minority.  There is an incredibly strong marriage between the church's desire to guide its flock and a populace craving to be led.  The problem being that both the leaders and the bleaters have their eyes closed.  Or at the very least are really quite squinty.

What would happen, I ask, inside of an institution where the leaders were open to change and the members were allowed, even encouraged, to question the establishment without the threat of recrimination or castigation from those in authority?

Obi-Wan Kenobi once said, "Who's the more foolish, the fool, or the fool that follows him?"

Damn, I wish I had more time to expound on this...

Comments

[Paul]

So... remind me why this is news. The Vatican denounces gay marriage; yeah, so? Did anyone, anywhere expect something different? If they did, they're living on Planet X. I'll tell you what would have been news, if the Vatican released a statement endorsing gay marriage. Now that would be news!

[Simon]

*sigh*

Yes, Paul, I know. It's just that hearing the news fresh can be somewhat disheartening to the part of me that thinks idealistically.