by Anura Guruge
on March 18, 2024
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I am a news junkie. I check ‘Google News‘ & the U.K. ‘Daily Mail’, multiple times a day, to see what is new. These two stories came up, kind of back-to-back, on Google.
WOW.
Not sure whether to believe the first. But, the SECOND is verifiable (by others (of course)) and as such must have (at a minimum) a modicum of truth.
I am just bringing them to your attention.
I am NOT Catholic (thank God). SMILE.
[But, I do care about Ukraine.]
I am sure a lot of Catholics worldwide are very happy to hear about this.
Good on Ya, Pope. Way to go.
It would be nice IF he schedules a trip to Russia. Putin would love that.
Ugh.
1. Wouldn’t surprise me. Francis, in exactly the same way that Pius XII WASN’T with Hitler, has become “Putin’s Pope” in a lot of ways. Not least because of Francis’ less-that-stellar ‘support’ for Ukraine. Which is odd, considering there are far more Catholics–mostly those pesky backwards conservative Byzantine Rite Catholics in the western third of the country–in Ukraine than in Russia! Who, then, exactly is he trying to save?
Or, taken another way, maybe he’s doing advance damage control: If Ukraine goes all white-flag and surrenders NOW, maybe there’s a chance to “save” the Catholics from Russian retaliation, post-Anschluss. The locally-led Ukrainian Orthodox Church is already doomed if/when defeat comes.
That is if Francis can be “seen” by Putin as lending a hand in the effort. Of course, as anyone who’s studied history at all knows, appeasement rarely, if ever, works. So if Francis is actually trying that as a tactic (Of course I am totally speculating, but given Francis’ vague, poorly-considered, and often contradictory remarks about virtually everything else) he’s in for a rude awakening!
2. Also, wouldn’t surprise me. Probably a test-balloon for some new LBGT+-friendly pronouncement, coming soon to a Motu Proprio near you. One designed to pre-empt The Synod That Never Ends, Part 2, in October, making that Synod nothing more than a rubber stamp of what Francis and his flunkies have already decided ahead of time.
oddly enough, exactly how the Russian Duma works now! Hmmm.
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Yes, the ‘Hitler Pope’/’Putin Pope’ stuff already crossed mind.
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Your 2nd point about DAMAGE CONTROL is fascinating. WOW.
I just think that Francis is like Trump. Like authoritarian leaders SINCE he is one of them!
Plus, given his background he could be a socialist if not an outright COMMIE!
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Do you plan to buy his book?
PLEASE clarify this for me. I am genuinely confused.
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Same sex – homosexual …. Church considers SIN … does NOT permit.
I know about the ‘blessing’ thing. I could I not.
But, what pope is saying is more nuanced.
He is saying he is OK with same sex.
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See, I see the distinction that some make. You can BLESS a same sex couple as PEOPLE without saying anything about the same sex. But, pope is going further.
You can’t have it both ways. Have your cake etc.
It can’t be a SIN & be OK at the same time.
What is going ON?
The former rhetorical question “Is the Pope Catholic?” appears to have its answer reversed by the election of Francis.
There is no room for logical consistency with Catholic doctrine for any claim that same-sex couples have no need to stop thinking of themselves as couples (let alone cement their error of forming such relationships via civil union) and since this is one of the rare areas where Catholic doctrine,in the manner of stopped clocks twice a day,is correct,this is especially grievous.
Louis, I propose that I conflate TWO rhetorics together … with an euphuism.
New, very apropos saying: “Does the Pope defecate in the Vatican?”
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That I think covers it ALL (and ‘covers’ was not entirely a pun).
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Crazy, crazy stuff.