For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
2 Timothy 4:3
"...For this is a rebellious people, false sons, Sons who refuse to listen To the instruction of the LORD; Who say to the seers, "You must not see visions"; And to the prophets, "You must not prophesy to us what is right, Speak to us pleasant words, Prophesy illusions.
"Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, Let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel."
Isaiah 30:10
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I'm afraid I find both the headline - and the inevitable long, long list of "Amen"s on Facebook which always follow any story like this - more than a little disturbing. Do Catholics no longer have any sense of discernment?
Does anyone remember any more that "unprecedented" is not something that can be applied to anything Catholic in a positive way? Innovation is for technology, not for the truth.
I find this Francismania disturbing for many reasons, but one of the main ones is that it is a manifestation of Fantasy, the dangers of which I have written before. It is centred more on an idea than a person.
I've seen this a lot in the modern world, particularly in celebrity-culture: people create a phantasm in their brains, a kind of puppet, and equip it with the appearance of their latest crush, and then make it dance to their preferences. Many of us did this with Pope Ratzinger, and we were deceived. Many of us still have yet to face the realities there.
But, fool me once...
In the current case, the more I learn about the real man, the more this phenomenon disturbs me.
Give up Fantasy. Only the Real counts.
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I like what you wrote about misconceptions of Pope Benedict. He was never going to try to engineer a "restoration" as many trads hoped. That's very clear in his "dialogue" book with Habermas, "Dialectics of Seculariation". I was deeply disappointed when I read that book five years ago. At a deep level he was a liberal, as are nearly all prelates in the Church. Liberalism (state neutrality to competing notions of the good life--especially religion) is both a lie and a stalking horse. A stalking horse because societal "neutrality" always follows state neutrality, so religion is increasing pushed out of public view--even till the point where its "improper" to discuss religion over Thanksgiving dinner. Liberalism is a lie because it's impossible for a state to operate without some conception of a good life (in the ways and levels it taxes, how and why it spends those tax dollars). Historically, liberal states governed according to a watered-down Christian humanism, then a secular humanism, and now something more tyrannical is doubtless around the corner.
ReplyDeleteRanting aside, I still love to read Pope Benedict's writings and am fond of him.
Rome is just Los Angeles with older buildings and more obnoxious people.
...and better museums.
ReplyDeleteFantasy is a constant danger for many of us. Me, certainly. Fortunately this is one Fantasy I have not bought into.
ReplyDeleteLouise L
.......and an awful lot of hugely holy relics
ReplyDeleteNovelty of novelties, all is novelty.
ReplyDeleteOh. I try to avoid reading anything critical of Pope Francis bc it just feeds all the fears that linger in the back of my mind. The whole thing is so stupid and deceiving. Being post- abortive, I know that abortion is already forgiven by Parish priests. Why imply that this is all some new thing? What is his purpose and isn't it dishonest to lead people to believe that he is somehow bringing about some new level of mercy that didn't exist before? Ugh!!!! can't he just emphasize the mercy that is ALREADY there?
ReplyDeleteAnd I love Rome!!!! Love the food and the atmosphere :)