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Gregory Paul: "Pope Francis, the Dark Side"
Hat tip to PZ Myers over at Pharyngula.
Some excerpts are below; the full article can be read here.
Gregory Paul: "Pope Francis, the Dark Side"
*snip*
That theoconservatives are being unsettled by Francis is a good thing. What is disturbing is how so many, but by no means all, liberals – including atheist Bill Maher – are being significantly seduced by the guy. A reason this is occurring is in part because the news media is as it often does is buying into a storyline that boosts ratings, so they conveniently stick to it without checking the objective facts that is supposed to be their job.
*snip*
Does the Francis who is delighting so many progressives oppose the reimposition of state controls on the reproduction of Spanish women? When asked last year what he felt about a woman who is considering abortion because of poverty or rape he replied, “Who can remain unmoved before such a painful situation?” It was a gentle sounding platitude that may have signaled that his church will not be placing as much emphasis on the issue as prior popes, but it did not reverse the harsh reality of doctrine and policy -- Catholics should feel sympathy and concern for women who wish to end their pregnancy, but they should do so by kindly helping the female reproductive vessel come to terms with that she must under no circumstances fail to experience the entire pregnancy, preferably in the context of strict laws that force her to give birth. We know that Francis is of that opinion because he endorsed a mass held to celebrate the Iberian war on women.
Nor is there reason to imagine that Francis opposes the long standing ban on abortions in historically Catholic but now highly secularized Ireland. Same for the harsh laws against women’s rights in other Cathocountries such as El Salvador, where women who have an abortion are legally considered to have committed murder and are subject to harsh penalties including imprisonment. Since Francis wants abortion to be illegal, what forms of state coercion and fear does he think suitable to enforce the ban? Does he think abortion should be treated as murder, and women who have abortions prosecuted as murderers? And what is his opinion on the legality of contraceptives? Is he fine about how the expanding Catholic run medical facilities in the US are increasingly denying adult women access to birth control?
There are liberals who do not want Francis to be asked these vital questions. They are hoping that he is a stealth progressive who intends to gradually liberalize the church, but does not want to reveal his intentions too early, while conservatives still have so much power in the Holy See and world wide church bureaucracy. This is the naïve gamble of nondemocracy. (Emphasis mine--Rob)
*snip*
That theoconservatives are being unsettled by Francis is a good thing. What is disturbing is how so many, but by no means all, liberals – including atheist Bill Maher – are being significantly seduced by the guy. A reason this is occurring is in part because the news media is as it often does is buying into a storyline that boosts ratings, so they conveniently stick to it without checking the objective facts that is supposed to be their job.
*snip*
Does the Francis who is delighting so many progressives oppose the reimposition of state controls on the reproduction of Spanish women? When asked last year what he felt about a woman who is considering abortion because of poverty or rape he replied, “Who can remain unmoved before such a painful situation?” It was a gentle sounding platitude that may have signaled that his church will not be placing as much emphasis on the issue as prior popes, but it did not reverse the harsh reality of doctrine and policy -- Catholics should feel sympathy and concern for women who wish to end their pregnancy, but they should do so by kindly helping the female reproductive vessel come to terms with that she must under no circumstances fail to experience the entire pregnancy, preferably in the context of strict laws that force her to give birth. We know that Francis is of that opinion because he endorsed a mass held to celebrate the Iberian war on women.
Nor is there reason to imagine that Francis opposes the long standing ban on abortions in historically Catholic but now highly secularized Ireland. Same for the harsh laws against women’s rights in other Cathocountries such as El Salvador, where women who have an abortion are legally considered to have committed murder and are subject to harsh penalties including imprisonment. Since Francis wants abortion to be illegal, what forms of state coercion and fear does he think suitable to enforce the ban? Does he think abortion should be treated as murder, and women who have abortions prosecuted as murderers? And what is his opinion on the legality of contraceptives? Is he fine about how the expanding Catholic run medical facilities in the US are increasingly denying adult women access to birth control?
There are liberals who do not want Francis to be asked these vital questions. They are hoping that he is a stealth progressive who intends to gradually liberalize the church, but does not want to reveal his intentions too early, while conservatives still have so much power in the Holy See and world wide church bureaucracy. This is the naïve gamble of nondemocracy. (Emphasis mine--Rob)
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