The Pope's New Years homily and prayer.

[Atreus21]

Gracious and heartwarming words "be open to life" but the underlying text is controlling women's reproductive lives by usurping the power of the government and making Church dogma into civil law all women Catholic or not must follow.

Yes it's so deliciously eeeeeevil hahahaHAHAHA!

 

[Gordy327]

Yes it's so deliciously eeeeeevil hahahaHAHAHA!

Yep, if one reads between the lines.

 

[weaver2]

Yes it's so deliciously eeeeeevil hahahaHAHAHA!

Yeah, hilarious.

 

[Lursa]

What hypocrisy? If you don't have sex when you're not planning to have children, you won't have any unplanned or unwanted children.

What is hypocritical about having safe sex and then "cancelling" the unwanted pregnancy? Sex is a perfectly legal and acceptable behavior...why would we deny participants the safest medical procedures if there's an accidental pregnancy? Do we deny drivers or skiiers the safest medical procedures if they have accidents? What is the difference?

Please explain your statement that implies people should deny themselves the enjoyment of sex just because it may incur a pregnancy?

 

[Noodlegawd]

your statement that implies people should deny themselves the enjoyment of sex just because it may incur a pregnancy?

No it doesn't.

 

[Lursa]

Life is an incredible gift. Protect, honor and cherish it.

Women's lives also, of course. Denying women safer medical procedures does not protect or honor or cherish their lives, health, their bodily autonomy, their moral agency as individuals.

Do the unborn deserve that more than women? Please explain? And demanding women go thru a pregnancy without their consent destroys ALL those things. Do you realize that that is exactly what slave owners took from their slaves? Why is it ok to do so to women? Please explain how it's different?

 

[Gordy327]

Life is an incredible gift. Protect, honor and cherish it.

Depends on one's life. Those living in pain or misery may not agree.

 

[Lursa]

Not a practicing Catholic so didn’t tune in for the Pope’s message.

Catholics are free to practice their faith as they see fit.

This . And not try to force it on others, per the 1st Amendment, by law.

 

[Lursa]

Not quite that blunt. You're supposed to be open to life when it comes. Have sex with your husband or wife all you like.

Who says? "Life" is more than just a heartbeat...people look forward to life with their families, their work, education, community service, creating, building, loving, achieving, etc.

So why cant people be open to "the life" they choose?

 

[countryboy]

What we need protection for is from religion.

Sorry bud, this is America, there is no freedom from religion. Thankfully.

 

[Gordy327]

Sorry bud, this is America, there is no freedom from religion. Thankfully.

That is false. Freedom of religion is also Freedom from religion.

 

[Lursa]

No it doesn't.

Will you please clarify what it meant then? It seems meaningless to post in a debate if people dont understand what you mean.

 

[countryboy]

That is false. Freedom of religion is also Freedom from religion.

Nonsense. You cannot have freedom of religion, and freedom from religion. You're bound to see a church, or a religious gathering, at some point in your life. Unless you hide under a rock, which is always your choice to do so.

 

[weaver2]

Sorry bud, this is America, there is no freedom from religion. Thankfully.

What makes you think there is no freedom from religion in the US? We are not a religion based nation.

 

[countryboy]

What makes you think there is no freedom from religion in the US? We are not a religion based nation.

You're free not to participate in religion to be sure, but you're not free from being exposed to it at some point. The only way there could be freedom from religion, is if religious people were forced to practice their religion in private away from the public eye. And that certainly would not be freedom of religion.

 

[ttwtt78640]

What makes you think there is no freedom from religion in the US? We are not a religion based nation.

That’s debatable, since we have Christmas (Christ’s mass?) as a national holiday (holy day?) and “In God We Trust” appearing on our currency and coins.

 

[Gordy327]

Nonsense. You cannot have freedom of religion, and freedom from religion. You're bound to see a church, or a religious gathering, at some point in your life. Unless you hide under a rock, which is always your choice to do so.

One can choose to have a religion or not. But freedom from religion means not having religion pushed or forced on you, either from other religions or especially by the government.

 

[Gordy327]

That’s debatable, since we have Christmas (Christ’s mass?) as a national holiday (holy day?) and “In God We Trust” appearing on our currency and coins.

There is no debate. We are a secular nation with a Religiously neutral government. The Constitution itself establishes that and prohibits any official declaration of a religion. Xmas has secular purposes too and IGWT was not mandated until the 1950s. The Founding Fathers themselves never uttered the phrase IGWT.

 

[countryboy]

One can choose to have a religion or not. But freedom from religion means not having religion pushed or forced on you, either from other religions or especially by the government.

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. To me, freedom from religion would mean religion is utterly banned from society. And no one would ever be exposed to any aspects of it. That's certainly not the case in this country.

 

[Gordy327]

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. To me, freedom from religion would mean religion is utterly banned from society. And no one would ever be exposed to any aspects of it. That's certainly not the case in this country.

No, that is not what freedom from religion means. Banning religion outright would be a clear violation of the 1st Amendment. It's not about not being exposed to religion. It's about to being compelled to follow or adhere to any religion or religious doctrine.

 

[weaver2]

Nonsense. You cannot have freedom of religion, and freedom from religion. You're bound to see a church, or a religious gathering, at some point in your life. Unless you hide under a rock, which is always your choice to do so.

Religious freedom is not avoiding a view of a church or not witnessing a religious gathering. Freedom from religion is being free from laws that are actually the religious dogma of some denomination. Examples: requiring everybody to close stores on Sunday because Christianity and Judaism require believers to keep Sunday for a day of rest. Requiring all women to carry all pregnancies to term and give birth because Catholics and Protestant evangelicals believe in the sanctity of all life and abortion is not God's plan for the life that begins at conception.

 

[weaver2]

I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. To me, freedom from religion would mean religion is utterly banned from society. And no one would ever be exposed to any aspects of it. That's certainly not the case in this country.

The writers of the Constitution did not envision freedom from religion in that way.

 

[ttwtt78640]

Religious freedom is not avoiding a view of a church or not witnessing a religious gathering. Freedom from religion is being free from laws that are actually the religious dogma of some denomination. Examples: requiring everybody to close stores on Sunday because Christianity and Judaism require believers to keep Sunday for a day of rest. Requiring all women to carry all pregnancies to term and give birth because Catholics and Protestant evangelicals believe in the sanctity of all life and abortion is not God's plan for the life that begins at conception.

Oregon has very few ‘blue laws’ remaining in place (mainly concerning alcohol sales), but very few (if any) restrictions on abortion.

 

[Boots]

Gracious and heartwarming words "be open to life" but the underlying text is controlling women's reproductive lives by usurping the power of the government and making Church dogma into civil law all women Catholic or not must follow.

How does it "usurp" the power of government? and what precise powers of the government is usurped?

 

[countryboy]

No, that is not what freedom from religion means. Banning religion outright would be a clear violation of the 1st Amendment. It's not about not being exposed to religion. It's about to being compelled to follow or adhere to any religion or religious doctrine.

That's fine, I disagree.