The Pope is dead.
I'm not a big fan of any organized religion. In fact, I don't believe in God. I'm a dyed-in-the-wool atheist. So this is just a superficial acknowledgement of *some* of the great (well I think they're great :) things this pope has done.
-He had the strength of his faith, which is a powerful thing I will readily admit, to look his attempted murderer in the eye and forgive him.
-He apologised to the jewish community for the Catholic Church's inaction during the Holocaust. It takes courage to accept that kind of responsibility. *Who could learn from that example?*.......
-He intimated that perhaps George W. Bush was the anti-christ. While I admit this holds no real weight with me, I understand the significance it may have with the catholic flock. Hey, I don't like the Bush presidency at all and I'm sick to death of the "liberal" media's unwillingness to focus ANY attention on the negative consequences of his policies. So I appreciate any criticism that might impact him negatively. Sue me :P.
-He joined with Bono and Bob Geldof in appealing to the western world to cancel debts of the poorest nations of the world. Okay, it didn't do alot towards ending the cycle of debt that these nations are forced to deal with, but it's cool nonetheless. I mean the POPE, the most powerful man in the christian faith, met with a couple of ROCK STARS. That's what I call fusion baby!
..........
posted by Brian @ 4:12 PM
2 Comments:
I fancy myself an agnost these days--which is to say that I'm an atheist clinging to the last vestiges of denial. I'm not a great fan of organized religion, and while I disagreed on many issues with Pope John Paul II, I still had great respect for the man's intelligence and consistency as a spiritual leader.
A few things I admired him for:
-Pope John Paul II made it official and unequivocal that the Catholic Church endorses the Theory of Evolution. Pope Pious XI had previously stated that the Theory of Evolution did not oppose the Catholic "doctorine of faith about man and his vocation." Pope John Paul II went further and actually declared the Theory of Evolution as "more than just a hypothesis."
-He said the War in Iraq was wrong, but supports the careful rebuilding of Iraq.
-Though a critic of communism, he was also a strong critic of completely unregulated capitalism.
-While opposing the use of condoms to prevent AIDS (his belief was that pre-marital and extra-marital sex was wrong, and if everyone could act under those fairly demanding moral guidelines AIDS would effectively be stopped), the Pope did direct the church to help in the treatment of AIDS victims worldwide.
As far as leaders in the Christian faiths are concerned, in my mind this man was the most erudite. It's a shame so many protestants settle for mush-minded, greedy, and often ridiculous TV Evangelists to be their spokespeople and leaders. John Paul just had so much integrity.
Nice post, Adam!
Thanks.
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