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I have made clear where I have problems in the Pope's remarks. There is just something about him that strikes me as false and he just rubs me the wrong way. I will not leave the Church because of him or his policies but I am uneasy to say the least. He seems to be one of those types that wants reform for reform's sake and not because it is really needed. I won't even say the Church is not in need of reform, it most assuredly is in some areas. That being said, he seems to want to touch on feel good issues to appease people who won't go to church anyway instead of tackling structural reforms that will actually strengthen both the Church and its bond to the truly faithful. I don't understand why he wants to mollify the left, the Pelosi wing of the Church if you will.Phid, you and I will probably just have to disagree on this. I see Francis doing and saying things that tend to put conservatives off. It is conservative who have stuck with the Church and its moral precepts, not the hedonistic left.I think we have beaten this horse to death too.
I actually do realize there is something of a problem, given the responses to the Pope's messages. I admit that I do find it unusual that he makes a point of emphasizing the poor and criticizing greed/luxury so much, even in the Catholic Church. To me, such a message would make sense 400 years ago, but today I just don't see it as a big problem in the Church (then again, I'm not traveling around to different countries). Then again, that may be the message that God wants emphasized today. As for Nancy Pelosi, I don't really accept the idea that liberals are "pro-poor" to begin with, despite what liberals may claim. Now, I do think that ideological liberals (non-politicians) and true conservatives are both for the poor, but they have different ways of helping them. I happen to think that the conservative approach to helping the poor is more rational, more realistic, and more beneficial than the liberal approach. Anyway, I read an article in the Washington Post on the reception of Pope Francis by conservatives. I think this part nicely illuminates part of the communication difference between Pope Francis and his predecessors:
During the previous three decades, popes John Paul II and Benedict shared a focus: Make orthodox teachings crystal clear so Catholics don’t get lost in an increasingly messy, relativistic world.Catholics also became accustomed to popes who were largely speaking to “the Church,” rather than the public. These men often communicated in the language of Catholic theology, and through books, not through long, freewheeling interviews, like Pope Francis.
I just wonder what point he is making and if he achieves anything by driving stalwarts away from the church while perhaps gaining some. I wonder if he is not preaching to the wrong crowd to begin with. I just don't think liberals really care about anything they say they do and so he is urinating into the wind trying to convince he cares about such issues as poverty, homosexuality, etc. My impression is liberals will say and do anything to get and stay in power. I guess I am one of those Conservative Catholics the story is talking about.
