Colin Slee writes in the Guardian’s Face to Faith column about how the recent guidance from bishops on same-sex civil partnerships is unworkable and totally wrong-headed.
Stephen Bates writes at the Guardian’s blogsite commentisfree about how the Pope has been misunderstood about Islam: Whoops, a pontiff.
Giles Fraser seems less sure of that in the Guardian itself: The unmistakable whiff of Christian triumphalism.
Damian Thompson also weighed in on this topic at the Telegraph in He bears no malice, but he is a worried man.
Ruth Gledhill also had an analysis on The Times website and more thoughts on her blog.
Addition
Andrew Brown has also written about the papal statement for commentisfree: Appealing to reason.
Yo! And me — http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/andrew_brown/2006/09/benedict_and_the_jihad.html
Well, this all shows how clueless I am — when I read the speech (before all the controversy) my initial take was that Jesus would not have been sufficiently influenced by Greek thought to have qualified as a Christian (according to the pope’s criteria). Actually, I did notice the inaccuracy of dividing the faiths between the “natural law” Christians & “voluntarist” Muslims — a convenient teaching tool with something to be said for it (these have been predominant trends) but not it is strictly true — there have certanly been voluntarists in the Christian tradition (that’s where the term comes… Read more »
Is the consistent impact of new conservative religion – to compel us to take yet another step in dumbing down our faith and discernment and discipleship? By so deftly mistaking the starting frames for all possible religious understanding? Papa Ratzi discerns Islam, but he refuses to discern his own legacy starting places. That is all settled by unquestioning faith commitments of many years standing. Thus he calls others to account for violence, but has nothing to say about his own violence. (A clever, sophisticated violence it is, picking the evil of closing down Catholic Charities’ same sex family adoptions in… Read more »
I felt sorry for the Pope but, as I used to say to my boss in my last corporate job, the higher your position the more people consider they have a right to comment on your opinions. This is not unreasonable, because the more power that is at your disposal the more dangerous the consequences of your errors. That is one reason I am into diversity models where no one paradigm or sector has too great an influence. If the main sector goes “off key” the whole environment can become unstable and destructive. In an ecosystem the loss of a… Read more »
And while we are on wise religious leaders, this is a lovely article comparing the wisdom of the Pope and the Dalai Lama http://www.westender.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=49&cat=23&id=728647&more= There was a timely insight that is pertinent to most organized religions. “I do know that no other prominent religious leader does such a creditable job of subverting the usual message of mainstream organized religions. When the Dalai Lama spoke to schoolchildren last week at the Orpheum, he emphasized the importance of education. Not surprising, perhaps, but check out this quote: “We must cultivate compassion, not through religion, not through prayer, but through modern education.” Try… Read more »
The Very Rev. Colin Slee is right on the mark when he writes in his Guardian article: “The church should be celebrating a society that shows charity; the church taught charity in the past. But the scriptural fundamentalism that lies behind the present official line does not however represent all Christians.” Thanks to the (so-called) Primates Meeting of the Anglican Communion, a fairly recent innovation, and ++Rowan Cantuar’s repentance of his earlier inclusive and more charitable teaching, scriptural fundamentalism has become the ‘gold standard’ in most provinces of the Communion. The 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10, although, in accordance with Anglican… Read more »
in a vain attempt to lighten the tone, did anyone think what the scene must have been like at the papal mass in Castelgandolfo this morning as Benedict had to endure this line in the epistle:
“All of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect….” (Jas. 3:w)
Must have had ’em rolling in the aisles.
David 🙂 It worked, there was a chuckle here.
Colin Slee writes that the marital breakup rate for former longterm cohabitees is twice that for ‘others’. Someone please (pretty please) tell this to the Dean of St John’s Cambridge, who (truth is stranger than fiction) has written a book affirming cohabitation. Its cartoon on the front of a car with a ‘Just Cohabiting’ sign is (and here I stand squarely with Mr Growser…) an insult to everyone who means their marriage vows and works hard on them. Everyone to whom marriage is wonderful and important. If these are truly the stats, then on what basis is he writing his… Read more »