Catholic Church Edicts Are Not Good For Humanity

September 29, 2010 | Filed under: Brian Magee | Posted by: Brian Magee

In Minnesota last week, the Catholic church sent 400,000 DVDs to its members in an attempt to “educate” them away from supporting gay marriage. “The bishops of the state have an obligation, by ordination, to be teachers,” Archbishop John Nienstedt of Saint Paul and Minneapolis said. “And we all know the state of marriage in our society today … The state of marriage is not very healthy in our society.”

When advice is offered or given, it is a good idea to look at the history of the source to see if the advice warrants being worthy of consideration. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at the Catholic Church’s past and see if they have a solid foundation on which to stand in order to “educate” the masses.

The Catholic church early on used heresy to kill people. Simply not believing in what the church’s leaders told you to believe could result in your torture and death. Even a Catholic website lists many of the things the church could kill you for doing or believing, including Gnosticism, Iconoclasm, and Jansenism, among others. Thoughts could literally be lethal.

In the 6^th Century the Emperor Justinian enacted a code which ordered “all those who follow this law to assume the name of Catholic Christians, and considering others as demented and insane, We order that they shall bear the infamy of heresy…” With no objections from the Catholic Church, of course, all non-Catholics were not only heretics, but insane as well.

The Crusades. Two hundred years of wars based on myth and superstition. Is there really any need to say much more?

Everyone is well aware of The Inquisition, where Catholics tortured and murdered, almost at will, anyone it deemed an enemy of the church or its teachings. The acts of torture inflicted on victims rival the atrocities committed by all of the 20^th century’s worst dictators combined.

Printing the Bible in English brought death to John Wyclif because the church thought it a bad idea.

The incredible number of pedophile cases from all over the world which continue to be revealed are another shining example of the church’s “moral” attitudes and behavior.

In addition to regular sexual abuse in parishes, the movie The Magdalene Sisters was just one example of many similar cases worldwide where children were tortured and punished in orphanages for such infractions as being “too pretty.”

We now know the horrible conditions that were created and maintained by Mother Teresa in her various “homes” and “hospitals” in India, which continue. While she put millions in the bank and sought real medical treatment for herself in Western countries, she told those suffering in her facilities that their pain was good because it brought them closer to Jesus. And the church wants to make her a saint, even putting her on the “fast track” for the title.

You can add the church’s stance on condom use and how women are treated as second-class citizens to the mix.

Given all of this–and much, much more–does the Catholic Church have any right at all to offer up any advice or guidance to anyone for anything at all? Hardly. They need to ask the world for forgiveness and do centuries of good deeds to even start to make up for it.

As a final note of the church’s moral attitudes and tolerance, they have suspended one of their artists in residence who, as a protest, asked people to send her the DVDs in order to create a work of art. Lucinda Naylor has held the position for 15 years. “Now more than ever I want this project to take off,” she said. “It will make a great statement.”

I certainly hope she succeeds in her quest. Her statement will easily outshine the church’s.

4 Responses to Catholic Church Edicts Are Not Good For Humanity

Andy Armitage September 30, 2010 - 2:27 am

Good, wide-ranging article. Apropos of The Magdalene Sisters, yes, a good film, which I recommend. And as for the DVD mentioned earlier, this story (http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/298203) on Digital Journal tells how an artist who dared to create an artwork criticising this production now faces losing her part-time job of 15 years.

- Andy Armitage September 30, 2010 - 2:29 am
  
  Oops! Don't try to click on that link in my previous comment. The system has incorporated the parentheses into the hyperlink. Either just paste the URL only, or try this instead: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/298203 Sorry about that
  
roofwoofer September 30, 2010 - 7:18 am

This is silly. The logic of criticizing the Catholic Church for informing its own members of what Catholic teaching is on an issue by slamming and slandering is illogical and contrary to reason. You may not consider what is said in the DVD credible — have you viewed it, in fact?. Fine. Ignore it. Or criticize the content itself. But wasting bandwidth on red herrings is not smart. And your citation of sources is equally thin. A citation that leads to an unfactual and unsubstantiated rant (e.g. your link regarding the Inquisition) reveals a certain lack of attention to fact. When in doubt, at least start with Wikipedia, faulty as it may be. If you're writing as a cheerleader for like-minded people, this is what a piece might look like. If you want to offer anything credible, persuasive, or likely to earn respect by anyone who thinks, you might want to try another approach.

Brian Magee October 5, 2010 - 5:03 pm

@Roofwoofer: Wow. What a completely ignorant set of comments. You didn't even read the article (and, yes, I saw the video and played one of the archbishops commentary in full on my radio program). My facts are just that, facts. You have offered nothing to counter them as being untrue. You've just offered a silly rant which totally misses the point, so I'll repeat it in more simple terms that hopefully even you can understand: The Catholic Church's history of decisions based on their morality sucks. For anyone to listen to them now, (even believers), given their track record, is insane. Yes, insane. They have offered humanity terror, torture, myth and superstition and expect people to still heed their instructions. The fact that you think the horror they have caused humanity is a red herring says all we need to know about you. Clear enough?

Discuss

Stan on New AthiestWhy on Earth would you have to "submit your resignation" to the Mormon Church. Why play their game? Just stop. . .
Marvin L. Hasson on Creationism Returns to Tennessee – Part 1It is impossible for me to believe that anyone in their right mind could look at this world and believe. . .
John McCready on Religious Right Author Says Romney's Mormon Faith Makes Him Unfit For OfficeTalk about the "pot calling the kettle black"! In what univerise is CHRIST-insanity, a "true" set of beliefs, not fixated. . .
John McCready on Atheist TeenI wish I had been as smart as this teen has proved herself to be at 15!
sheldon archer on Robert Sapolsky: Are Humans Just Another Primate?Yes but not as developed as the apes

Catholic Church Edicts Are Not Good For Humanity

4 Responses to Catholic Church Edicts Are Not Good For Humanity

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Connect

Discuss

Our Latest

Secular Resources

Secular News Daily

secular.org