[ExI] "U can be the President, I'd rather be the Pope"

[John Grigg]

>Meanwhile, in apparent agreement with Kass, a 2002 document edited 
>by then-Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger [now Pope], Communion and 
>Stewardship: Human Persons Created in the Image of God, states, 
>"Disposing of death is in reality the most radical way of disposing of 
life."

  Damien wrote:
  >Uh... huh...

<backing away slowly, making no sudden movements>

  I think what the then Cardinal meant was that doing away with death would dispose of the meaning in life.  But you would think such learned men would be clearer in their writings or with whatever they edit.  I don't think either of us can be surprised by this stance of the Church due to the fact they are much more into the making of "new little Catholics." lol  But to their credit they did establish hospitals all over the globe and many nuns and priests have lead noble and self-sacrificing lives in such places.  
   
  As leader of the "Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith" Ratzinger was in charge of making sure Roman Catholic doctrine was kept "pure."  He was the closest thing the Catholic Church has to a 16th century inquisitor! lol  And in fact this body within the Church was established in the time of the Spanish Inquisition to contend with heresy (they were the "kinder & gentler" answer to the Inquisition).    
   
  Damien wrote:
That's fine, sweetie. You and your "flock" just hold firmly to that 
idea if you wish, and go away gently to do your thing. Just leave us 
alone to do ours, okay? We won't force you to stop dying, and you 
don't force us to stop living, is that fair?
>
   
  But what if they force you to stop using birth control and insist you have tons of kids! lol  I could see Roman Catholic leadership in about a century or less actually endorsing extreme life extension technologies because once their third world membership stop having large families (and start practicing birth control) they will get very concerned about their numbers shrinking.  This post has me thinking about a SF novel Clifford D. Simak wrote years ago about a robot being elected pope.  I never did read that, but I did read Bruce Sterling's "Holy Fire" which had a reference to a "chemical/neural revival" in the papacy due to some super-charged nootropics! lol  
   
  Damien wrote:
<smiling and nodding pleasantly, no eye-rolling permitted>

  I found the previous pope much easier to like than Ratzinger.  But I do admire this one for trying to open a dialogue with the Muslim world, though I was both shocked and amused when he dug deep into history and quoted a negative remark about Islam by a medieval King of Byzantium.  I suppose Islamic leaders are still smarting over the various crusades called for by Pope Ratzinger's predecessors! 
   
  One day I would like to peer into the various parallel realities of our world and see if there is one where President Bush allied himself with the Vatican and got the Pope to declare a modern-day Crusade because the goal was the full subjugation of the entire Middle East.  This line of thought makes me wonder if there is still "room"  for a Papacy-backed Crusade in our modern world.  Alien invasion?  An extended war with China?  Or maybe a post-apocalyptic scenario where the Roman Catholic Church helps keep the vestiges of society together and they call for a Crusade to hold off some relentless invader.  I realize that is a classic science fiction plotline.
   
  It will be very interesting to see how the Roman Catholic Church evolves over the next century or two.  But I could say the same thing about the Mormons, the Evangelicals or for that matter the Jehovah's Witnesses.
  
John Grigg

  P.S. "Sweetie?"  I'm not sure if "His Holiness" is used to being called that! hee
   
  P.S. #2  This post should be read while listening to the Prince song "Pope" ; )  

       
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