This whole thing is really a joke. College's are known for being incredibly liberal. There are groups for just about anything you can think of and even ones you can't. A preacher talking about God is NOTHING in comparison!!!!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Pope can have his views, but they are wrong MARY NEWTON Glenville
On July 10, Pope Benedict issued a reassertion of the universal primacy of the Roman Catholic Church by approving a document that said Orthodox churches were defective and that other Christian denominations were not true churches. As a former Catholic for over 50 years, this statement is one of the reasons I left the Catholic Church and now am a Lutheran. I had a problem in believing the pope was infallible since I was a teenager. After I married and had children, I wanted to become a Lutheran, but didn’t want to give my children mixed signals, and so I stayed and worshiped and was very active in my church. My children are grown, and I have converted and am at peace with my decision and my God. This statement by Pope Benedict is arrogant and harmful to the ecumenical movement between churches. It can only destroy love and harmony among Christians, Jews and other faiths. I believe the pope is a very holy man, but he puts his pants on one leg at a time, just like everyone else. Now, let me refer to a July 15 Daily Gazette article, “Los Angeles payout for abuse cases, the nation’s largest Catholic archdiocese has settled its abuse cases for $660 million.” It said, “The settlements push the total amount paid out by the U.S. church since 1950 to more than $2 billion, with about a quarter of that coming from the Los Angeles archdiocese.” In the beginning this was “hush money.” How much do each of you pay into the bishop’s Diocesan Development Fund? Is this how you want your money spent? I worked with two priests, who were welcome in our home, spent time with my children. We worked side by side, for what I felt was the greater glory of God. Then I found out, years later, that they were pedophiles. It made me physically ill at the thought of what could have happened to my children. I was told by a renewed Catholic that he belonged to the only “true” church that Christ started. Where in the Bible does it say that? I believe that Christianity began with Christ. To the best of my knowledge, and the definition in the dictionary, catholic means “universal.” After a time, the Catholic Church put a capital “C” and it became a church. Does it matter where you worship? We all worship the same God. For those of you who I have offended, I have one thing to say to you. “Growing old is a given, growing up is optional.” We all tend to have our little temper tantrums now and then, but certainly God never intended for us to be divided.
Baptist responds to Vatican’s take on papal authority LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Instead of taking offense at a recent Vatican statement reasserting the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church, evangelicals should seize the chance to respond with equal candor that “any church defi ned by the claims of the papacy is no true church,” according to a prominent Southern Baptist leader. The Rev. R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote on his blog that he appreciated the document’s clarity in voicing a key distinction between Catholics and Protestants over papal authority. He said those differences are often forgotten “in this era of confusion and theological laxity.” “We should together realize and admit that this is an issue worthy of division,” Mohler wrote. “The Roman Catholic Church is willing to go so far as to assert that any church that denies the papacy is no true church. Evangelicals should be equally candid in asserting that any church defined by the claims of the papacy is no true church. This is not a theological game for children, it is the honest recognition of the importance of the question.” This month, the Vatican released a document restating the contention that Roman Catholicism is the one, true path to salvation. Other Christian communities are either defective or not true churches, the document said, restating the views of a 2000 document.
SCCC was absolutely wrong. It is a public place and free speech is allowed in public places. Anyone can say anything 'in a public place'. We may not like it and we may not agree with it, but it is their right. And it would be our right to do the same. What is offensive to some is clearly not offensive to another. We aren't talking 'tolerance' here...we are talking FREE SPEECH! It is probably the one of a few actual freedoms left....let's not lose that too!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Group calls for Pope to remove Hubbard BY TATIANA ZARNOWSKI Gazette Reporter
A group of area Catholics said Saturday that they want the Vatican to reassign the bishop that oversees the Albany Diocese. The Coalition of Concerned Catholics in the Albany Diocese is asking those who want a new leader to replace Bishop Howard Hubbard to support a petition that will be sent directly to the Holy See. “The diocese will not see who signed the petitions,” Concerned Catholics Chairman Phil Kiernan said at a morning meeting at the Hampton Inn. Rev. Kenneth Doyle, diocesean chancellor, said the diocese would have no comment on the group’s petition drive. Kiernan outlined the reasons the group believes Hubbard’s 30-year reign needs to end: He has closed churches and Catholic schools; alienated conservative Catholics; and hasn’t tried hard enough to ordain new priests. As a result, Kiernan said, the 14-county Albany diocese is smaller than ever and was ranked the fifth-worst diocese in the nation in Crisis Magazine’s February/March issue, based on its decrease in active priests, new converts and ordinations. “In all these areas, the diocese has taken a nosedive and is far worse than its neighboring dioceses,” Kiernan said. The coalition noted that Hubbard has closed nine Catholic schools in the past five years after liberalizing the curriculum of some of them. “This is a disaster for handing on the faith of future generations in this diocese,” Kiernan said. There are 2,600 fewer students in Catholic schools in the diocese compared to four years ago, he said, dropping from 9,823 in 2003 to 7,223 in 2007. Kiernan also said Hubbard had five years to clear pedophiles from the local priesthood after the child sex abuse scandals rocked Catholic churches nationwide, yet the Rev. Raymond J. Ethier was arrested in May on federal charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. The Hudson man was placed on administrative leave from his job as pastor of St. John Vianney in Claverack. Bob McCauley of East Greenbush said at the meeting that Hubbard needs to be more careful about who is ordained in the first place. According to BishopAccountability.org, a Web site that tracks priests accused of sex abuse and sued, 40 past and present priests in the Albany Diocese have faced allegations. “That’s why the church has always been very careful to screen these people out, until the last 50 years,” McCauley said. Sex allegations against Hubbard himself — and the way in which he was cleared of them — still don’t sit well with some local Catholics, McCauley and Kiernan contend. In 2004, the bishop was accused of leading a homosexual lifestyle and frequenting gay bars. Male prostitute Anthony Bonneau claimed Hubbard paid him for sex in the 1970s in Albany’s Washington Park. Former U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White investigated Hubbard’s conduct in 2004 and determined that no credible evidence existed to support the allegations. She was paid $2.2 million from the diocese’s selfinsurance fund, which is supported by parishioners, to clear Hubbard’s name, an expense coalition members still criticize. “She became known around here as ‘Mary Jo Whitewash,’ ” McCauley said. The group asked in 2004 that Hubbard resign because of the allegations, but he said he wouldn’t. Hubbard said in 2004 he believed the Coalition of Concerned Catholics was unsatisfied with his leadership because he tried to implement the norms of the second Vatican Council. Although Hubbard faces mandatory retirement in eight years, the coalition doesn’t want to wait that long. “We need every Catholic to participate in requesting a new bishop,” Kiernan said. Kiernan said the petitions will be available in the coming days. The group’s organizers said they’re not asking for Hubbard to be reassigned to another diocese, and they’re not asking for him to be condemned, but they don’t want him to be bishop anymore. Kiernan said Hubbard has rejected bringing in foreign priests and has pumped way too much money into an Albany cathedral that few Catholics attend anymore. Members of the Coalition of Concerned Catholics said they also feel disconnected from Hubbard, who they argue directs churches to close rather than working and talking with them. “Bishop Hubbard is not a handson bishop when it comes to the hard work of working with his flock,” Kiernan said. McCauley recognized some people won’t like what the Concerned Catholics are doing. “There are good Catholics that don’t like us because we’re the messenger,” he said. Coalition of Concerned Catholics has 15 board members and 3,200 newsletter readers, Kiernan said. It was formed in 1988.
This whole thing is really a joke. College's are known for being incredibly liberal. There are groups for just about anything you can think of and even ones you can't. A preacher talking about God is NOTHING in comparison!!!!!
No kidding......college IS where you do this sort of thing........I'm sure if someone came up with an insulting piece of art work depicting either Jesus/Muhammad/some pharoah sun god or whatever......who would be talking here???....NO ONE....
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
Isn't it funny to think that 'Jesus' seems to be the only religious figure that just seems to 'set people off'? Hmmmmmm
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Pope's conclusion on churches just his opinion First published: Saturday, July 28, 2007
Pope Benedict XVI recently issued a document claiming that other Christian churches "suffer from defects." As a Presbyterian, I disagree with the Pope's conclusion -- I believe that he is wrong on theological grounds. I do support and even applaud his courage in stating his decided opinion.
Chuck Colson, (former Nixon aide) a solid evangelical author and thinker, was once asked what the church's role in the 20th century should be. Colson answered, "The church should be the church." And, I would add, the Pope should be the pope. While I disagree strongly with Roman Catholic theology, I have long admired that church and am glad that Pope Benedict is taking his stand as the leader of that church.
While most mainline Protestant churches have diluted their own doctrine and theology to the point that they have no nutrition, no edification, and therefore no value, Pope Benedict is saying, "Here is what the Roman Catholic Church believes, take it or leave it." Why anyone would want to adhere to a theology, a church, that is ecumenical to the point that it is indistinguishable from a social club is something I really don't understand or support.
Mainline Protestants and liberal Roman Catholics should stop whining about the Pope's statement and accept the fact that not everyone has to support, or pretend to support, your own personal creation of God. And, I find it ironic that those who harp against intolerance are being extremely intolerant toward Pope Benedict.
Apparently, Pope Benedict is not the weak leader that some were hoping for. And that's a good thing.
I really don't care what the pope or any other 'leader' of any other denomination thinks or says or professes. My christian leader is not the pope, a priest, a paster, a nun, a rabbi or a congregatioinal group. They are just men/women as I am. Human. Capable of sin and error.
My Christain leader is God himself. He left me a book called the Bible...and whether some believe it to be the true word of God is their choice. But God was, is and always will be the leader of MY CHURCH...'me'!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Vatican doctrine that has been met with hostility is free of maliciousness First published: Sunday, July 29, 2007
The document recently issued by the Vatican, "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of Doctrine on the Church," has spurred much negative response, most of which lies grounded in intentional misunderstanding and faulty reasoning.
One writer (July 19) speculated the Vatican issued the document to shield itself from criticism. Given the level of criticism generated by the document itself, this hardly seems plausible.
Some take umbrage over the document's statement that other churches and communities than the Catholic Church suffer from defects, but should this surprise or trouble us? When there is one truth and multiple answers, only one answer can be right.
If I ask the sum of 2 and 2 and one person responds 5, another, 7, and another 4, one is right and the others wrong, though one wrong answer might be closer than another. The Catholic Church believes it has the right answer and consequently, the others wrong answers. It is not hostility to say so, but honesty, a necessity for any meaningful dialogue.
Another writer (July 20) cited the Times Union article on the subject (July 11) as saying "Catholicism provides the only true path to salvation." Well. First, this statement is not contained in the Vatican's document at all. Second, in the Vatican document, immediately following the line that other Christian communities suffer from defects, are the words, "(these communities) are deprived neither of significance nor importance in the mystery of salvation, in fact, the Spirit of Christ has not refrained from using them as instruments of salvation."
Rather than react to the Vatican with hostility, those who disagree should not be afraid to discuss their differences in an intellectually honest fashion, rather than deliberately misunderstanding the Vatican and accusing it of malicious motives.
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