The catholic church has been increasingly isolating and marginalizing itself since (and even before) the death of JP2. Benedict is a man with little view of the realities of the world, and even less understanding of the art of compromise.
I think some of their recent policy (read: last few years) in the field of homosexuality in the church has been a result of growing tolerance and equal-rights legislation in places like Canada. The Catholic church is trying to make its political views known, and the problem is that they places it still has influence are not the places it wants to change. The majority of the Vatican's influence is in places like Indonesia and Central/South America, and actually I remember reading in Atlantic Monthly that US Catholics often don't realize that their donations are going to fund activities in regions that still practice witch-hunting, among other questionable activities.
I also have to admit, I love the fact that the Catholic church makes all these assertions about the behaviors of gays, when the most flagrant violators of all of the church's policies have been heterosexual priests (and popes). Sinners and stones and all that...
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ninetydegrees
no subject
2/2/07 22:02 (UTC)I think some of their recent policy (read: last few years) in the field of homosexuality in the church has been a result of growing tolerance and equal-rights legislation in places like Canada. The Catholic church is trying to make its political views known, and the problem is that they places it still has influence are not the places it wants to change. The majority of the Vatican's influence is in places like Indonesia and Central/South America, and actually I remember reading in Atlantic Monthly that US Catholics often don't realize that their donations are going to fund activities in regions that still practice witch-hunting, among other questionable activities.
I also have to admit, I love the fact that the Catholic church makes all these assertions about the behaviors of gays, when the most flagrant violators of all of the church's policies have been heterosexual priests (and popes). Sinners and stones and all that...