tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post37924585149008998..comments2023-08-21T03:51:17.425-06:00Comments on Enlightened Catholicism: colkochhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03432916690101599393noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-76293802681522538922009-02-28T08:59:00.000-07:002009-02-28T08:59:00.000-07:00Thanks butterfly, this was a fascinating read. Er...Thanks butterfly, this was a fascinating read. Erich Fromm's pitting humnanism against narcisism explains a great deal, especially as it pertains to Catholicism.<BR/><BR/>I'm going to have to hunt his book up and read it again.colkochhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03432916690101599393noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-66557875557976114812009-02-28T08:18:00.000-07:002009-02-28T08:18:00.000-07:00That's interesting Carl. I recall when reading abo...That's interesting Carl. I recall when reading about the 1930s and having to go back a few years for more information that the Vatican was concerned about certain rights being obtained for the church that were lost for a hundred years or so. I can't remember all the details, but it seems to me I do recall they received money from Mussolini's government in a deal they worked out. <BR/><BR/>I've been reading again about narcissism and group narcissism in a book by Erich Fromm entitled The Heart of Man. I've had this book around for years and have yet to read the entire thing. From time to time I'll pick it up and it still seems relevant for today's understanding of the ultra-right fundamentalist conservatives in the Church and in other religions around the world that are terrorizing and threatening others who don't agree with them. <BR/><BR/>This is certainly not the first time that group narcissism has appeared onto the world stage. Hitler and Stalin "found believers who "cured" their narcissism by transforming the world to fit it; such people must also try to destroy all critics, since they cannot tolerate the threat which the voice of sanity constitutes for them."<BR/><BR/>For our purposes here, the narcissist is Benedict, aka Ratzinger and he fits the description of someone who destroys his critics. "...we see that their need to find believers, to transform reality so that it fits their narcissism, and to destroy all critics, is so intense and so desperate precisely because it is an attempt to prevent the outbreak of insanity."<BR/><BR/>"The history of the Roman Catholic Church is one of many examples of the peculiar misture of narcissism and the counteracting forces within a large group. The elements counteracting narcisssm within the Catholic Church are, first of all, the concept of the universality of man and of a "catholic" religion which is no longer the religion of one particular tribe or nation. Second, the idea of personal humility which follows from the idea of God and the denial of idols. The existence of God implies that no man can be God, that no individual can be omniscient or omnipotent. But at the same time the Church has nourished a intense narcissism; believing that the Church is the only chance of salvation and that the Pope is the Vicar of Christ, its members were able to develop an intense narcissism inasmuch as they were members of such an extraordinary institution. The same occurred in relation to God; while the omniscience and omnipotence of God should have led to man's humility, often the individual identified himself with God and thus developed an extraordinary degree of narcissism in this process of identification."<BR/><BR/>"This same ambiguity between a narissistic or an antinarcissistic function has occurred in all the other great religions, for example, in Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, and Protestantism. I have mentioned the Catholic religion not only because it is a well-known example, but mainly because the Roman Catholic religion was the basis both for humanism and for violent and fanatical religious narcissism at one and the same historical period: the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The humanist within the Church and those outside spoke in the name of a humanism which was the fountainhead of Christianity. Nicholas of Cusa preached religious tolerance for all men; Ficino taught that love is the fundamental force of all creation; Erasmus demanded mutual tolerance and a democratization of the Church; Thomas More, the nonconformist, spoke and died for the principles of universalism and human solidarity; Postel, building on the foundations laid by Nicholas and Erasmus spoke of global peace and world unity; Siculo, following Pico della Mirandola, spoke enthusiastically of man's dignity, of his reason and virtue, and of his capacity for self-perfection. These men, with many others growing from the soil of Christian humanism, spoke in the name of universality, brotherliness, dignity, and reason. They fought for tolerance and peace."<BR/><BR/>Against them stood the forces of fanaticism on both sides; that of Luther and that of the Church. The humanists tried to avoid the catastrophe; eventually the fanatics on both sides won. Religious persecution and war, culminating in the disastrous Thirty Years' War, were a blow to humanist development from which Europe has still not recovered (one cannot help thinking of the analogy of Stalinism, destroying socialist humanism three hundred years later). Looking back to the religious hatred of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, its irrationalities are clear. Both sides spoke in the name of God, of Christ, of love, and they differed only in points which, if compared with the general principles, were of secondary importance. Yet they hated each other, and each was passionately convinced that humanity ended at the frontiers of his own religious faith. The essence of this over-estimation of ones' own position and the hate for all who differ from it is narcissism. "We" are admirable; "they" are despicable. "We" are good; "they" are evil. Any criticism of one's own doctrine is a vicious and unbearable attack; criticism of the others' position is a well-meant attempt to help them to return to the truth."<BR/><BR/>"From the Renaissance onward, the two great contradictory forces, group narcissism and humanism, have each developed in its own way. Unfortunately the development of group narcissism has vastly outstripped that of humanism, have each developed in its own way. Unfortunately the development of group narcissism has vastly outstripped that of humanism. While it seemed possible in the late Middle Ages and at the time of the Renaissance that Europe was prepared for the emergency of a political and religious humanism, this promise failed to materialize. New forms of group narcissism emerged, and dominated the following centuries. This group narcissism assumed manifold forms: religious, national, racial, political. Protestants against Catholics, French against Germans, whites against blacks, Aryans against non-Aryans, Communists against capitalists; different as the contents are, psychologically we deal with the same narcissistic phenomenon and its resulting fanaticism and destructiveness."<BR/><BR/>I thought that it was worth typing this out to put things in perspective. The book is worth reading.butterflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684946870144030594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-42540366558337052422009-02-28T06:03:00.000-07:002009-02-28T06:03:00.000-07:00Here is a book review that you might find interest...Here is a book review that you might find interesting. I have read the book and find it credible. The faithful orthodox will dismiss the author as a catholic hater, however, his research seems to be solid. <BR/><BR/><BR/>The Vatican exposed : money, murder, and the Mafia <BR/> Williams, Paul L., 1944-<BR/><BR/>the current financial strength of the Roman Catholic Church as well as many of its problems began in 1929 with the signing of the Lateran Treaty, in which a financially besieged Pope Pius XI exchanged recognition and support of Mussolini's Fascist government for more than $90 million and the establishment of the Vatican as a sovereign state. Williams traces how the Vatican's new emphasis on financial stability led it into other morally questionable financial arrangements with Adolf Hitler, the fascist state of Croatia and reputed Sicilian Mafia financier Michele Sindona. He examines carefully the establishment and workings of the Instituto per le Opere di Religione, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, "an entity unto itself without corporate or ecclesiastical ties to any other agency within the Holy See." While parts of the book overlap with other recent works on the Vatican and the popes (especially on Pius XI's refusal to censure the brutal ethnic cleansing of Orthodox Serbs and Jews by Croatia's Ustashi regime) this is a surprisingly solid short look at the dubious financial dealings of the Vatican from the 1920s to the present.COL55https://www.blogger.com/profile/07057765287988790129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-48348417161412383212009-02-27T17:38:00.000-07:002009-02-27T17:38:00.000-07:00By closed entity do you mean that they are not acc...By closed entity do you mean that they are not accountable to anyone?<BR/><BR/>The People of God need to address this issue and demand to have the records open or deny them money if they do not cooperate.<BR/><BR/>If they have nothing to hide, then why the secrecy?butterflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684946870144030594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-4243024106219034492009-02-27T17:11:00.000-07:002009-02-27T17:11:00.000-07:00At this point, one of the principles in the transa...At this point, one of the principles in the transaction would have to confess to it. <BR/><BR/>The vatican bank is a closed entity, only the pope knows how much, what and from where. Records are destroyed every 10 years in order to insure that there is no way anyone can trace the monies.<BR/><BR/>It has been established over the years that the vatican bank and organized crime have a long history. There isnt much that organized crime does not have its hands in.<BR/><BR/>Perhaps that is my cynicism showing ... time will tell.COL55https://www.blogger.com/profile/07057765287988790129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-1636674194892975632009-02-27T16:38:00.000-07:002009-02-27T16:38:00.000-07:00Carl, how would one find out if the Vatican is lau...Carl, how would one find out if the Vatican is laundering money for the sex slave industry?butterflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684946870144030594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-58168595777095311272009-02-27T16:14:00.000-07:002009-02-27T16:14:00.000-07:00It is even worse than that ... I was reading about...It is even worse than that ... <BR/><BR/>I was reading about Fred Phelps today, and as I was reading I kept hearing myself say ... Benedict did that ... Martino did that ... the Vatican has done that ... <BR/><BR/>I realized that the as each day passes, the RCC leadership is becoming more aligned with Fred Phelps and his faithful elect.<BR/><BR/>Also, dont be surprised when we find out that the vatican bank has been laundering money for the sex slave industry as well as other criminal enterprises.COL55https://www.blogger.com/profile/07057765287988790129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-82104392809240111742009-02-27T13:45:00.000-07:002009-02-27T13:45:00.000-07:00From reading Rick Santorum's rant it seems a call ...From reading Rick Santorum's rant it seems a call from the extreme right wing of the Church to become like police and not, certainly not become or act like Jesus Christ the true shepherd.<BR/><BR/>Interesting that he points out the Pope did not have pictures taken with Nancy Pelosi. When the Pope was in the US he had no problem having his picture taken with pro-war, pro-torture, pro-elite GW Bush or Cheney or any other right wing nut for that matter. Singling out this woman speaks volumns to me about Mr. Santorum's fear of women and the desire to create images that are truly pornographic of him doing something violent to her rear end. What he has written is an image of violence that sanctions violence against Pelosi or anyone else who thinks differently than he. Jesus never taught this. This is not a writing that was inspired by the Holy Spirit that Rick Santorum wrote. It is a writing which was inspired by some other dark force which he has apparently identified with and is part of his Identity.<BR/><BR/>Mr. Santorum and his ilk obviously have bought into the Church's vision of women which is a pornographic vision as well as a vision of women as slaves for the lusts of men. It is no wonder that there is a rise in the sex slavery industry at this moment in history while Mr. Santorum and Martino bully universities against creating the future's thinkers who will need to think about how to deal with their fear of a male dominated society which kicks women in the arse for speaking their minds and just plainly wanting to be free of slavery to male dominance.<BR/><BR/>Men might buy into Rick Santorum's imagery of kicking women in the arse for speaking their minds and there just might be a rise in domestic violence within Catholic homes due to his statement. Apparently he has not thought about that at all.<BR/><BR/>Very sad that these men will do nothing or say anything against the sex slave industry and will build up the notion that women are inferior to men.<BR/><BR/>When there is no freedom of thought, there is no such thing as freedom. Mr. Santorum and Martino are teaching Catholics to be real slaves.butterflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684946870144030594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8383701632927065467.post-58721972354470462962009-02-27T13:00:00.000-07:002009-02-27T13:00:00.000-07:00I am reading Rick Santorum's opinion in the Philad...I am reading Rick Santorum's opinion in the Philadelphia Inquirer as linked from Bill's blog and this in particular really stood out for me which needs to be addressed seriously by Rick Santorum and his ilk.<BR/><BR/>"Pelosi made it easy for the bishops to confront an offense against church teaching, because, rather than state her own position, she misstated the church's position. To the church, this is akin to wearing a "Kick me" sign on your backside."<BR/><BR/>"Sadly, the church hierarchy has been less assertive when public figures' policy positions openly dissent from core teachings."<BR/><BR/>He is advocating for VIOLENCE against women. This is also against Church teaching.butterflyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09684946870144030594noreply@blogger.com