Former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin is warning people about Pope Francis. Palin told CNN that the Pope’s statements of tolerance and accommodation have “taken her aback” but that she hopes that it is just another misrepresentation by liberal mainstream media. We have discussed how inspiring Pope Francis has proven to Catholics and non-Catholics alike by shedding the trappings of the papacy and living a simple and humble life of a priest. More importantly, he has reached out to gays, atheists and others in a way that is truly historic. In this short time as Pope, he is credited with bringing large numbers of people back to churches in the West. However, Palin is uneasy with the Pope for the very same reasons that people are rallying around him.
Palin told Jack Tapper “He’s had some statements that to me sound kind of liberal, has taken me aback, has kind of surprised me. There again, unless I really dig deep into what his messaging is, and do my own homework, I’m not going to just trust what I hear in the media. . . . I’m kinda trying to follow what his agenda is. You know he came out with a couple of things in the media but again I’m not one to trust the media’s interpretation of somebody’s message but having read through media outlets.”
Obviously, Palin would never dream of actually reading some of the Pope’s statements before warning people about his latent liberalism. Notably, Palin does not find it difficult to believe that men walked the Earth with dinosaurs or that the Earth is only a few thousand years old. However, a Pope trying to expand Christianity to reach out to gays and others “sound[s] kind of liberal” and unbelievable.
This could have something to do with Palin’s latest effort to cash in on faith-based politics. She is touring to get people to buy her latest book: “Good Tidings and Great Joy: Protecting the Heart of Christmas.” Pope Francis clearly is not one of those good tidings when he is out washing the feet of Muslim women and talking to atheists. She might want to send him a copy of the book, which is a whole 208 pages in length? It includes the promise of sharing personal memories from Palin Christmases past. That book includes such Christian sentiments as “Yet we can’t print enough currency, or food stamps, or free Obamaphone vouchers to compensate for failing families.” Then there are those atheists that Pope Francis has reached out to. Palin writes “Atheism’s track record makes the Spanish Inquisition seem like Disneyland by comparison.” That’s right. Secular government is the equivalent to the Spanish “Water Cure.” (The other name used for the torture of waterboarding by that devout Christian George W. Bush).
Then there are these little gems:
“The logical result of atheism, a result we have seen right in front of our eyes in one of the world’s oldest and proudest nations, is severe moral decay.”
“The war on Christmas is the tip of the spear in a larger battle to secularize our culture, and make true religious freedom a thing of America’s past.”
Of course, Palin would likely find much of the New Testament something that seems to come right out of a DNC platform:
Ps. 140:12. I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and justice for the poor.
Is. 25:4. For You have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress.
Deut. 15:7. If there is a poor man among you, one of your brothers, in any of the towns of the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand to your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.Deut. 26:12. When you have finished paying the complete tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and the widow, that they may eat in your towns, and be satisfied.
Lev. 19:19ff. Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the LORD your God.
Is. 58:66ff. Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke? Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into the house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
Luke 12:33. “Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys.”
Luke 3:11. And [John the Baptist] would answer and say to them, “Let the man with two tunics share with him who has none, and let him who has food do likewise.”
Indeed, Palin might have some ‘splaining to do with the Good Lord if she applies the same blind faith to scripture to this warning: “Woe to those who enact evil statutes, and to those who continually record unjust decisions, so as to deprive the needy of justice, and rob the poor of My people of their rights… Now what will you do in the day of punishment, and in the devastation which will come from afar?” Is. 10:1-3.
Of course, that might just be those mainstream Biblical types writing the New Testament.
Source: Independent
AY,
Yes. Let’s hope that Pope Francis isn’t similarly “ushered out”…
AP,
Speculation says JPI was ushered out after a few days…. When changes were made to the way the Vatican did banking….
Tom Kington in Rome (refer to link in prior comment):
“Pope Francis ‘is mafia target after campaigning against corruption’
Prosecutor says pope’s attempt to bring transparency to Vatican is making mobsters agitated
Pope Francis’s crusade against corruption has made him a target for Italy’s all-powerful mafia clans, a leading anti-mob prosecutor has warned.
Nicola Gratteri, who has battled Calabria’s shadowy ‘Ndrangheta mafia, said on Wednesday that Francis’s attempt to bring transparency to the Vatican was making the white collar mobsters who do business with corrupt prelates “nervous and agitated”.
He told the Italian daily Il Fatto Quotidiano: “Pope Francis is dismantling centres of economic power in the Vatican.
“If the bosses could trip him up they wouldn’t hesitate. I don’t know if organised criminals are in a position to do something, but they are certainly thinking about it. They could be dangerous.”
Francis, who has called for “a poor church”, has backed reform at the Vatican’s bank, which has been suspected for years of being a channel for the laundering of mob profits. This week police impounded a luxury hotel on Rome’s Janiculum hill – formerly a monastery – which the ‘Ndrangheta allegedly purchased from a religious order.
In a fiery sermon on Monday, Francis railed against corruption and quoted the bible’s advice that practitioners be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck.
“The mafia that invests, that launders money, that therefore has the real power, is the mafia which has got rich for years from its connivance with the church,” said Gratteri. “These are the people who are getting nervous.”
Gratteri attacked priests and bishops in southern Italy who legitimise mobsters. “Priests continuously visit the houses of bosses for coffee, which gives the bosses strength and popular legitimacy,” he said. A bishop in Locri in Calabria had excommunicated mobsters after they damaged fruit trees owned by the church, he said. “But before that episode, the bosses had killed thousands of people” without being sanctioned, he added.
Boosting the strong links between mob and church is the fierce religious devotion of the gangsters themselves, he said, adding that in his 26 years as a magistrate he had never raided a mafia hideout which did not contain a religious image. “There is no affiliation rite that does not evoke religion. ‘Ndrangheta and the church walk hand in hand,” he said.
A survey of jailed mobsters had revealed that 88% were religious, he added. “Before killing, a member of the ‘Ndrangheta prays. He asks the Madonna for protection.”
Gratteri said mobsters did not consider themselves wrongdoers, and used the example of a mafioso putting pressure on a business owner to pay protection money, first by shooting up his premises, then by kneecapping him. “If the person still refuses, the mobster is ‘forced’ to kill him. If you have no choice, you are not committing a sin.””
Targeting corruption. Imagine that. Damned liberal…
“Pope Francis ‘is mafia target after campaigning against corruption’
Prosecutor says pope’s attempt to bring transparency to Vatican is making mobsters agitated”
Tom Kington in Rome
Wednesday 13 November 2013 12.32 EST
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/13/pope-francis-mafia-target-corruption
“Pope Francis ‘is mafia target after campaigning against corruption’
Prosecutor says pope’s attempt to bring transparency to Vatican is making mobsters agitated”
Tom Kington in Rome
theguardian.com, Wednesday 13 November 2013 12.32 EST
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/13/pope-francis-mafia-target-corruption
“Pope Francis’s crusade against corruption has made him a target for Italy’s all-powerful mafia clans, a leading anti-mob prosecutor has warned.
Nicola Gratteri, who has battled Calabria’s shadowy ‘Ndrangheta mafia, said on Wednesday that Francis’s attempt to bring transparency to the Vatican was making the white collar mobsters who do business with corrupt prelates “nervous and agitated”.
He told the Italian daily Il Fatto Quotidiano: “Pope Francis is dismantling centres of economic power in the Vatican.
“If the bosses could trip him up they wouldn’t hesitate. I don’t know if organised criminals are in a position to do something, but they are certainly thinking about it. They could be dangerous.”
Francis, who has called for “a poor church”, has backed reform at the Vatican’s bank, which has been suspected for years of being a channel for the laundering of mob profits. This week police impounded a luxury hotel on Rome’s Janiculum hill – formerly a monastery – which the ‘Ndrangheta allegedly purchased from a religious order.
In a fiery sermon on Monday, Francis railed against corruption and quoted the bible’s advice that practitioners be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck.
“The mafia that invests, that launders money, that therefore has the real power, is the mafia which has got rich for years from its connivance with the church,” said Gratteri. “These are the people who are getting nervous.”
Gratteri attacked priests and bishops in southern Italy who legitimise mobsters. “Priests continuously visit the houses of bosses for coffee, which gives the bosses strength and popular legitimacy,” he said. A bishop in Locri in Calabria had excommunicated mobsters after they damaged fruit trees owned by the church, he said. “But before that episode, the bosses had killed thousands of people” without being sanctioned, he added.
Boosting the strong links between mob and church is the fierce religious devotion of the gangsters themselves, he said, adding that in his 26 years as a magistrate he had never raided a mafia hideout which did not contain a religious image. “There is no affiliation rite that does not evoke religion. ‘Ndrangheta and the church walk hand in hand,” he said.
A survey of jailed mobsters had revealed that 88% were religious, he added. “Before killing, a member of the ‘Ndrangheta prays. He asks the Madonna for protection.”
Gratteri said mobsters did not consider themselves wrongdoers, and used the example of a mafioso putting pressure on a business owner to pay protection money, first by shooting up his premises, then by kneecapping him. “If the person still refuses, the mobster is ‘forced’ to kill him. If you have no choice, you are not committing a sin.””
Sarah…. I’m running for veep….. But I’ve probably committed some crimes in Alaska so I’ll resign from being governor and cma…… Then go on a national speaking circuit…. From a truly socialistic state…..
Sarah who?
Etymology of liberal: free or open mind
The purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open one.
— Malcom forbes
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/08/27/researchers-take-on-crucial-question-are-haters-gonna-hate/
Oro Lee,
your link above on “haters” is interesting research that I think political operatives have understood intuitively for years. We have seen this in the rise of the conservative movement in this country. By constructing a meme about “libruls” they manage to damage any proposal they dislike among many of their followers who respond according. ALL LIBERALS in their mind are seen as effete/elite/snobs that want to control everything and destroy their “freedom”. An example of this is the Affordable Care Act, which was developed by conservatives and implemented by Romney in Massachusetts. Proposed by Obama it became an anathema.
Sarah backpedals, then shifts blame:
“Just to clarify my comment to Jake Tapper about Pope Francis, it was not my intention to be critical of Pope Francis. I was reminding viewers that we need to do our own homework on news subjects, and I hadn’t done mine yet on the Pope’s recent comments as reported by the media. Knowing full well how often the media mischaracterizes a person’s comments (especially a religious leader’s), I don’t trust them to get it right when it comes to reporting on the Vatican. I do, however, trust my many Catholic friends and family, including some excellent Catholic writers, who have since assured me that Pope Francis is as sincere and faithful a shepherd of his church as his two predecessors whom I admired. I apologize for not being clearer in my response, thus opening the door to critical media that does what it does best in ginning up controversy.” – Sarah Palin (Facebook)
Palin’s a classic narcissist.
you have got that quite wrong Justice Holmes. a bear needs to bag Sarah Palin
lotta,
I don’t know how liberal the new pope’s views are regarding women.
*****
Pope Francis Excommunicated a Priest Who Supports Women’s Ordination
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/global/2013/09/pope-francis-excommunicated-priest-who-supports-womens-ordination/69827/
Excerpt:
Pope Francis’s Vatican drew a more firm line in the sand on its stance on women’s ordination this month by excommunicating an Australian priest who advocated for the inclusion of female priests. Fr. Greg Reynolds became the first member of the Melbourne Archdiocese to be excommunicated for reasons other than pedophilia, according to a report from the National Catholic Reporter. They explain that the letter of excommunication:
“Accuses Reynolds of heresy (Canon 751) and determined he incurred latae sententiae excommunication for throwing away the consecrated host or retaining it “for a sacrilegious purpose” (Canon 1367). It also referenced Canon 1369 (speaking publicly against church teaching) in its review of the case. Pope Francis, Supreme Pontiff having heard the presentation of this Congregation concerning the grave reason for action … of [Fr. Greg Reynolds] of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, all the preceding actions to be taken having been followed, with a final and unappealable decision and subject to no recourse, has decreed dismissal from the clerical state is to be imposed on said priest for the good of the Church.”
A letter to the other priests in the archdiocese explained that his excommunication was “because of his public teaching on the ordination of women.” Female priests are banned explicitly by Canon law, and Pope Francis has repeatedly stated that his beliefs on the subject are aligned with that law. The Pope did not address the issue in his interview last week in America magazine. Reynolds told the NCR that he also believes his support of the Melbourne LGBT community was also a factor.
*****
Australian priest, advocate for women’s ordination excommunicated
Brian Roewe | Sep. 24, 2013
http://ncronline.org/news/global/australian-priest-advocate-womens-ordination-excommunicated
Excerpt:
An Australian priest vocal in his support of women’s ordination has become the first person excommunicated for such beliefs under the papacy of Pope Francis.
Fr. Greg Reynolds of Melbourne, Australia, told NCR by email late Monday night his initial reaction was “shock” upon learning of his separation from the church. Australian media have reported he is the first member of the Melbourne archdiocese excommunicated and the first priest from the area laicized for reasons other than pedophilia.
OT
just say whoa
http://www.smh.com.au/world/rape-victim-could-have-closed-her-legs-lawyer-tells-court-20131114-2xhmv.html
Because Nick knows all, sees all?
nick,
how do you know that Chris Rock hasn’t stopped in to read Professor Turley’s blog??
You birds keep running down us conservatives while the Democrats destroy this country
I looked her up on Wikipedia. She was born a cat o lic and later was a Pentecostal and now some other sect.
How do we know they are not two birds of a feather and full of crap?
I’m surprised that Palin didn’t decide to go after Pope Francis’ anti-war stances
Thank Dog the new Pope is a Jesuit. I agree with Nick’s comment on Jesuits up above a ways.
If Palin is not a Catholic then what is she? Her name derives from Pale which is short for Paletinate. She is beyond the Pale. That is kind of like saying that East of Corfu the Ten Commandments Don’t Apply.