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Hugh Hunter's avatar

As you know, most Catholics would be unpersuaded by many of your characterizations of our beliefs here. But I think you’re quite right that there’s a powerful, maybe dominant leftist faction in the Church today that is doing all sorts of evil and abominable things. You didn’t mention one of the worst desecrations: Pope Francis brought an idol into the Vatican. I also agree that many of the errors of these leaders exploit Christian ideas – as Chesterton said, their ideas are ‘Christian virtues gone mad’. But why think that we’re seeing the true face of the Church in these errors, rather than see the errors as a part of a general decline? Many people think we in the West are declining, helped along by many factors including some that you document. When civilizations decline to the point where they get destroyed or have to be renewed, all sorts of things decline: religiosity, fecundity, a sense of purpose. Looking at history reveals a pattern. Lots of people fall away from religion, but a small core usually remains. Eventually, the consequences of decline are horrible, and many people return to faith. The small core that has held onto the faith then informs the wider public. And indeed, we Christians could say that the cycle of decline is a secular way of describing the way sin affects individuals and whole peoples. They sin, they fall away from God, they get punished, and they return to God.

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Wheel Cool's avatar

Very interesting article as well as your other one describing how Christianity was possibly developed to subvert the Romans.

Both articles have put into question my own faith. I was raised Catholic and went to Catholic grade school and the belief in Jesus and his message of love, kindness to others and forgiveness still hold strong within me; although I lost faith in organized religion a long time ago.

All this brings me to these questions... Is faith in Jesus and the practicing of his tenants a good thing or is it making me passive and going against my own self interests? Should I become a self centered aggressive person to ensure my own survival?

Also, how does one cope with death if there is no faith in God or a higher purpose of our lives?

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