FATIMA, Portugal – Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday called abortion and same-intimacy marriage some of the most "insidious and dangerous" threats facing the world today, asserting key church teachings as he tried to move beyond the clerical abuse scandal.

Benedict made the comments to Catholic social workers, health providers and others after celebrating Mass before an estimated 400,000 people in Fatima. The central Portuguese farming town is one of the most important shrines in Christianity, where three shepherd children reported having visions of the Virgin Mary in 1917.

Benedict's visit to Fatima on the anniversary of the apparitions was the spiritual centerpiece of his four-day visit to Portugal, which ends Friday. It was cast by Vatican officials as evidence that he had turned a page in weathering the abuse scandal, which has dogged him for months.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, pointed to the turnout in Fatima and said it was "very beautiful and encouraging" that pilgrims hadn't been deterred in expressing their faith despite months of revelations in Europe about priests who molested children and bishops and Vatican officials who turned a blind eye.

The faithful understand "the capacity of the church to effectively overcome — via conversion, penance and prayer — the dimension of real sin there is in our community," Lombardi said.

Benedict himself admitted to the "sins within the church" on the first day of the trip, his most explicit admission of Church culpability in the scandal. By Thursday, however, he had moved on to stressing core church teachings in the largely Roman Catholic country, where abortion on demand has been available since 2007 and where Parliament in January passed a bill allowing same-intimacy marriage. In addition, a judge in 2008 made it easier to obtain divorce even when one spouse objects.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100513/ap_on_re_eu/eu_pope_portugal

this is for all you losers whining about terrorism, unemployment, global economy and environmental degradation. cheers
death to the gays

Are you ok at all. The pope is not a fanatic like someone on this thread.

snowdrops:

Are you ok at all. The pope is not a fanatic like someone on this thread.

have you heard of sarcasm

[Quote]

this is for all you losers whining about terrorism, unemployment, global economy and environmental degradation. cheers
death to the gays [/quote]


ROTFLMFAO!!!!

No i havent. Can you explain what it means

@ Snowdrops
On the off chance that you're not being sarcastic about not knowing what sarcasm means, this is what Bawo meant. . . Of all the things under the surface of the earth the Pope could be worried about, it's Gay Marriage and Abortion he picked. Talked about your misplaced priorities. Lmao!!


And before anyone gets on my case about "insulting" the pope, you should know I'm catholic on my grandather's mother's sister's Uncle's side. I have close ties to y'all, so cool it mmmmmkay.
Blessed Be!

snowdrops:

No i havent. Can you explain what it means

keep on talking smack and i would make sure you lose that security job at downing street

i understand the pope's opposition to gay marriage, he of course has to protect the integrity and interests of the Vatican but calling it a great threat at a time people are getting their head blown off in thailand, iraq, afghanistan etc is just inappropriate.

Going from the quote, it appears what he actually said is:

FATIMA, Portugal – Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday called abortion and same-intimacy marriage some of the most "insidious and dangerous" threats facing the world today, asserting key church teachings as he tried to move beyond the clerical abuse scandal.

"some of the most" is not the same as "the most/biggest threat" . . . just being fair to the guy. He's old enough to be our great great grand father you know.

JeSoul:

Going from the quote, it appears what he actually said is:
"some of the most" is not the same as "the most/biggest threat" . . . just being fair to the guy. He's old enough to be our great great grand father you know.

isn't it hyperbole to place gay marriage and abortion as some of the greatest threats facing the world?

poor timing as well

Gosh, that man gets on my nerves!!

He has the RIGHT to have a religious belief, to maintain that belief and to express it. It is his fundermental right as enshrined in the human rights act and the european convention on human right.

And as the head of his faith it is doubly important that he defends its doctrine. Just like gay rights group may call christains and musliims threats to our civilization, what goes around comes around.

Abortion is murder plain and simple. Homosexualism is not biblical period. The church is not governed by human laws.

snowdrops:

He has the RIGHT to have a religious belief, to maintain that belief and to express it. It is his fundermental right as enshrined in the human rights act and the european convention on human right.

And as the head of his faith it is doubly important that he defends its doctrine. Just like gay rights group may call christains and musliims threats to our civilization, what goes around comes around.

Abortion is murder plain and simple. Homosexualism is not biblical period. The church is not governed by human laws.

he has a right to a religious belief but we also have a right to disregard such beliefs.
at time when the pope is facing allegations of covering child abuse among catholic priests, statements like this won't get him any supporters.

the pope should face the internal turmoil in his organization and leave the gays alone IMO

You have 100% right to disregard his views. Christainity does not enforce its belief but does this by coercion and perseverance.

I dont think the pope is interested in winning a popularity contest. The current media onslaught against him will not negate his sworn duty to defend the catholic faith.

The media see him as their whipping boy. They are quick to pick on any preaching on homosexualism and abortion. I am sure during his sermon he must have talked on 100s of other issues but surprise surprise they are mostly ignored.

I still wonder if there are other reasons religious people are against homosexuality and abortion other than the fact that they are commanded by God to be against them.

How are they threats against the whole world? Please can someone enlighten me?

thehomer:

I still wonder if there are other reasons religious people are against homosexuality and abortion other than the fact that they are commanded by God to be against them.

How are they threats against the whole world? Please can someone enlighten me?

yea, take a hypothetical case of abortion being encouraged&not more new births allowed.Yet pple as normal i.e at any age at the death rate. Will the population of the world increase or decline?

toba:

yea, take a hypothetical case of abortion being encouraged&not more new births allowed.Yet pple as normal i.e at any age at the death rate. Will the population of the world increase or decline?

the population of the earth is exploding so what's the big uproar?
are you against birth control like the catholic church too?

There are a thousand things in the bible that does not conform with a secular world. Christains believe in it, they take it as Gods word without question.
Such as the world was created in 7 days, The messiah is coming again, etc etc.

You dont necessarily have to agree with them. Similarly, they belive homosexuality and abortion are WRONG and SINFUL. Sorry if it upset your sensibility, but they are only exercising their faith.

snowdrops:

There are a thousand things in the bible that does not conform with a secular world. Christains believe in it, they take it as Gods word without question.
Such as the world was created in 7 days, The messiah is coming again, etc etc.

You dont necessarily have to agree with them. Similarly, they belive homosexuality and abortion are WRONG and SINFUL. Sorry if it upset your sensibility, but they are only exercising their faith.

that's true but does that support the claim that gay marriage and abortion are some of the biggest threats facing the world.

is john and steve getting married a bigger catastrophe than an humanitarian crisis in haiti?

bawomolo:

[b]the population of the earth is exploding [/b]so what's the big uproar?
are you against birth control like the catholic church too?

So murdering innnocent unborn children is a way to control the worlds population.

Why dont you start eliminating people as the Nazis did?

bawomolo:

that's true but does that support the claim that gay marriage and abortion are some of the biggest threats facing the world.

is john and steve getting married a bigger catastrophe than an humanitarian crisis in haiti?

From a non-biblical interpretation John marrying steve is a threat to the world. John and steve cannot bear children. If every john marries steve and every Mary gets wed to a Sue, then the world as we know it will become devoid of humans in a generation.

snowdrops:

So murdering innnocent unborn children is a way to control the worlds population.

Why dont you start eliminating people as the Nazis did?

it isn't an excuse but is our opposition to abortion because we want to preserve the human race or because the bible said it's wrong.

snowdrops:

From a non-biblical interpretation John marrying steve is a threat to the world. John and steve cannot bear children. If every john marries steve and every Mary gets wed to a Sue, then the world as we know it will become devoid of humans in a generation.

actually john and steve may not be able to bear children together but the population of homosexuals (and barren people) are minority compared to heterosexuals fertile people and john and steven could always have children through artificial means or could adopt orphan ones (win win i say). therefore the preservation of humans isn't a reason to be against homosexuality.

lets live the bible aside. Do u think morally&legally,abortion is allowed?

bawomolo:

it isn't an excuse but is our opposition to abortion because we want to preserve the human race or because the bible said it's wrong.

toba:

yea, take a hypothetical case of abortion being encouraged&not more new births allowed.Yet pple as normal i.e at any age at the death rate. Will the population of the world increase or decline?

Why will new births not be allowed? Allowing abortions does not mean stopping people who want to have children from having them. Also, do not forget that people still have children out of wedlock. Allowing abortion will not stop this.

Abortion is morally wrong. It is non-biblical. It is criminal in some countries as well.

If gays are so keen on children, i wonder why they became gays to start with. I disagree with gay adoption of insemination or whatever. Children are best broguht up in a natural environment where they are raised by different sex married couples. All the research confirms this. Childrens from homes where their parents are not different sex married couples have a higher proportion of vice and difficulty in later life.

So the pope may be correct afterall irrespective of the angle you have the debate.

toba:

lets live the bible aside. Do u think morally&legally,abortion is allowed?

Morality varies across time, place and peoples.
Abortion is legally allowed at least in the place where the Pope was making the statement.

thehomer:

Why will new births not be allowed? Allowing abortions does not mean stopping people who want to have children from having them. Also, do not forget that people still have children out of wedlock. Allowing abortion will not stop this.

I gave a hypothetical case.Now if abortion were legalized many couples may take that as an advantage,when the wife gets pregnant&says 'honey we re having our first child,husband says no way,except abortion.' wife may not have any choice but to comply.Next time it might come from wife first.there new births being prevent since theres a law that encourages unborn(life) to be terminated.

snowdrops:

Abortion is morally wrong. It is non-biblical. It is criminal in some countries as well.

Morality varies due to several factors. Lots of things are non-biblical and there are a lot of biblical practices that I'm sure you do not partake in.

snowdrops:

If gays are so keen on children, i wonder why they became gays to start with. I disagree with gay adoption of insemination or whatever. Children are best broguht up in a natural environment where they are raised by different intimacy married couples. All the research confirms this. Childrens from homes where their parents are not different intimacy married couples have a higher proportion of vice and difficulty in later life.

People do not choose to be gay they simply have such preferences. Why do you disagree with gay adoption? Especially in cases where these children may not be adopted by other families?
I hope you know that homosexuals are born in these heterosexual families.
How about if a marriage broke up because one of the partners was gay should that partner be denied rights to see the child? Or not allowed to raise the child in case of the demise of the other partner?
What research confirms this?
What kind of difficulty? I hope you don't mean teasing by their colleagues.

snowdrops:

So the pope may be correct afterall irrespective of the angle you have the debate.

No the pope is wrong. In fact, the allegations of his cover up and the fact that this is not being brought up in courts is dismaying. This is simply another way of showing that people are not equal before the law. Imagine if the person being accused of a cover up was one Josef Mann.

thehomer:

Morality varies across time, place and peoples.
Abortion is legally allowed at least in the place where the Pope was making the statement.

The Pope might have made the statement in planet moon.What interests us is the fact that the 'world' is concerned with the issue.Nigeria happens to be part of the world.Here morally&legally,its isnt allowed cus they share the sentiments of the Pope.

toba:

I gave a hypothetical case.

Your hypothetical situation is too unrealistic. How are you going to tell 3 billion people not to have any children and abort any children they are already carrying? Choose a better hypothetical situation.

toba:

Now if abortion were legalized many couples may take that as an advantage,when the wife gets pregnant&says 'honey we re having our first child,husband says no way,except abortion.' wife may not have any choice but to comply.

Why would the wife have no choice but to comply? In reality, it's the woman that decides whether or not to have the child. This is why it is a serious Women's Rights issue.

toba:

Next time it might come from wife first.there new births being prevent since theres a law that encourages unborn(life) to be terminated.

New births are already being prevented with the use of contraceptives of various types for both men and women. Yet people who have been using contraceptives still decide to have children at some point in time.

toba:

The Pope might have made the statement in planet moon.

He made it in Portugal where it is legal. Also, the moon is not a planet.

toba:

What interests us is the fact that the 'world' is concerned with the issue.

And I ask why are people so concerned other that for religious reasons?

toba:

Nigeria happens to be part of the world.Here morally&legally,its isnt allowed cus they share the sentiments of the Pope.

You cannot decide the morals for the whole country.
Abortion is legal in Nigeria.
The sentiments of the Pope have nothing to do with it. It was simply a part of the law borrowed from the British who have since amended their law on abortion.

i believe abortion is illegal in nigeria. hence the reasons why quacks perform most of the operations.

Abortion is morally wrong. It is non-biblical. It is criminal in some countries as well.

is abortion morally wrong because the biblical says it is immoral? 

is morality decided solely by the bible?

Children are best broguht up in a natural environment where they are raised by different intimacy married couples

haha i guess its wrong for couples to have test tube babies even when they are struggling to consumate.
who told you all gays want to have children though?

lets live the bible aside. Do u think morally&legally,abortion is allowed?

it should be allowed legally. you can debate it morally if you want too.
is it abortion if a woman uses plan b pills to wash out her system? do you use condoms?

It seems bawomolo and thehomer are out to attack the catholic church and its leader the pope. You have also stood staunchly defending homosexualism. While i cannot judge or condemn you for your opinions you should realize that thse practises are frowned upon in our culture and considered abominable. Infact homosexualism is illegal in Nigeria and most other African countries. I know some persons have been brainwashed by western culture, but you need a cerebral reevaluation on your stance on such issues. The fact that polygamy is practiced mostly in Africa has not led to the west embracing this practice with open hands.

Are you both aware that until some years ago homosexualism was considered A DEVIANT SEXUAL PRACTICE AND CLASSIFIED A MENTAL ILLNESS. The gay right groups and liberals actively campaigned for a change in nomeclature.

Homosexualism is a choice. Nobody was born to be one. It is not genetic as people have tried but failed to prove.

It is immoral not only by biblical standards but societal standards. Depends on which side of the fence you sit on. You guys can continue practicing your gayness, provided you dont rub our noses in it and try to force the rest of the sane society to indulge in or embrace your practice. We have a right to preserve the human culture.