Pope John Paul II - Follow-up

by Mary Pearson
Apr 11, 2005

Thank you to all of you who sent positive comments to me for posting Archbishop Bruce's Article about the Pope. As I mentioned, I had been reluctant to "speak ill of the dead".

Yesterday, I received one letter from one of our family who did not agree with my posting it, and felt that I had "attacked" the Pope by including it. Of course I welcome his input. Thank God that we are all different. Perhaps there are others who feel the same way, so I would like to explain more fully, my reasons for posting it. I explained to him that my purpose was not to attack, but to educate. I think that hiding our heads in the ground from truth serves no useful purpose, and only encourages closed minds. We have a responsibility to search and learn facts, and then make our own decisions.

I realize that I am in the minority, even among Christians on this issue, but I am a believer in the six, twenty-four hour day, Creation story, based on what I believe to be convincing scientific evidence from all the books that I have read from the Creation Research Foundation and many other legitimate scientists, and when my children were in public school, I promoted the teaching of this theory, in addition to the theory of evolution. Yes, both are only theories since neither can be reproduced, and I believe that both theories should be taught by individuals who can make convincing arguments for both sides. Then we should allow others to decide, based on the facts of which theory makes the most sense. To me, it's a no-brainer when you know the facts of Creation research. It just makes a lot more sense than evolution, but that's not my point. My point is that I know the facts of both evolution and creation, and I have based my beliefs knowing both sides. I have no need to convince anyone of my beliefs about creation, just as I have no need to change a person's opinion of the Pope. I merely wish to present all the facts, something which the media seems to be neglecting.

Today's Cathedral of Hope devotional talks about the suicide of a young adolescent man who could not reconcile his sexuality with his Christianity. He was filled with shame and guilt over being gay, which was reinforced to him through the church.

When the Pope uses his influence to tell the world, regarding same-sex marriage that,

"It is legitimate and necessary to ask oneself if this is not perhaps part of a new ideology of evil, perhaps more insidious and hidden, which attempts to pit human rights against the family and against man."

he is fuelling the fires of hatred, bigotry and prejudice of others against gays, and perhaps even more importantly, of gays internalizing this belief within themselves.

This Pope was just a man. He was a man who lived what he believed. He made great strides for peace and he brought many people, especially young people, back to their faith. There is much that we can commend him for, and I believe that has been done over and over and over again in the media. We do not disregard that aspect of his life or his works. We are grateful for his acknowledgment, and his apology for some of the travesties which have been perpetrated by the Roman Catholic Church in the past. But it will not do justice to leave out the other part of his reign.

Gays are not evil as he is suggesting. We are not a threat against families or man, and as long as people in authority claim that we are, there will be suicides. No matter the Pope's good intentions, he has done much harm to the gay community, and I believe it is my responsibility, with the help of people like Archbishop Bruce, to present the TRUTH so that others may learn that, in this case, the Pope was WRONG!

Today, I learned about the ancient shrine of St. Cuthbert in Durham, England. It is a beautiful, massive Norman Cathedral with a wide black marble line, inlaid in the floor, stretching across the entire width of the nave. The line was built in 1100 "to keep women away from the main part of the church, to keep the altar and St. Cuthbert's holy shrine pure and free from the corrupting power of women."

Women were not corrupt as the church once stated, and women now cross that line without a thought, (although the Pope has kept women from having equal rights within the ministry, but one day that will change, God willing), and one day the (invisible) line will disappear for gays. One day, it will be recognized that God created us ALL - men AND women, straight AND gay, EQUAL!

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