The New Pope Believes He Is The Authority On How Children Should Be Raised And Educated

The white smoke had come and gone and a new pope is among us. The Vatican has chosen Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, Argentina. And although he’s not in favor of ”Kills the Gays” legislation like a contender (points!), he is predictably in line with the whole children need a mother and a father line of thought. Not a big shocker by any means.

The Guardian describes the archbishop turned pope as “a Jesuit intellectual” who has a very deep compassion for the poor (but not the gays!). Upon being made cardinal in 2001, Bergoglio reportedly told “hundreds of Argentinians” to not throw away money on a plane ticket to Rome to celebrate with him. He encouraged his supporters to give that plane ticket cash to the poor. The man has a heart….but not for the gays or their children:

He was a fierce opponent of Argentina’s decision to legalise gay marriage in 2010, arguing children need to have the right to be raised and educated by a father and a mother.

So nothing to really new to see here, folks, but thanks for coming out. Much like Pope Benedict XVI, I fully expect to see our new pope getting up every Christmas to rail against the evils of same-sex marriage and how it’s destroying our children one gay marriage license at a time. As opposed to, you know, not having access to health insurance via their parents’ relationship status.

(photo: thaagoon / Shutterstock)

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CrazyFor Kate

I still like him better than the last one. Bye, bye, Benedict, we will not miss you so.
Anon

This pope is far different from Benedict. Totally different backgrounds and perspectives. I think he was a great pick and will make big strides in bringing Catholics together and starting to transition the Catholic church in a new direction. No real candidate for pope would have supported gay marriage. Maybe one day we will get there, but at this day and time that is just not how it is. It is not something that will happen overnight.
- http://twitter.com/amendoapbs Amy Andy Penny Lane
  
  This will never happen. The Church will NEVER be contrary to the word of Jesus!!!! You’re goin to die and I will too, but dont wait for this because this never will occur! Peace of Christ!
- Kate
  
  Jesus said nothing about gay marriage.
  He did say an awful lot about tolerance, love and respect though, funny that.
- Edify
  
  And yet some of us feel that the church is often contrary to “the word of Jesus”. Love thy neighbor… As long as they believe the same things as me.
- Andrea
  
  You can love thy neighbor without approving of their lifestyle.
- meteor_echo
  
  And you have to get in their faces about their lifestyle, too. But of course you love them.
- Edify
  
  You can disapprove (quietly and to yourself) of someone’s lifestyle and still expect them to be treated with the same legal rights that you take for granted. Love thy neighbor shouldn’t be taken as a literal interpretation.
- H
  
  Legal rights and access to a sacred rite (which marriage is in Catholicism) are two very different things. Denying access to that rite does not equate to not loving or having compassion for. It just means differing beliefs are in play. Catholicism teaches love and compassion for all, and even some of the Pope’s first words were about praying to build brotherhood. However, just because the Church loves all people, it does not mean it endorses all things people do, even if they are gaining social acceptability (birth control, gay marriage, divorce, etc…).
- Edify
  
  This would be a perfectly acceptable position to have if those that were opposed to sacred rite were still accepting the LGBT community having the civil right to wed. Denying access to that civil rights does equate to not having love and compassion for all.
  Rather than just praying to build “brotherhood”, can’t we just get on with actually doing it?
  
  It shows how deeply out of step the church still is when using the term brotherhood. That’s quite exclusionary in itself.
- H
  
  Quite honestly, I agree. I think some of the issue stems from semantics. I do wonder if voters would be more inclined to vote for gay marriage if it was labeled “civil union” instead of “marriage” though still granted the same rights. Who knows? A lot of people really seem to believe that if the government legalizes gay marriage then it’ll be able to force churches to marry homosexuals, which is just silly.
  
  As for the whole brotherhood thing, I mean, he said it within his first few hours of being Pope; so, we’ll just have to wait and see. Judging by the interviews he has given thus far, it seems he is quite intent upon following through. As for the use of the word, I wasn’t bothered by it, and I’m a woman. I think the intent behind the word means more than the actual word itself. Could he have used a more inclusive word? Sure, but I personally think it’s a bit nitpicky to disparage him or the Church for it. Plus, about 1 in 6 people on this planet is Catholic, and the numbers are growing. So, I wouldn’t say it’s very deeply out of step.
- Nyx
  
  Um, you do realise that marriage pre-dates Christianity right? That the act of marriage is not some sacred rite that only the religious can lay claim to? That in today’s society marriage is for all intents and purposes a legal contract?
  Gay people aren’t asking to be married in churches, and forcing religious folks to accept it, they’re asking to enter a legally binding contract that affords them the same rights as every other consenting adult.
- H
  
  I never said marriage was an exclusively religious thing. I’m just saying that marriage in the Catholic Church is considered a sacrament not a right granted to just anybody. I am actually 100% for gay marriage/gay adoption and all the legal rights therein. However, I don’t see how it is possible for people to expect the Church to say that gay marriage is ok in the legal sense, while not okay in the religious sense. That would be very hypocritical, right? They’re a religious institution, not a government (mostly).
http://www.facebook.com/fred.newbrough Fred Newbrough

Why exactly would anyone not believe that children are best raised by a married Mother and Father? Its true there are exceptions of course but they don’t make the rule. No one thinks to themselves how nice it would be to be raised in a broken home. Just as no one thinks of how nice it would be if their child would decide they are gay though there are plenty of more disappointing things I can think of. Also having compassion for someone does not necessarily mean endorsing or enabling their behavior or choices. I feel compassion for my gay friends exactly as I do for any friend and whether I disagree with a part of how they live their life doesn’t define my relationship with them nor theirs with me. It is unfortunate that some see it as an either or situation. Good sincere people can and do disagree and the absolutism and political correctness is not serving anyone. Learning to live and let live and not expect to be able to punish those who don’t agree or like what we are doing is a part of maturity. I don’t expect those who live the gay lifestyle to live the way I do and I don’t call them bigots when they dont agree with my politics or religion I do wish the favor was returned more often. Somethings we just have to agree to disagree on and guess what the world won’t end if we aren’t all in perfect homogeneity of thought. We can all stay out of each others bedrooms and appreciate where we can share other aspects of our humanity.
- Tusconian
  
  Gay parents=/=broken home. As far as studies I’ve seen go, honestly, lesbian couples end up with the most well-rounded children. And plenty of children from divorced, single parent, or widowed families grow up fine. It’s the responsibility of the parents and step-parents and other guardians as individuals, not some luck of the draw where kids who have divorced parents are immediately handed their “no future for you” card. Also, disagreeing with bigoted politics cannot be considered bigoted, even if you’d be so generous not to call them bigots. You cannot be bigoted against someone for their chosen political beliefs, and don’t feed me that “not tolerating my intolerance is the same as my intolerance” spiel.
  
  Though I have to wonder, why on earth are non-Catholics so concerned with what the Pope thinks? He doesn’t make any rules that non-Catholics have to abide by. Most American Catholics don’t even listen to what the guy says. So that whole 1960s fear mongering that if the Pope makes a mandate all the Catholic lawmakers will mindlessly follow it by forcing legislation and all the Catholic citizens will vote for it en masse is a long shot, at best. It didn’t happen during the Kennedy administration, it didn’t happen when John Paul II was Pope and people still actually liked the Pope, and it likely won’t happen now. There are much more dangerous religious groups in the US, especially when you take into account that despite most of the official Catholic mandates being quite conservative, American Catholic voters are at worst, split 50/50 on the political scale, and at best, skew slightly to the left.
- Justme
  
  Your second paragraph was spot on.
- Tinyfaeri
  
  I concur.
  Mostly unrelated, I am not Catholic, and when I was a very, very small child I was convinced that the Pope was the king of all chefs because of the tall hat and fancy robes.
- Ashley
  
  Ha! Awesome.
- Lawcat
  
  I also concur. If you’re not Catholic, why do you care? He’s not the leader of the world, he’s the leader of a private institution.
- whiteroses
  
  I care because my husband’s Catholic. If he wasn’t, then I doubt I would- mostly because my husband and I are not raising our son as a Catholic but rather as a nondenominational Christian. And honestly, historically, the Pope is a world leader. If it wasn’t for John Paul II, Poland would still be a communist country. He was crucial to the Solidarity labor movement. If it hadn’t been for pressure from him, the Cold War wouldn’t have ended when it did. The Pope didn’t do it by himself- but he was a major part of it.
- Psych Student
  
  If you think that married couples make the best parents, then wouldn’t it be nice if gay couples could get married so that they could have the same stability for their children as straight couples? And actually, I really hope my future children are gay. My wife (we’re both women) and I want our son to be a *flaming* twink (skinny, stereotypical gay boy). We think that would be *darling*! Yeah, I don’t like that my (hopefully) gay children will get picked on but I think that being with the woman is the best thing that ever happened to me and I could not think of a more compatible person to be with that someone of my same gender. And it’s not just about what we do in our bedrooms. We want the rights to live outside our houses, adopt, raise children, pass on our estates to our spouses, and have burial rights for our partners. It’s not just who we fuck, it’s how we live. Just like you aren’t defined by what you do in your bedroom, neither am I (which is too bad, because what I do in bed it HOT!).
Andrea

This was obviously written by someone who has no fucking idea what she is talking about. In case you didn’t know, the Pope is Catholic. They are AGAINST gay marriage for reasons of BELIEF AND FAITH.

We can argue all you want about what is right and wrong, but you cannot insult someone because of their religious beliefs.

Why don’t you publish an article making fun of Jews for not eating pork? It would be just as insulting.
- Ashley
  
  You can absolutely insult someone for their religious beliefs if their religious beliefs are hateful and hurtful to a large group of people.
- Andrea
  
  Yes, you CAN do whatever you want. Doesn’t make the author any less arrogantly stupid.
  
  And perhaps a better analogy would be for her to write an article denigrating Jews for believing they are the chosen people.
- faifai
  
  show me an organized religion that DOESN’T believe they’re the chosen people. and again, at least the jews aren’t saying that the rest of us are going to hell for it.
- Andrea
  
  I’m pretty sure you missed my point.
- lea
  
  Being religious doesn’t give you a free pass to be bigoted and prejudiced without criticism. It doesn’t, and shouldn’t, make you immune to being challenged and questioned.
  
  Anyone who truly believes in their chosen faith shouldn’t mind being questioned, for if what you believe is the truth, you should be more than happy to defend it.
  
  And anyway, religious people are some of the most arrogantly stupid people I know- why should the rest of us miss out on some of that action?
- Andrea
  
  I think people are mighty to quick to “challenge and question” the beliefs of certain people (namely Christians) because they make an easy target. And just what exactly would you people like the new pope to do? Forsake 2000 years of belief for the sake of current political trends? Force priests to do something that goes against their deeply held beliefs? People like Koa make it sounds as if Catholics are burning homosexuals at the stake just because they don’t want to marry them.
- lea
  
  You have got to be living under a rock if you think christianity is the only religion that is challenged and questioned. I’m sure most people of Islamic faith would disagree that christianity is the current “easy target”.
- Psych Student
  
  I’m not asking Catholic priests to marry the gays or even like them, I’m just asking them not to fight so hard to deny us the same rights and responsibilities that everyone else can have. I’m actually more concerned about his idea that every child “deserves” a mother and a father. Not that examples make an airtight case, but I can point out many examples in which having a mother and a father didn’t do a child any good and perhaps those children would have been better off with a gay couple. I realize you weren’t arguing this point and I don’t mean to make it sound like I’m jumping down your throat, but how is it better for a child to have a mother and a father who didn’t want to get pregnant over, say, two moms who worked hard to have a child and have no regrets about having said child? (That’s really a question for the pope, not for you since you didn’t talk about it and no one should make assumptions about your opinion on a matter you haven’t spoken on).
- Lawcat
  
  Well, there’s being challenged and questioned and then there’s being incredibly snarky, which is what This article is. It doesn’t add anything to a smart discussion.
  
  I’m Catholic. Im ok with gay marriage, contraceptives, and some abortion. I know the church isn’t going to turn around and accept these things. I think it’s great to debate them, but if someone turned around and wrote an equally snarky article about gay marriage, there’d be a lot more of an uproar.
  
  In not sure what kind Of religious people you’re hanging out with, but priests are some of the most intellectual people I’ve met.
- lea
  
  I don’t disagree that this article is not a particularly intelligent nor constructive way to have this discussion, but my comment was in response to the comments in this thread and of a general nature- rather than meant to be specific. I get a bit frustrated from time to time about how protected religions seem to be from criticism.
  
  And my comment about the arrogantly stupid religious people was supposed to be a joke…. I guess it fell flat : /
- ihateLGBT
  
  how large do you think that group is? A federal study in the US says that LGBT make up 5% of the population.. thats a 20th of the population of the US, frankly they are wayyy over represented in the media and pushing gay rights on people and giving gays the right to marry and have kids will grow that small percentage like it already has to date.. equality my ass, i know ure a brainwashed tool and ur a girl so the media does a great job of playing on ure emotions.. but the world does not accept gays because the majority of the world is not gay and knows what is right and wrong.. simply put: man has lost his moral compass (a plethora of reasons) and in the west being gay is becoming accepted.. fuck that shit
- Edify
  
  The only people that LGBT community are trying to push gay rights onto are themselves. How does it impact your everyday life if a man is allowed to marry the man he loves?
  Perhaps it is you that has been brainwashed into believing that the only people that deserve respect and legal rights for their relationships are heterosexual people?
- Psych Student
  
  Now, now Edify, you and I both know that we the gays want to go around and rape all straight people in the butt because there’s a button up there that, upon being pushed with a penis turns everyone gay.
- Ashley
  
  Oh shit, you’re right. I’m just a silly, stupid girl. How could I forget? Now that you’ve shown me the light, I actually hate gay people! They’re almost as worthless as us ladies! What a relief that I don’t have to care about equality because it’s just rights for minorities. And why should we care about minority populations, amirite? Fuck those guys.
  
  Oh, and fuck you too.
- jef3r
  
  Amen. Was going to post the same thing but you beat me to it.
- meteor_echo
  
  That’s some shitty religion then, if it hurts innocent people just because of the way they were born. This is the same religion that killed thousands of people because they lived on a territory that those religion-bearers coveted. Oh and, same religion that burned women – because they fucking could. Not before torturing and probably raping them. You know, for the fun of it.
  Now tell me about ~religious beliefs~. Go the fuck ahead.
- Blooming_Babies
  
  Let’s not forget about the raping of children and the massive cover up that went along with it.
- meteor_echo
  
  And that too. “Loving” their neighbours, huh.
- C.J.
  
  That was people that did that and used religion as a cover. The actual religion didn’t commit those crimes. Those people didn’t really have religious beliefs. The put themselves in a position of trust and used it against innocent people, They should all be in jail and I have yet to meet anyone who has religious beliefs who feels they shouldn’t be punished. They should be punished even more because they used their position of trust.
- http://www.facebook.com/paul.white.3532507 Paul White
  
  I don’t frequently defend the Catholic church, but acting like it’s the sole/main source of pedophilic cover ups is stupid. Penn State anyone? Numerous public school scandals…the boy scouts…too many youth clubs to count…it’s not limited to them or particularly more common in Catholic churches than elsewhere as far as I can tell (which actually makes it more depressing)
Andrea

And also, for your information, this is the same guy that, as a cardinal, called other priests hypocrites for not baptising children of unwed mothers. He is actually FULL of compassion for children and for the poor. He truly has a compassionate heart; but that doesn’t mean he should compromise his principles.
- Sarita
  
  uuuuh andrea ? exactly when and where were children DENIED Baptism ?
- Andrea
  
  Not in this country, in his country. Which happens to be where I am from. There are lots of priests in Argentina that will refuse to baptize children of unwed mothers. I have witnessed it. But here you go:
  
  http://www.theprovince.com/news/new-era-for-the-vatican/index.html/Pope+Francis+Argentina+called+priests+hypocrites+squared+against+president+became+target+human+rights/8091838/story.html
- Harriet Meadow
  
  Yeah, it’s not so far-fetched. The Catholic church we go to won’t baptize our son because my husband and I didn’t get married in a Catholic church, so we are technically “unwed.”
- Andrea
  
  I used the term “unwed” somewhat on purpose to illustrate just how insulting and backwards some priests are. A child is a child, an innocent life. But this pope called them on it. Just like Jesus would have done.
- C.J.
  
  I took the RCIA program through the church a few years ago and this question came up. We were told that according to the church all babies have the right to be baptized regardless of their parents marital status but that there are still some old school priests who refuse to baptize them. It isn’t the position of the church to refuse to baptize them, those priests are wrong. We were also told that some things like birth control that are necessary in modern times but go against the church’s teachings are considered “forgivable sins” and are not really frowned on any more. We were told that although the church is having a difficult time changing with the times because they haven’t changed much in so long, they are trying. It will take time.
- http://www.facebook.com/paul.white.3532507 Paul White
  
  Gaa…scripturally, wouldn’t all sins be forgivable? I mean, even the mortal sins like wrath, gluttony, etc? That’s part of the whole sacrifice on the cross bit.
- Justme
  
  And that’s where you are going to see the difference between the old school of Catholicism and the new thinking. A sin is a sin and God is thenonly one who truly knows our heart and our desire for forgiveness.
- C.J.
  
  Yes, all sins are forgiveable. It’s just their way of saying it isn’t something you have to ask forgiveness for.
Dantes

Koa Beck, you are a first class twit. He’s a Catholic Pope, and though you may not agree with his beliefs he has a duty and obligation to promote them. Geez.
- lea
  
  In the same way that she, as a compassionate and thinking human being, has the duty and obligation to call him out on them.
  
  As I said above, being religious does NOT make you immune to criticism, nor should it.
- http://www.facebook.com/paul.white.3532507 Paul White
  
  Damned if I think claiming some belief or practice as a cultural/religious idea or tradition excludes that that from criticism.
Public

Good. A leader of the Church should be against gay marriage and against abortion!
Justme

Getting a new Pope is not like electing a new president. There will not be this massive regime change or shift in core beliefs…because the core beliefs are rooted in Biblical interpretation. You don’t have to agree with it (as many Catholics don’t) but you also can’t expect the new leader of a religious organization to come in and change the belief system of said religious organization.

I’ve been a Catholic my whole life and I’ve realized that on the issue of gay-marriage and birth control….I’m just not going to agree with the Church stance. But I truly believe that Jesus’ teachings about treating others with respect and kindness is FAR more important than falling in step with every position the Church holds.
- http://www.facebook.com/paul.white.3532507 Paul White
  
  Then what about papal infallibility? If you disregard that, what’s special about the Catholic church vs pick-your-own protestant branch?
  
  It isn’t like most protestant branches don’t talk about kindness and forgiveness either…
- Justme
  
  I learned an important lesson while growing up and being raised by a Catholic Religious Education Director – people are not perfect and that includes those who are working in and for the Church.
  
  Going to church is not about following a religious leader, it is about becoming closer to God. A relationship with God can be created through any number of ways, and for me….the best way is through the Catholic church. The songs, the prayers and the rituals are comforting to me. And for the most part, in the church I attended growing up and in the experiences I’ve had, there isn’t as much “shove it in your face and if you don’t accept it, you’re going to hell” as I’ve seen in other churches and denominations. Again. This is MY experience living as a Catholic in the heart of the Bible Belt.
  
  I agree with the notion that a church is a private institution who can decide which couples they marry, but I do not believe the power of any church and it’s leaders have the ability to infiltrate the government and make edicts regarding who is allowed to get married.
  
  Quite frankly, I don’t really have an opinion on gays and the notion of “sinfulness.” It’s not my place to judge (Thank God, literally) and so I just accept people based on the quality of their character. We all sin in so many different ways and it’s not anybody’s place to criticize the sins of others nor to determine where that person is going in the afterlife.
- H
  
  Are you sure you know what papal infallibility is? It’s only used extremely rarely and last time it was used was in 1950. Not everything a pope professes is infallible, even on issues of faith or morals. It has to be explicitly stated by the pope or by the College of Bishops. Infallible doctrines are things like the Trinity or the Immaculate Conception.
Saoirse

and what does the Pope have to do with YOU and whatever your beliefs are if any beyond the homo_agenda ? you want your child/dependent to get health care ? you sign them on –and of course no mention of the years Catholic hospitals operated and freely cared for the poverty stricken worldwide or the 1st unit for AIDS was where ? the outpatient clinics for AIDS were WHERE ???little hint sweetie–not in any muni/state hospital–StClare’s amd StVincent’s NYC.
this little rag of a website is among the FIFTY (LOL !)50 best blah blah blah websites as voted by Time ? LOL.cannot fathom what the other 49 must be like.
- faifai
  
  i love when bigoted idiots talk about “the gay agenda.” it makes it sound like EVERY SINGLE gay person in the country got together at like Yankee Stadium with a giant whtieboard and some dry erase markers. “Item #1… Take… over… the world… and… make it… FABULOUS!”
- lgbt
  
  and i love when morons like you claim there is no gay agenda.. you can bet the house that there is a think tank out there made up of rich, powerful, greedy and probably gay people who have been pushing their “gay agenda” through the media, education system, medical, etc… so they can further breakdown the family and divide the people.. research: Dr. Kinsey and what he did for gays in 70s and compare it to what hes doing now for pedos.. careful like always, don’t wana slip into the rabbit hole!
- Lina
  
  As a gay woman, I want to know why I am not being let in on this special agenda.
  
  NO ONE TOLD ME! Doesn’t anyone like me? Let me in the secret club, PLEASSSSEE!
- Edify
  
  Gay agenda, hetero agenda… So what if there is? How does it personally impact you?
- Andrea
  
  It doesn’t. Gays can marry all they want as far I am concerned (yes I know, you can sleep so much better at night now). But I wouldn’t want any officiant (priest, rabbi, preacher, minister, whatever) to be forced to do it if it goes against their beliefs
- Edify
  
  So why the hostility? If it doesn’t impact you and they want to have the same rights you do, why are you worried about a “gay agenda”?
  If you simply stated that you believe that a civil union should be supported for gay marriage but you don’t believe a minister should have to perform a ceremony if they find it conflicts with their religion, you’d probably find more in support of your position.
  As for the rest of your statement above surrounding education, medical and comparing LGBT to pedophilia (of which the Catholic Church and others have certainly become intrinsically intertwined with in a negative way) it betrays your prejudice against the 2nd statement that “gays can marry all they want”
- whiteroses
  
  There isn’t a gay agenda, other than having the same legal rights as everyone else does. I firmly believe that at some point, our children will look at us as backwards and strange because we didn’t allow this- kind of like how we look back at the 50s and 60s and wonder how it was that a black man could get lynched for whistling at a white woman.
  
  Also- if gay people are breaking down the family just by existing, then how on earth do you explain the fact that it’s legal for Kim Kardashian to get married/ have a child?
- meghan
  
  Best Response Ever.
Private_Eyescream

“The New Pope Believes He Is The Authority On How Children Should Be Raised And Educated”

Well, the Catholics Priests have quite a reputation for “Child Rearing” lately.
A quite expensive reputation.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Jen-Clark/100000568225513 Jen Clark

Thank goodness the popes job is nothing more then to run his mouth and lead others more crazy than he his. I would be seriously worried if the pope had any kind of control over the state or nation, so glad they dont stay in america.
chickadee

It’s not actually a surprise, since I believe these cardinals are doctrinally similar to the conservative Benedict. And no Catholic would expect a liberal Pope, but it is encouraging that they recognize the strength of the South American RC church. Other points in his favor is that he is a Jesuit and this he seems to demonstrate genuine humility and real concern for the poor.

Yes, it wild be nice to have a more liberal Pope. But it’s not going to happen with this generation of cardinals.
Raj Singh

people who can not have kids or don’t have kids (Present POPE) will teach others (WORLD) how to raise kids and educate them……… do you think its not natural?
Sonja

The Pope is a pope. What do you expect? He is the holy grail of the Catholic belief and he, if anyone, should believe those things. That’s his right, and he should as leader of the Catholic church. Does that mean we all have to agree with him? No. But that is his job to stand for those things and I don’t believe he should be criticized for it.
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C.J.

I have been reading and watching a lot about the new pope over the past day. This is the only place I have read anything negative about him. Of coarse he doesn’t believe in gay marriage, he is a Catholic priest. I don’t think anyone anywhere expected the new pope to believe in gay marriage. Whether or not the pope believes in gay marriage is really irrelevant as to whether or not gay people can marry. Here in Canada gay people can legally marry, they don’t need the Catholic church to do it. I have friends who are gay and Catholic and married. They just went somewhere else to get married. They still got married. The Catholic church does not make the laws. Does it really matter if the church doesn’t recognize a marriage as long as the law does. Whether or not a child qualifies for health insurance via their parents relationship status isn’t determined by what any church believes, it is determined by what the laws of the country or state are. I doubt the Catholic church is the only religion that are against marrying gay people either. To me, he seems like a good choice because he does seem to have a lot of compassion for people. He hasn’t even really started his new job yet, you don’t know how good or bad he will be at the job. How about giving him a chance before assuming what he is going to say at Christmas.
- Ashley
  
  As a straight person, I don’t feel it’s my place to tell gay people that it’s not a big deal. I can’t tell people that they need to just chillax, when yet another person, a hugely influential one at that, tells them that their relationships are bad, unhealthy, harmful, sinful, etc. I imagine if I were gay it would be pretty damn exhausting to hear that about myself, all the time. Especially if I were Catholic too (in which case, yes, it probably would matter, on some level, that my church recognize my marriage).
  
  And while the pope himself does not create laws, he absolutely has an influence. Pretty much the only reason there’s been a debate in the US about birth control is because of the Catholic church/the pope.
- C.J.
  
  I didn’t say it is not a big deal. I said it is not relevant whether or not the church agrees, they don’t make the laws. Many straight Catholic people choose to get married outside of the church for various reasons, their marriages aren’t recognized by the church either. It doesn’t make them any less married. Marriage in the Catholic church is considered a sacrament and their are many people who don’t qualify to make the sacrament, not just gay people. People are always going to have different beliefs. That’s why there are so many different religions. How is it the church/pope’s fault that there is a debate about birth control in the US. We have a lot of Catholic people here in Canada too. We don’t have debate’s about birth control. The Pope has never come here to tell us we shouldn’t use birth control. People who have strong beliefs may use religion to try to back up their views but it is still just people debating.
- Justme
  
  Most of the people that I hear debating family planning and women’s reproductive rights are members of a Southern Bible Belt denomination of Christianity – which is definitely NOT Catholicism. Not saying there aren’t Catholics who agree with the rhetoric being spewed, but……….at least they’re smart enough to not speak on the subject of “legitimate rape.”
- Psych Student
  
  The problem with the pope being against gay marriage is not that he makes the laws, it’s that he influences the people who do make the laws and the people who vote on those laws and the people who vote for the people who make the laws. And it’s not actually enough to just get married. It’s not even enough for some states to recognize gay marriage. I have a marriage license with my wife (we got married in Washington state) but we live in California and because the federal government doesn’t yet (fingers crossed) recognize gay marriage or make the states do so, the hospitals in California don’t have to let me see my wife if she’s in the hospital.
  It’s not about the term “married”. We can roll around in glue and pine needles and call ourselves porcupines but that doesn’t help if no one will recognize it. We need the rights, they are important. Though I will say, no one expected the pope to like gay marriage.
- C.J.
  
  Unfortunately the people who make the laws that are against gay marriage would probably be against it with or without the pope. I am sure that there are more than just Catholic people that are against gay marriage and more than just Catholic people make the laws. Is it wrong for people to deny people from getting married – absolutely. I live in a country where gay marriage is legal. I have friends that are gay and married. One of my best friends is gay and married. I support gay marriage. My children play with my gay friend’s children. They know that families are all different and the only thing that matters is that there is love in the family. I am Catholic, we go to church and my children make their sacraments. My children go to a Catholic school and so did I. I know a lot of Catholic people. None of my Catholic friends and family are against gay marriage. Actually, the only people I know who are against gay marriage are from a non-denominational Christian church and they don’t follow the teachings of the pope. I suppose it is possible that the Catholic people in the US don’t think the same as the Catholic people in Canada. We are so close to each other yet very different. I just know that the Catholic people that I know here either support gay marriage or don’t care one way or another because it doesn’t affect them. What the pope has to say about it doesn’t change their opinion. It is terrible that so many people hide behind religion because they don’t want to accept people that are different than themselves but those people would likely not be accepting regardless of what the pope says. Catholicism is not the only religion against gay marriage, it’s just the only religion that has one person as a figure head for the whole world that speaks about controversial issues. It is unfair that you don’t have the rights you should have. I really don’t understand why it is such a big deal in your country. Gay people have been able to legally marry here for a while and our country didn’t explode. Most people didn’t even notice when it became legal unless they are gay or someone they know is gay. The only problem with gay marriage we have had was what to do when people come here from the US to get married because it is legal and then want a divorce. Nobody knew what to do about that because according to the law you have to live here to get a divorce here. I just don’t think the pope’s opinion about who should marry should have anything to do with making laws in any country. Lawmakers should be able to think for themselves and do what is best for all people or they shouldn’t be making laws. Though I suppose that will never happen in any country.
H

Wow, what a snarky and ignorant article. I’m not sure why the author seems to expect a ~2000 year old institution to rapidly change some of its core beliefs on family just to bend to the pressure of the times. Did you also expect the Pope to step up to the pulpit and endorse abortion and put forward a motion to ordain women priests? If changes like these have even a chance of happening, they would takes a ridiculously long time to come to fruition. The thing so many people find comforting about the Catholic Church is its unchanging nature. Vatican II, which brought about so many “radical” changes to the Church, was met with a lot of criticism by Catholics and actually led to many people leaving the Church. If you’re not Catholic, why do you care if the Church allows gay marriage or not (do you care about the same in Judaism? Islam? Hinduism? Sikhism)? Look to government for that. Otherwise, if you are Catholic, and it’s such a breaking point for you, then perhaps Catholicism isn’t for you, and you should find a more “progressive” Protestent denomination to frequent, or perhaps you should come up with a better way to broach the topic that actually tries to promote discussion instead of just being intentionally rude.
Sony

If you are preparing for the second coming of our Lord, go to thewarningsecondcoming.com
whiteroses

Wow.

First of all- I’m a conservative Christian. Have been all my life. That’s how I identify. My political beliefs are squarely pro-life and in line with the Second Amendment. But compared to a lot of members of my family, I’m a liberal heathen. There are a lot of reasons why.

I was eight months pregnant when I got married, to *gasp* a Catholic. We got married for no other reason than the fact that we love each other (not to mention that his health insurance was pretty darn good and I had none). We aren’t married in the eyes of the Church because I refused to get married in one. I felt it was disrespectful to go through the motions of a Catholic service when that’s not what I believe. Plus- my husband didn’t care.

I also don’t believe in the much vaunted “gay agenda”. I think gay people should be allowed to get married and adopt children if that’s what they want. I hold gay parents to the same standards that I hold heterosexual ones. I also think that gay people should be able to go on about their lives as they wish, the same as I would. And if my son turned out to be gay, I wouldn’t love him any less. I came to these conclusions after some Christians went out of their way to call my son illegitimate (though that’s not the word they used) based on the circumstances of his conception. It changed the way I thought about things. My personal beliefs on that score don’t square with the way a lot of people in my family or social circle think, but it is what it is. I would trust my son with some Catholic priests or gay people a lot faster than I’d trust him with some of the people who’ve called him a bastard. So- those of you who are criticizing both/either Catholics and homosexuals can go somewhere, in my opinion.

Having said all that- the Pope is a Jesuit. Traditionally, Jesuit priests have been thoroughly involved in two major aspects of life: poverty relief and education. Jesuit universities or those that were founded under their auspices are some of the best in the world (Georgetown University comes to mind). Their emphasis on providing poverty relief led to them working in Resistance networks during WWII and, as a group, being considered one of Nazi Germany’s greatest threats. They are also known for not being overly progressive. Considering all that- the fact that the Pope is concerned about the education and raising of children isn’t a big surprise. Nor is his stance against gay marriage. Most old-school Catholics (and Christians, for that matter) don’t. And honestly, quite a few modern Christians and Catholics don’t. It doesn’t make it right, but you’re hardly likely to see a pope endorse gay marriage for the same reason Billy Graham wouldn’t: Leviticus 18:22. Also, some of that could be cultural. There’s quite a stigma against homosexuality in South America, unless it’s changed from the last time I went.

Sorry for the novel. That’s just my two cents.
JudenRaus

Sodomite “marriage”, where two men do each other up the corn hole and give diseases to each other, is a disgrace. Anyone who tries to equate that with a genuine marriage is a socipathic sicko, and probably a jew.
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