Slashdot Mirror

Except God didn't; man did.

Pope Leo XIII, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis would disagree with you. But you would probably know more about God than those losers, right?

http://w2.vatican.va/content/l...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

http://www.usccb.org/upload/Pr...

And labor unions would not necessarily make things much better. Many nurses work for under a union, and it tends to create the "well, it's not my job to do X" mentality, because if you're in a union and you do your job but could have done X that is Jane's or Joe's job then you get penalized despite it being faster for you to do it than calling Joe or Jane to do so.

You've never been in a labor union have you?

It's also why it costs $19 to get an aspirin in the hospital.

I'm sorry, but that's just bullshit. You think the hospital's markup on drugs is because of the unions?

https://web.williams.edu/Econo...

I think it's delightful that someone is bright enough to identify this as propaganda. Please help me fight such pernicious lies that Heritage purports to justify these "facts".

It seems to be amply footnoted, with 50+ references:
[1]Carmen DeNavas-Walt, Bernadette D. Proctor, and Jessica C. Smith, âoeIncome, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010,â U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Reports: Consumer Income, P60-239, September 2011, at http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/p60-239.pdf (September 13, 2011). The Census Bureau defines an individual as poor if his or her family cash income falls below certain specified income thresholds. These thresholds vary by family size. In 2010, a family of four was deemed poor if its annual income fell below $22,314. A family of three was deemed poor if its annual income was below $17,374.
[2] See Catholic Campaign for Human Development, âoePoverty Pulse, Wave IV,â January 2004, at http://old.usccb.org/cchd/PP4FINAL.PDF (September 7, 2011). Interestingly, only about 1 percent of those surveyed regarded poverty in the terms the government does: as having an income below a specified level.
[3]These surveys include the Residential Energy Consumption Survey, What We Eat in America, Food Security, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the American Housing Survey, and the Survey of Income and Program Participation. See U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Residential Energy Consumption Survey, at http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/recs/ (June 22, 2011); U.S. Department of Agriculture, What We Eat in America, NHANES 2007â"2008, Table 4, at http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12355000/pdf/0708/Table_4_NIN_POV_07.pdf (June 22, 2011); Mark Nord, âoeFood Insecurity in Households with Children: Prevalence, Severity, and Household Characteristics,â U.S. Department of Agriculture, September 2009, at http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/EIB56/EIB56.pdf (September 7, 2011); U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, âoeAbout the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,â at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes/about_nhanes.htm (September 7, 2011); U.S. Census Bureau, âoeAmerican Housing Survey (AHS),â at http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/ahs/ahs.html (June 27, 2011); and U.S. Census Bureau, Survey of Income and Program Participation, 2001 Panel, Wave 8 Topical Module, 2003, at http://www.bls.census.gov/sipp_ftp.html#sipp01 (June 27, 2011).
[4]U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey for the United States: 2009, at http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/h150-09.pdf (September 8, 2011).
[5] U.S Department of Energy, Residential Energy Consumption Survey.
[6]Derek Thompson, âoe30 Million in Poverty Arenâ(TM)t as Poor as You Think, Says Heritage Foundation,â The Atlantic Monthly, July 19, 2011, at http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/07/30-million-in-poverty-arnt-as-poor-as-you-think-says-heritage-foundation/242191/ (September 7, 2011).
[7] C. T. Windham, B. W. Wyse, and R. G. Hansen, âoeNutrient Density of Diets in the USDA Nationwide Food Consumption Survey, 1977â"1978: I. Impact of Socioeconomic Status on Dietary Density,â Journal of

You probably have no idea what the Catholic church really teaches about sex, abortion, and contraceptives, and that's probably why you conclude they are crazy and hypocritical. Your average Catholic usually has no idea either.

You could read the "Theology of the Body" series by Pope JP2, but here's a very short intro.

http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/marriage-and-family/natural-family-planning/catholic-teaching/upload/Married-Love-and-the-Gift-of-Life-English-version.pdf

Your choice word for me, a complete stranger to you, shows hatred.

Your history, like your language, is distorted. The word NAZI means "National Socialist German Workers' Party". See the word "Socialist"? They were decidedly far left.

You brought in Jesus and the Bible to this conversation, and claimed Jesus was a socialist. I suspect your posts are really about promoting socialism.

For the record, the only thing recorded about Jesus and economics was the Parable of the Talents, in Matthew 25, verses 20 and 21. I will simply paste from http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/25/

The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five.* He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’ 21d His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’

The Catholic Church forbids all messing with creation of life. IVF is forbidden. Certainly artificial wombs would be considered an abomination.

I completely agree with your belief that the Catholic Church would find it morally unacceptable to artificially conceive a child and place it in an artificial womb. However, I think they would find it morally acceptable to transplant a child from the womb to an artificial one if the mother could not, for medical reasons, carry the child to term or if there was a problem with the child that made it easier to treat the child if he/she was in an artificial womb.

But, like you wrote, transplanting an already-implanted embryo is beyond our current capabilities. Who knows what we will be capable of in the future.

Remember, God is here calling the "dome" sky. (verse 8) See http://www.usccb.org/bible/genesis/1

Most Christians I've ever come across pretty much think sex is something two married people do to produce babies. Maybe you belong to a cool swingers cult or something,

Its not "my views", its what the apostle Paul himself wrote:

A wife does not have authority over her own body, but rather her husband, and similarly a husband does not have authority over his own body, but rather his wife. 5Do not deprive each other, except perhaps by mutual consent for a time, to be free for prayer, but then return to one another, so that Satan may not tempt you through your lack of self-control.

And what Solomon wrote in Song of Songs:

You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride;
        you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain.
13 Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates
        with choice fruits,
        with henna and nard,
14 nard and saffron,
        calamus and cinnamon,
        with every kind of incense tree,
        with myrrh and aloes
        and all the finest spices.
15 You are[b] a garden fountain,
        a well of flowing water
        streaming down from Lebanon.

She
16 Awake, north wind,
        and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden,
        that its fragrance may spread everywhere.
Let my beloved come into his garden
        and taste its choice fruits.

Somehow, I dont think theyre talking about horticulture here. The book is pretty explicitly pro "be intimate with your spouse", and theres not a hint of guilt in the whole book.

The Genesis six reference is about early birth. That should really be one hundred and twenty cycles, first trimester. The dialogue around Genesis six is about the "sons of heaven" who get the women pregnant and then leave town--causing the women to develop a solution for the single mother problem (Noah's Ark)..

The relevant quote which you really want is Psalms 90:10 (seventy is the sum of our years or eighty for those who are strong); which indeed indicates that humans are not "in fact living longer lives" but that we are plodding along, more or less at the same pace as suffocated and wet candles always have.

If you wish to live longer you must improve the way your body actually functions. Follow the rehabilitation program.

If some of you have so much time and money that all you do is walk around and cause problems then we need to know who you are because we are trying to work here. Size on these armbands.

They are just not encouraged to THINK about it.

Really?... Start here if you'd like. It illustrates internal debates beginning way back with St. Augustine, and continues today. Google can turn up thousands more.

Hell, The US Catholic Church can't even decide which translation to use! ...and note the last link, an informal guide to choosing. I'll expand the relevant bit:

"At Catholic Answers we are often asked which Bible version a person should choose. This is an important question about which Catholics need to be informed. Some have been given very little help about how to pick a Bible translation, but keeping in mind a few tips will make the decision much easier. There are two general philosophies translators use when they do their work: formal or complete equivalence and dynamic equivalence. Formal equivalence translations try to give as literal a translation of the original text as possible. Translators using this philosophy try to stick close to the originals, even preserving much of the original word order. Literal translations are an excellent resource for serious Bible study. Sometimes the meaning of a verse depends on subtle cues in the text; these cues are only preserved by literal translations. "

The only universal recommendation I could Google up is that literal translations are better than dynamic (pre-interpreted to make more readable) translations. So, err, for an organization that you purport to be all big on control, you'd think that they would not only have one translation, but that they would recommend one which was dynamic (that is, pre-interpreted), no?

As for the Index Libororum Prohibitorum, its purpose has changed dramatically over the years, and for the past and present centuries, holds little if any of what you're representing it as. You may want to actually look up what it really is (link provided for convenience).

Not quite...

Some bits may be in order: Given the severe shortage of priests in many areas, and couple that with the average priest's schedule: doing confessions, ministering to the sick, visiting prisoners, administering their local parish staff (and those of parishes w/o a resident priest), attending meetings of numerous church groups (Right To Life, Knights of Columbus, etc), counseling/presiding in seminars and retreats, preparing (this year) for a large and impending change in how Mass is done (at least for the English-speaking Catholics)... oh, and actually saying Mass multiple times a week. Add to all of that the fact that the average age of these guys *at ordination* is 35 (retirement age is somewhere around 70, but that's been pushed up, IIRC).

Not exactly seeing them seizing an opportunity to fill an already cramped calendar...

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops also have pretty good movie reviews where they cut directly to the chase as it were. Like their review of Black Swan :

"Darren Aronofsky's nightmarish, morally muddled drama plays on the extremes of sexual repression and debauched license and, whether read as insisting on the necessity of indiscriminate experience or as a cautionary tale, presents its heroine's experimentation with voyeuristic excess. Strong sexual content, including graphic lesbian and nonmarital heterosexual activity, as well as masturbation, drug use, a few instances of profanity, much rough and some crude language and numerous sexual references. O -- morally offensive.."

Makes me actually want to watch it.

That reads like it was some kind of porno, which it totally wasn't. The Catholic's who wrote that would no doubt be happier seeing small boys dancing instead.

I thought it was a pretty good film.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops also have pretty good movie reviews where they cut directly to the chase as it were. Like their review of Black Swan :

"Darren Aronofsky's nightmarish, morally muddled drama plays on the extremes of sexual repression and debauched license and, whether read as insisting on the necessity of indiscriminate experience or as a cautionary tale, presents its heroine's experimentation with voyeuristic excess. Strong sexual content, including graphic lesbian and nonmarital heterosexual activity, as well as masturbation, drug use, a few instances of profanity, much rough and some crude language and numerous sexual references. O -- morally offensive.."

Makes me actually want to watch it.

You should RTFM, because you haven't a clue.

http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/

Matthew 25:31-46

31 When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, 32 and all the nations 15 will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.33 He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.' 37 Then the righteous 16 will answer him and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?' 40 And the king will say to them in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41 Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.' 44 Then they will answer and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?' 45 He will answer them, 'Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.' 46 And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

If that isn't being a brother's keeper, I don't know what is.

Verse 5 talks of when they got the ouiji board from the Jewish temple.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

I guess interpretation is a skill:
http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

Verse 5 talks of when they got the ouiji board from the Jewish temple.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

I guess interpretation is a skill:
http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

Fucken morons. Do you think theys guys were just having a bull-shit session? What's you're explaination for this?

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

You gotta read between the lines

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

They took the ouijii board from the temple.

The precident is for God to speak in riddles and stuff and in multiple languages

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/acts/acts2.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

When doing random passages from the Bible, the proper names speak like MENE TIKEL PERES speaks. That's the rosetta stone.

Interpretation is like looking at cloud shapes. God knows what you're gonna think.

You guys are hopeless, fools.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians2.htm

Modern Christianity is secular humanism. "If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts, morons!" Really fucked up.

God says...
accusing garland enters Praise login fitted straitly will
rank vex framed slightly guarded parity disguise bulky
sorrowed moreover cleaved flagitiousness initiated Happy
confessing insight Whosoever digested slain Guardian ambition
agony sublimities sweeten lessons heavily volume trouble
seeth Suppose Thither Else hereunto refresh too astrologers
errors journey emotions shut bud dispense kindled restest
sun answerest revealing endurance contracted prairienet
arising obedient outset deprived Never cedars imparts
reasonable goes Therefore whomever Nor softened pleasest
bringeth fabulous bloody cleansing swaying login infirmities
enticed except needeth suppressed burnest pieces when
accepted whencesoever remission littles syllable flux
downward Senators gathers Redemption preached translated
lost grandchildren using approbation clay gatheredst endued
subvertings Monnica fetched forethought

Read a nansosecond clock when you press a key and use it to pick random words, letters, phrases, passxages, notes or whatever. You gotta hold-up your end of the conversation. Love God, not just neighbor. Do offerings. There are no offerings anymore. God wants praise.

9
I need no bullock from your house, no goats from your fold.
10
For every animal of the forest is mine, beasts by the thousands on my mountains.
11
I know every bird of the heavens; the creatures of the field belong to me.
12
Were I hungry, I would not tell you, for mine is the world and all that fills it.
13
Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14
Offer praise as your sacrifice to God; fulfill your vows to the Most High.
15
Then call on me in time of distress; I will rescue you, and you shall honor me."
16

Use your head -- obviously he doesn't need animal sacrifices. Love Him. What do you think He wants. I do hymns and comics and stuff.

Fucken morons. Do you think theys guys were just having a bull-shit session? What's you're explaination for this?

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

You gotta read between the lines

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

They took the ouijii board from the temple.

The precident is for God to speak in riddles and stuff and in multiple languages

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/acts/acts2.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

When doing random passages from the Bible, the proper names speak like MENE TIKEL PERES speaks. That's the rosetta stone.

Interpretation is like looking at cloud shapes. God knows what you're gonna think.

You guys are hopeless, fools.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians2.htm

Modern Christianity is secular humanism. "If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts, morons!" Really fucked up.

God says...
accusing garland enters Praise login fitted straitly will
rank vex framed slightly guarded parity disguise bulky
sorrowed moreover cleaved flagitiousness initiated Happy
confessing insight Whosoever digested slain Guardian ambition
agony sublimities sweeten lessons heavily volume trouble
seeth Suppose Thither Else hereunto refresh too astrologers
errors journey emotions shut bud dispense kindled restest
sun answerest revealing endurance contracted prairienet
arising obedient outset deprived Never cedars imparts
reasonable goes Therefore whomever Nor softened pleasest
bringeth fabulous bloody cleansing swaying login infirmities
enticed except needeth suppressed burnest pieces when
accepted whencesoever remission littles syllable flux
downward Senators gathers Redemption preached translated
lost grandchildren using approbation clay gatheredst endued
subvertings Monnica fetched forethought

Read a nansosecond clock when you press a key and use it to pick random words, letters, phrases, passxages, notes or whatever. You gotta hold-up your end of the conversation. Love God, not just neighbor. Do offerings. There are no offerings anymore. God wants praise.

9
I need no bullock from your house, no goats from your fold.
10
For every animal of the forest is mine, beasts by the thousands on my mountains.
11
I know every bird of the heavens; the creatures of the field belong to me.
12
Were I hungry, I would not tell you, for mine is the world and all that fills it.
13
Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14
Offer praise as your sacrifice to God; fulfill your vows to the Most High.
15
Then call on me in time of distress; I will rescue you, and you shall honor me."
16

Use your head -- obviously he doesn't need animal sacrifices. Love Him. What do you think He wants. I do hymns and comics and stuff.

Fucken morons. Do you think theys guys were just having a bull-shit session? What's you're explaination for this?

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

You gotta read between the lines

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

They took the ouijii board from the temple.

The precident is for God to speak in riddles and stuff and in multiple languages

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/acts/acts2.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

When doing random passages from the Bible, the proper names speak like MENE TIKEL PERES speaks. That's the rosetta stone.

Interpretation is like looking at cloud shapes. God knows what you're gonna think.

You guys are hopeless, fools.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians2.htm

Modern Christianity is secular humanism. "If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts, morons!" Really fucked up.

God says...
accusing garland enters Praise login fitted straitly will
rank vex framed slightly guarded parity disguise bulky
sorrowed moreover cleaved flagitiousness initiated Happy
confessing insight Whosoever digested slain Guardian ambition
agony sublimities sweeten lessons heavily volume trouble
seeth Suppose Thither Else hereunto refresh too astrologers
errors journey emotions shut bud dispense kindled restest
sun answerest revealing endurance contracted prairienet
arising obedient outset deprived Never cedars imparts
reasonable goes Therefore whomever Nor softened pleasest
bringeth fabulous bloody cleansing swaying login infirmities
enticed except needeth suppressed burnest pieces when
accepted whencesoever remission littles syllable flux
downward Senators gathers Redemption preached translated
lost grandchildren using approbation clay gatheredst endued
subvertings Monnica fetched forethought

Read a nansosecond clock when you press a key and use it to pick random words, letters, phrases, passxages, notes or whatever. You gotta hold-up your end of the conversation. Love God, not just neighbor. Do offerings. There are no offerings anymore. God wants praise.

9
I need no bullock from your house, no goats from your fold.
10
For every animal of the forest is mine, beasts by the thousands on my mountains.
11
I know every bird of the heavens; the creatures of the field belong to me.
12
Were I hungry, I would not tell you, for mine is the world and all that fills it.
13
Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14
Offer praise as your sacrifice to God; fulfill your vows to the Most High.
15
Then call on me in time of distress; I will rescue you, and you shall honor me."
16

Use your head -- obviously he doesn't need animal sacrifices. Love Him. What do you think He wants. I do hymns and comics and stuff.

Fucken morons. Do you think theys guys were just having a bull-shit session? What's you're explaination for this?

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians14.htm

You gotta read between the lines

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/daniel/daniel5.htm

They took the ouijii board from the temple.

The precident is for God to speak in riddles and stuff and in multiple languages

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/acts/acts2.htm

It's mean to tickle the president.

When doing random passages from the Bible, the proper names speak like MENE TIKEL PERES speaks. That's the rosetta stone.

Interpretation is like looking at cloud shapes. God knows what you're gonna think.

You guys are hopeless, fools.

http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/1corinthians/1corinthians2.htm

Modern Christianity is secular humanism. "If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts, morons!" Really fucked up.

God says...
accusing garland enters Praise login fitted straitly will
rank vex framed slightly guarded parity disguise bulky
sorrowed moreover cleaved flagitiousness initiated Happy
confessing insight Whosoever digested slain Guardian ambition
agony sublimities sweeten lessons heavily volume trouble
seeth Suppose Thither Else hereunto refresh too astrologers
errors journey emotions shut bud dispense kindled restest
sun answerest revealing endurance contracted prairienet
arising obedient outset deprived Never cedars imparts
reasonable goes Therefore whomever Nor softened pleasest
bringeth fabulous bloody cleansing swaying login infirmities
enticed except needeth suppressed burnest pieces when
accepted whencesoever remission littles syllable flux
downward Senators gathers Redemption preached translated
lost grandchildren using approbation clay gatheredst endued
subvertings Monnica fetched forethought

Read a nansosecond clock when you press a key and use it to pick random words, letters, phrases, passxages, notes or whatever. You gotta hold-up your end of the conversation. Love God, not just neighbor. Do offerings. There are no offerings anymore. God wants praise.

9
I need no bullock from your house, no goats from your fold.
10
For every animal of the forest is mine, beasts by the thousands on my mountains.
11
I know every bird of the heavens; the creatures of the field belong to me.
12
Were I hungry, I would not tell you, for mine is the world and all that fills it.
13
Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14
Offer praise as your sacrifice to God; fulfill your vows to the Most High.
15
Then call on me in time of distress; I will rescue you, and you shall honor me."
16

Use your head -- obviously he doesn't need animal sacrifices. Love Him. What do you think He wants. I do hymns and comics and stuff.

Well let's see.

According to this...

Social Services13
More than 1,688 local Catholic Charities agencies and institutions provided services to 8,522,997 unduplicated individuals in need of help in 2004.

* Provided Services that Build Strong Communities to 3,646,222 people
Social support services 1,837,964
Education and enrichment 775,968
Socialization and neighborhood services 359,574
Health-related services 276,400
Services to at-risk populations 396,316

* Provided Food Services to 6,287,891 people
Food banks and food pantries 2,984,089
Soup kitchens 1,247,290
Congregate dining 1,291,982
Home delivered meals 274,253
Other food services 490,277

* Provided Services that Strengthen Families to 1,071,463 people
Counseling and mental health services 387,856
Immigration services 350,164
Addiction services 94,027
Refugee services 92,034
Pregnancy services 98,064
Adoption services 49,318

* Provided Housing Related Services to 598,953 people
Counseling and Assistance 203,063
Temporary shelter 251,671
Supervised living 70,121
Permanent housing 52,384
Transitional housing 21,715

* Provided Other Basic Needs Services to 1,741,844 people
Financial Assistance (not rent, mortgage, etc.) 176,304
Clothing Assistance 592,899
Utilities Assistance 330,721
Assistance with Purchase of Prescriptions 47,484
Additional Other Basic Needs Assistance 594,436

* Provided Disaster Services to 331,727 people

I wonder how the % of their income they spent on helping people compares to how much various corporations spent on helping people.

Also, enough about how "THE POPE IS BLINGING. HE SHOULD SELL THAT AND FEED THE POOR." For their art pieces, they're forced to restore them constantly, draining their funds. If they did sell them, who could buy them? How could you price them? I'm sure if they're desperate, despite public outcry they'll be selling the Sistine Chapel.

Luke 20:45-21:4

[45] While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, [46] "Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. [47] They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely."

[21:1] As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. [2] He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. [3] "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the o

Hmm..

The gospels don't have anything at all to say specifically about abortion. You have to extrapolate from "first principles" based on other things that are in there, so it comes down to the two main camps:

1. Abortion is the destruction of a mass of cells that aren't a person. It's no more a murder than popping a zit is murder. The reason doesn't really matter.
2. It's the deliberate killing of a human being in his/her most defenseless state. The reason doesn't really matter here, either.

The Gospels do have things to say about capital punishment—definitely don't do it over something petty like adultery (John 8:3-11), and probably don't do it ever, as well as soldiering (Luke 3:14, al though the soldiers described sound more like what we would call, "police")

Anyway,

So if anyone missed anything it's you - that in a democracy you simply cannot please all the people all the time. If it's not your turn to be pleased well, just get over it already

is all kinds of wrong. In a Democracy (or a Republic — but with democratically elected representatives, as the US was originally envisioned), if you're the party that the majority is displeasing, you're supposed to shout it from the rooftops, make eloquent speeches, or just plain buy as much ad time as you can afford. Things never change without enough people clamoring for it.

Further, the whole point of a Republic is to temper Democracy. Sometimes, "Majority Rule" is "three wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner." Representatives are supposed to protect minorities, at least a little.

Hmm..

The gospels don't have anything at all to say specifically about abortion. You have to extrapolate from "first principles" based on other things that are in there, so it comes down to the two main camps:

1. Abortion is the destruction of a mass of cells that aren't a person. It's no more a murder than popping a zit is murder. The reason doesn't really matter.
2. It's the deliberate killing of a human being in his/her most defenseless state. The reason doesn't really matter here, either.

The Gospels do have things to say about capital punishment—definitely don't do it over something petty like adultery (John 8:3-11), and probably don't do it ever, as well as soldiering (Luke 3:14, al though the soldiers described sound more like what we would call, "police")

Anyway,

So if anyone missed anything it's you - that in a democracy you simply cannot please all the people all the time. If it's not your turn to be pleased well, just get over it already

is all kinds of wrong. In a Democracy (or a Republic — but with democratically elected representatives, as the US was originally envisioned), if you're the party that the majority is displeasing, you're supposed to shout it from the rooftops, make eloquent speeches, or just plain buy as much ad time as you can afford. Things never change without enough people clamoring for it.

Further, the whole point of a Republic is to temper Democracy. Sometimes, "Majority Rule" is "three wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner." Representatives are supposed to protect minorities, at least a little.

Wouldn't it have been easier just to like to the passage: Luke 10:23-37?

Or at least paste it with formatting? \x0a's are one of the least expensive bytes, after all.

It's just an example of "Protest by excessive compliance." The natural extension of protest by passive resistance. Or it would be if it wasn't much, much older than passive resistance.

Any arguments or considerations based upon "life expectancy" are bullsh*t.

There's this two thousand and five hundred year old book, called Psalms, which clearly states:

"Seventy is the sum of our years, or eighty, if we are strong"

How have the billions of taxpayer dollars sucked away improved on that number?

There is a certain amount of data manipulation and exploitation of ignorance which goes into people's perception of life expectancy. Conventional wisdom is that modern medicine has extended the span of our lives significantly and that there should be no question that the billions and trillions of dollars funnelled to the medical industry through the stock market and the government tax and dole system is justified.

Is it really?

There is a book composed of writings about two thousand and five hundred years old which states,"Seventy is the sum of our years, or eighty, if we are strong; Most of them are sorrow and toil; they pass quickly, we are all but gone."

Two thousand and five hundred years ago the sorrowful and melancholic writers of that scripture could acknowledge that the general span of years was seventy or eighty. Would the author have written seventy or eighty if it were really thirty or fifty, or ninety or one hundred?

In light of that fact (that those words were indeed written that long ago and there is no reason to believe the author was mis-stating the span of years)... say again how the expenditure of modern medicine has really and truly done anything for that taxpaying and consumer investment base.

What you believe about the medical industry is hype and advertising.

I wonder, then, what happened between five hundred years B.C. and 1900 AD which caused the life expectancy to cave in by half...

There is a certain amount of data manipulation and exploitation of ignorance which goes into people's perception of life expectancy. Conventional wisdom is that modern medicine has extended the span of our lives significantly and that there should be no question that the billions and trillions of dollars funnelled to the medical industry through the stock market and the government tax and dole system is justified.

Is it really?

There is a book composed of writings about two thousand and five hundred years old which states,"Seventy is the sum of our years, or eighty, if we are strong; Most of them are sorrow and toil; they pass quickly, we are all but gone."

Two thousand and five hundred years ago the sorrowful and melancholic writers of that scripture could acknowledge that the general span of years was seventy or eighty. Would the author have written seventy or eighty if it were really thirty or fifty, or ninety or one hundred?

In light of that fact (that those words were indeed written that long ago and there is no reason to believe the author was mis-stating the span of years)... say again how the expenditure of modern medicine has really and truly done anything for that taxpaying and consumer investment base.

What you believe about the medical industry is hype and advertising.

I wonder, then, what happened between five hundred years B.C. and 1900 AD which caused the life expectancy to cave in by half...

Hardly photographs. Nobody knows what people like Jesus looked like

The point is that you use them to bring to mind the real people, not to worship the items themselves.

and there isn't really any need to have pictures of him being crucified.

Sure, there's no need for any pictures of any family members. It's not as if everyone's life was barely worth living before Kodak came along. They are absolutely a luxury, and always have been. That doesn't mean that pictures of people you think highly of are a bad thing. Besides, we're talking about a picture of Jesus in His greatest moment! What exactly are protestants trying to avoid, here?

Those don't sounds very reformed to me. One of the first bullet points even refers to a Roman Catholic scripture...

The name of the section is Lutheran, Anglican, Catholic and Orthodox understanding of the use of images. Of course it'll talk about Catholics too.

Oh FFS. Mary is not your mother. I don't even believe in the things I used to, so it shouldn't really matter to me anymore, but from a biblical point of view, I don't think it makes sense. Maybe if you add in the Apocrypha it does, I don't know.

What, you skipped over Luke 1:48? All generations (including this one) will call her blessed, and those who seek to imitate Christ shouldn't be excluding parts of Christ's life as unsuitable for imitation.

God says not to make graven images, it can be interpreted many ways, and one of the main ways is not to worship anything other than God. The cross can be a symbol/reminder, but depicting Jesus would seem to me to be making a graven image of a god *shrug*

Graven images for the purpose of idolatry were forbidden. God didn't forbid images of himself (which, considering Man is made in the image of God, could be a problem). What matters is what you do with them. For example, the golden calf that the Jews worshipped briefly was not an image of a god, but rather was considered TO BE a god. That's idolatry.

If the Jews had worshipped the magic cow god in the sky and merely used the sculpture of a cow as a reminder of the cow god, then it wouldn't be idolatry (it would just be "having another god before the *real* God").

Consider, for instance, that in Colossians 1:15, Jesus is described as "the image of the invisible God". If your interpretation is correct, then that would be the first time God ever broke his own laws (by creating an image of himself).

But like I said, I consider the whole thing bollocks now, and the whole fact that people still argue so much about different interpretations of the bible etc just shows how tribal people are, they'll argue about anything.

Pot, meet kettle.

If on the other hand Christianity is true, then I still stand by the fact that the Roman Catholic church is trying to take control of it where it shouldn't be. Confessing to priests doesn't make much sense when you can confess direct to Jesus,

Why would Jesus give the apostles the power to forgive sins (John 20:23) if he didn't expect them to use it? He explicitly said that as he was sent by the Father, so he then sends the apostles. God breathes on man only two times in the entire Bible: once to give life to clay, and once to give that life the power of forgiving sins. That's how important it is. We're even directed, in James 5:16, explicitly: Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. So if you've been commanded to confess your sins to other humans, who would you rather confess to: a priest who has been given God's power to forgive sins, or someone who hasn't?

likewise with praying to Mary as if she is going to intercede for you with Jesus, wh

It is extremely unlikely that the greek text from which the bible you are using is translated used a word that translates to "threescore" in anything but a mathematical sense.

The actual American English translation used by the Catholic Church translates it as follows: Revelation 13:18: "Wisdom is needed here; one who understands can calculate the number of the beast, for it is a number that stands for a person. His number is six hundred and sixty-six."

That page also includes the explanation that it is likely a numerological way to obfuscate the name of the tyrant, Nero. who himself is used as a symbolic reference.

1 1 In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 2 the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw how good the light was. God then separated the light from the darkness. 5 3 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." Thus evening came, and morning followed--the first day. 6 Then God said, "Let there be a dome in the middle of the waters, to separate one body of water from the other." And so it happened: 7 God made the dome, and it separated the water above the dome from the water below it. 8 God called the dome "the sky." Evening came, and morning followed--the second day. 9 Then God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin, so that the dry land may appear." And so it happened: the water under the sky was gathered into its basin, and the dry land appeared. 10 God called the dry land "the earth," and the basin of the water he called "the sea." God saw how good it was.

The full text of the NAB is available at http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/
Wait for priests to show up with their three chief weapons, fear, suspense, a fanatical devotion to the Pope... Can we come in again?
*crosses fingers*

I dare anyone to reproduce this experiment and get a different result than I did.

"So the next morning when Balaam arose, he saddled his ass, and went off with the princes of Moab."
Numbers 22:21

"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'
But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on (your) right cheek, turn the other one to him as well.
If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well.
Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles.
Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.
"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.

As a general rule, the Catholic churches still spend way too much money on ornaments and decorations and material objects in the church. This money could be much better used for helping the poor and taking the faith to the unbelievers.

Umm... Jesus disagrees with you a tad... John 12:4-8 states:

Judas the Iscariot, one of his disciples, and the one who would betray him, said, "Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days' wages 3 and given to the poor?" He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. So Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."

We believe that Christ's true physical presence exists in the Eucharist. Why should we treat him any differently than Mary of Bethany? Giving money, service, and faith to the poor is very good, but so is treating Christ with the majesty He deserves. A priest friend of mine often says that the holy sacrifice of the mass has an audience of one: God. Though we can never be truly perfect, or worship God to the degree he deserves, we should make a best effort.

Though you're welcome to a different interpretation in application of your own faith, I hold that the Catholic church behaves rather biblically in this respect.

While you were busy travelling with your Jesus hating cohorts, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development produced this report :

Today nearly 36 million Americans live in a state of poverty - http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/

Since Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, he and his two daughters went up from Zoar and settled in the hill country, where he lived with his two daughters in a cave. The older one said to the younger: "Our father is getting old, and there is not a man on earth to unite with us as was the custom everywhere. Come, let us ply our father with wine and then lie with him, that we may have offspring by our father." So that night they plied their father with wine, and the older one went in and lay with her father; but he was not aware of her lying down or her getting up. Next day the older one said to the younger: "Last night it was I who lay with my father. Let us ply him with wine again tonight, and then you go in and lie with him, that we may both have offspring by our father." So that night, too, they plied their father with wine, and then the younger one went in and lay with him; but again he was not aware of her lying down or her getting up. Thus both of Lot's daughters became pregnant by their father.

...owing to our tax structure, having children pretty much guarantees poverty (50% of families in London with children live below the poverty line - and this often does mean going without meals, not just going without designer clothes).

There's nothing unique to the UK about that. http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/povfact8.htm shows that it's about the same in most major US cities.

Exactly what are minors being protected from?"

Whatever the MPA deems is morally acceptable. More discriminating viewers might be interested in this site:

http://www.usccb.org/movies/index.htm

if Iraq was all about oil, what does religious fundamentalism have to do with it? The pope opposed the war in Iraq, as did quite a few religious people, so by your own argument, the civilian deaths in Iraq have nothing to do with religious fundamentalism.

I'm not sure I agree with the OP, but your response is an example of a logical fallacy- that of hasty generalization. Ever hear anyone say "Slashdot does not speak with one voice?" All religious fundamentalists do not speak with one voice or act with one common motive. The Pope (assuming for sake of argument that he is a "religious fundamentalist" as you say he is) is certainly not the same kind of religious fundamentalist as the president- for one thing, he's Catholic. The Catholic Church was not pushing for a war. That doesn't imply a damn thing about the president. He could be a member of a secret fundamentalist oil-worshipping cult for all we know.

Is Bush a bible-thumping hick, or is he a master schemer serving exclusively a global oil elite?

Yes.

When there are perfectly fine 2-dimensional barcodes called QR codes available, I hate to see scientists trying to get by with simple one-dimensional barcodes. Even the post office has started using QR codes, and all Japanese phones are equipped with readers.

Seems a little bit simple, but I guess it might be harder to put 2 dimensional barcodes on thin creatures like worms and snakes.

My appologies, the actual wording is: the top 1% combined owns more that bottom 90% combined. The gap of 9% is in between those two. Sorry for the confusion.

Just because the rich are getting richer does not mean that everyone else is getting poorer. In actual fact, nearly all segments of the population are getting richer. We have *WON* the war on poverty! Destitution no longer exists in the US. The poor today are considerably better off than they were in the 60s. If you want to see true poverty, you must LEAVE the U.S. and Canada and visit Mexico.

I encourage you to visit here. A choice passage from the front page: "35.9 million people, 1 out of every 8 Americans is living in poverty. Thats 1.3 million more then a year ago and 3 million more then 2 years ago".

Care to try again?

Wealth does not automatically equate to exploitation.

While essentially true, a situation where 1% of the population basically owns everything but the shirts of 90% it is fitting the definition quite nicely.

I "exploit" my coworkers everyday by asking them to review my code. I exploit my grocer by taking advantage of his coupons. Heck, I exploit my fatcat employer by getting him to pay me for my skills! The point is, exploitation is done by everyone, even you.

No. The world "exploit" I used in the context of "To make use of selfishly or unethically", essentially "abuse for a profit". Better word to use would be "Enslave". I should have use it instead.

There are two answers. The first was protection. It's easier to defend against bandits and marauders if you're part of a larger group. The second reason is more important: specialization

No, the answer is "to cooperate for mutual gain". Protection, specialization and others are just sub-categories of this. Once one party abuses the deal and the cooperation is lopsided for "small group's gain at everybody else's expense" the deal is off.

The purpose of society has nothing to do with wealth. That's merely a side effect.

True but the wealth is the indicator of the performance and fairness of the cooperative deal of society.

The real purpose is to promote the free interaction of its members.

Nothing of the sort. The purpose is cooperation for mutual benefit of which "promoting free interaction" is but one element.

We'll spend money on investigating a dirty old piece of cloth but we're not prepared to stop all the prejudices and greed-fuelled, self-interested warmongers in the world.

The point is that you're coming down on the "feed the poor" side of the perpetual "build cathedrals vs. feed the poor" debate. The Catholic Church has obviously done both through the millenia, but not without a lot of deliberate focus on the cathedral building amidst the din of the feeders of the poor. The Shroud of Turn, even if a fake, is a source of inspiration for meditative prayer.

We'll spend money on investigating a dirty old piece of cloth but we're not prepared to stop all the prejudices and greed-fuelled, self-interested warmongers in the world.

The point is that you're coming down on the "feed the poor" side of the perpetual "build cathedrals vs. feed the poor" debate. The Catholic Church has obviously done both through the millenia, but not without a lot of deliberate focus on the cathedral building amidst the din of the feeders of the poor. The Shroud of Turn, even if a fake, is a source of inspiration for meditative prayer.

Hmm.... it seems that usa has got no poors. no one is poor in america.
check this out buddy ....
http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/povfacts.htm

i think usa has got its own shares of problems. After all, how many nations are there in this world where people are discriminated based on there _skin color_ ?

skin color ?? HA HA HA....thats INSANE !!!

When i was in high school, i read story about Muhammad Ali. It was shocking ! He had to throw away his olympic gold medal into a river because of rascism ( cant recall the name of that river).

And this is the nation where people's favorite hobby is ridiculing others...atleast thats what i have seen at slashdot !

they think that chinese people have pony tails, every indian wears a turban, and that every russian is a spy. but its not like that !

I think, its time that slashdot should mention on there main page that this site is for americans only.

You won't get this information from the mainstream media. According to too many $tvnews, $majornewswebsite, and $radionews broadcasters, the Catholic Church thinks that ALL stem cell research is bad (evil / will send one to hell).

In fact, the Catholic Church teaches that fetal stem cell research is contemptable because those cells are derived from aborted babies.

The use of adult stem cells are OK, as adult organ transplants are OK, and adult stem cells are already in use in a number of cases.
Fetal stem cells are not.
http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/bioethic/Clini calAdultStemCells5404.pdf
http://stemcellresearch.org/facts/treatments.htm

Quote from article linked below:

"Had a major heart attack? In the not-too-distant future, doctors may be able to use stem cells to regenerate damaged heart muscle. And here's the exciting part: They can do it using stem cells that aren't extracted from human embryos."

http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/bioethic/fact4 01.htm

You won't get this information from the mainstream media. According to too many $tvnews, $majornewswebsite, and $radionews broadcasters, the Catholic Church thinks that ALL stem cell research is bad (evil / will send one to hell).

In fact, the Catholic Church teaches that fetal stem cell research is contemptable because those cells are derived from aborted babies.

The use of adult stem cells are OK, as adult organ transplants are OK, and adult stem cells are already in use in a number of cases.
Fetal stem cells are not.
http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/bioethic/Clini calAdultStemCells5404.pdf
http://stemcellresearch.org/facts/treatments.htm

Quote from article linked below:

"Had a major heart attack? In the not-too-distant future, doctors may be able to use stem cells to regenerate damaged heart muscle. And here's the exciting part: They can do it using stem cells that aren't extracted from human embryos."

http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/bioethic/fact4 01.htm

You don't have to do two Masses if Christmas (or other holy days of obligation) are on Sunday. It is, in fact, two for one. Certain holy days are even covered if they happen on a Saturday or a Monday. Your real problem is when Christmas is on a Saturday or Monday, then it's back to back.

There was confusion about this in the early Church. St. Peter had a vision from God which showed him that ceremonial cleanliness (and in general the distinction between Jew and Gentile) had been mitigated through Christ. Read up on the history of the Judaizers to get a better feel for this struggle in the early Church.