Views of Life

Society and the Church differ on their views of life. The Church values all human life, born and unborn. Society has made it to where abortion is not only allowed, but commonplace and easy to do. At the current rates of abortion, one-third of all the women in the United States of America will have a abortion. In the United States of America, the death penalty is legal. Although the death penalty is give to those who have committed very serious crimes it is still morally wrong to kill them. The Church views all life as sacred. They realize that being pro-choice is being pro-death. The Church tries to protect the unborn. In their efforts of being pro-life they also are against the death penalty. No matter what way you argue it the death penalty and abortion are murder and therefore a very serious sin.

Pope Francis & Single Mothers

Here is a bio that was made of Pope Francis upon his election:
http://www.aleteia.org/en/religion/news/cardinal-jorge-mario-bergoglio-is-pope-francis-480004

     One of the many attributes listed caught my attention. It is considered a sin to have sex before marriage, and a few priests in his diocese took this idea a bit too far according to this excript:

     He is known to be a very spiritual and humble man, much beloved in his country. He has encouraged Argentines to “not grow accustomed to poverty” and to “go out in the streets” in defense of the family.  September 2012, he disciplined priests who denied baptism to the children of single mothers, calling them “the hypocrites who have clericalized the Church; who have alienated the People of God from salvation.” He is regarded as a courageous and zealous pastor with a particular sensibility for the Jewish people and the Christians of the Middle East.

     This is a very interesting point, one that the Pope was right in correcting. The flaw in the priests actions were simple: they were holding the child accountable for an immoral action of the parent. The fact is, we all sin every day. A bishop or priest may sin less, but that does not make them perfect. Saying a child of a single mother should not be baptized is like saying a baby who throws their food should not be baptized. The Church should leave baptism open to anyone who requests it.

Story from North America

A few years ago, my brother showed me this video. Before reading this post, I suggest you watch it.
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It's a pretty odd video, but it actually has a lot of depth to it. In it, the boy starts out lacking appreciation for God's creation. All he is concerned about is his comfort, but fails to see the true meaning on earth. If God wanted us to go through life with everything handed to us on a silver platter, he would have made it that way. Still, the fact remains that we will face times in life where we question God's creation, and its in times like these we must remember God's creation was made sacred, and we cannot ignore its value our whole lives. Even something as small (or in this case, big) as a spider has worth, and it takes effort to find it. What have you done to appreciate life this week? Post it in the comments below.

Is Love Subjective: Conclusion

     To conclude the analysis on gay marriage, and to represent the opinion of our blog, marriage is sacred to the Catholic Church. However, this doesn't mean the Church is the official regulator of what the state recognizes as a union of person, and certainly cannot control each individuals experience of love. It is perfectly acceptable for the Church not to recognize homosexual marriage, and it harms no one to keep the state and the Church separate. Therefore, homosexual marriage, though recognized as immoral by the Catholic Church, should be legalized, as there is no harm in doing so, and it will benefit those who wish to do so.

Is Love Subjective: Marriage

     The key to understanding the issue of homosexual marriage and the controversy that is presented is to realize there is a distinction in what qualifies as marriage. To the Church, marriage is sacred and symbolic and must be between a man and a woman. However, the state's definition of marriage is not and should not be determined by religion. America has the belief that religion and state should be kept separate, and this is significant, as not all marriages are Catholic. It is possible for two persons of age to simply go to a courthouse on a specified date and be declared married by law. Many marry with the hope for receiving the benefits that come from being a legal dependent of another person. The Church doesn't claim to have authority over this aspect, and nor should they. Therefore, as long as it is kept separate from the sacred Catholic union of persons, marriage shouldn't be defined by religion alone.

Is Love Subjective: Religion

     Religion, namely Catholicism, each specifies their boundaries to what they qualify to be a marriage. Much of the rejection regarding homosexual marriage in the Church stems from the original love between Adam and Eve. The idea being that God intended a marriage to symbolize the union between the original idea of love he displayed in Genesis. Pope Benedict discussed the issue of homosexuality in the church during his office.

He stated that the inclination toward homosexuality is not necessarily a sin, it can be considered a "tendency toward an intrinsic moral evil, and thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder." He continued, "A person engaging in homosexual behavior therefore acts immorally," because he feels that sex is only good if framed in the stance of being for procreation between a married man and woman.

Therefore, the Church is not against homosexuality, but an official Catholic Marriage is sacred and symbolic, and must be heterosexual.

Is Love Subjective: Love

     Love is a powerful emotion. Specifically, love is defined as an intense feeling of deep affection. One can love their country, their job, or even their family. However, many find a single entity who they love more than anything else they come across in life. By nature, most of the time, this experience of true love takes place between a man and a woman. But can one break the presented pattern and still qualify as being in love? Cardinal Timothy Dolan spoke to ABC defending the stance of the Church on gays:

     When asked what he would tell a gay couple who said they loved Jesus, loved the church and loved each other, he replied: “Well, the first thing I’d say to them is, ‘I love you, too. And God loves you. And you are made in God’s image and likeness. And we want your happiness. And you’re entitled to friendship.’ “But we also know that God has told us that the way to happiness, especially when it comes to sexual love - that is intended only for a man and woman in marriage, where children can come about naturally.”

     To clarify, the Church does not regulate who is allowed to love one another. However, the Church does require marriage to be between a man and a woman. The point being, love is not subjective, but there is more to love than the emotion itself.