They have been going on and on about how Cardinal Omalley "could" be the next pope, but seeing how any person of power from this state behaves, I doubt that will ever happen!

They have chosen a new pope, but haven't announced who just yet.

Isn't funny that you can get a group of people together to decide who will be the leader of the Catholic Church in a couple of days, yet we have politicians that can't decide what brand of toilet paper to use to wipe the crap off their faces after months of useless banter.

I guess it's true...religion and politics really don't mix.

I heard it was BigFish...

Does it really matter? I didn't even know who the last one was until he retired.

Does it really matter? I didn't even know who the last one was until he retired.

It matters a great deal to the majority of the Catholics in the world, who number almost 2 billion.

Cardinal Bergoglio is an inspired choice. A trained scientist (chemist)who has a deep commitment to the Cathechism and to serving the less fortunate.

He has also said in the past that politicians who speak out against the sacraments (such as those who support abortion) are not eligible to receive Communion. We're long overdue in this country for someone implementing that policy. You shouldn't be a cheerleader for abortion 6 days a week and get Communion on Sunday. To me, that's comparable to someone who wants to belong to both the KKK and the New Black Panthers. Sometimes, you have to choose sides.

He also is guilty of supporting the dirty war in Argentina from 76 to '83 which killed thousands of leftists.This was politically motivated and supported by the Catholic Church,which has openly acknowledged their role.

He also is guilty of supporting the dirty war in Argentina from 76 to '83 which killed thousands of leftists.This was politically motivated and supported by the Catholic Church,which has openly acknowledged their role.

But not on Sundays.
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I don't get it.
Elect / appoint a new pope.
The guy is 78 years old.
Was he the youngest who wanted the job ?

He also is guilty of supporting the dirty war in Argentina from 76 to '83 which killed thousands of leftists.This was politically motivated and supported by the Catholic Church,which has openly acknowledged their role.

"He also is guilty of supporting the dirty war in Argentina from 76 to '83 "

The Catholic church, as an institution, gets some well-deserved criticism for not emphatically denouncing the atrocities that took place in that war.

That's a far cry from saying that Bergoglio "supported the war".

Here's an AP link...

New pope tied up in Argentina's 'dirty war' debate - US News and World Report (http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2013/03/14/papal-election-stirs-argentinas-dirty-war-past)

The link says that Bergoglio took significant personal risks to help wanted leftists so that they could escape.

'This was politically motivated and supported by the Catholic Church"

If by 'this' you mean the murders, well, I'll ask you to provide evidence that Catholic officials openly supported the murders. They did openly support the dictators, while behind the scenes, Bergoglio actively worked against the dictators.

No one in the Church is proud of their record there. It's also very easy for outsiders to say that the Catholic priiests on the ground should have openly denounced the dictators, which would possibly have been sentencing themselves to torture and death.

George Soros is a hero of the left. He also openly admits that he was a Nazi collaberator as a teenager in Europe. His choice was to work with the Nazis, or to be executed. I doubt he's proud of his actions, but I don't think it's fair to criticize him for the choice he made in those horrible circumstances.

The catholic church handled that situation poorly, no doubt. That doesn't mean I expect every priest in Argentina to have effectively committed suicide by publicly rejecting the dictators.

Fortunately, there are heroes who are willing to die by standing up to this kind of totalitarianism. But they are few and far between.

But not on Sundays.
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Ha ha, good one!

Spence, here is the difference between you and me. You pointed out (actually Sea Dangles pointed it out, you jumped on the bandwagon) something bad about Bergoglio's past. I admitted the truth, and addressed it as honestly as I could.

I pointed out a legitimate hypocrisy among many liberal politicians (supporting abortion while claiming to be Catholic), and you won't respond, you'd rather hide inder your desk.

So, you'll always pile on when a conservative does something wrong. But when a liberal does something wrong, you pretend not to see that post.

I wonder why?

So says the guy who complains about more things on this forum than anyone else and has single handedly changed the tone of the whole forum.

I expected this response where there is an exit strategy in place. No,he did not pull the trigger Jim nor did he rape anybody. The church merely provided a cozy atmosphere for the offenders behind the scenes and looked the other way.Sound familiar? Nothing a few Hail Marys can't fix.

I expected this response where there is an exit strategy in place. No,he did not pull the trigger Jim nor did he rape anybody. The church merely provided a cozy atmosphere for the offenders behind the scenes and looked the other way.Sound familiar? Nothing a few Hail Marys can't fix.

Bergoglio did not look the other way. If you read what I posted, you'd see that he helped some wanted folks escape the country, and he did that at great personal risk.

I admit the church made huge mistakes. But if Bergaglio helped some folks escape (at his own peril), how can you categorize that as "looking the other way"?

So says the guy who complains about more things on this forum than anyone else and has single handedly changed the tone of the whole forum.

Paul, as demonstrated here, I can directly answer fair, tough challenges (like posted by Sea Dangles) when my side makes mistakes. Sorry if you can't handle that...

I like that Jim,when your faith is tested you answer the tough questions.

I like that Jim,when your faith is tested you answer the tough questions.

Your point about the war was tough, probing and challenging. It was also perfectly fair and relevent to whether or not he's fit to lead my church.

There is a difference between sincerely supporting the dictators, and merely saying you support them because you have a figurative gun to your head, and then plotting against them in private.

It's more heroic, in some ways, to denounce the dictators. But if denouncing them means torture and execution, I can see where someone would be intimidated. I wouldn't say such a person can never be deemed fit to lead a church.

I hope his actions were considered when the cardinals voted. I wouldn't say a guy is unfit to be pope, because he was too scared to take a stance that would lead to certain death (this is precisely why I don't fault George Soros for being a Nazi collaberator).

I like that Jim,when your faith is tested you answer the tough questions.

I don't know if Bergoglio's faith was tested by the "dirty wars." I would assume his faith is in Christ's message with its path to God, not in man and the ways of godless men. I don't recall in my Bible readings (long enough ago that I may have forgotten some) that Christ was concerned with the often murderous machinations of the Roman empire, nor with scolding Roman governors, but rather with preaching and ministering to the poor, and with scolding those who had false faith. His path to salvation was, I think, a personal faith in a God who demands that you cast off petty material concerns and seek spiritual salvation even if you must sacrifice your corporeal being. If he had been asked to abandon his faith or be crucified, that, I think, would have been a test of his faith.

I was referring to Jims faith,not the Popes.

Well said 'detbuch'

As christians we don't need to know the politics of the catholic faith. We can point at every religious leader and find his faults. All men are weak that's why we all need to know God.
When modern men first discovered tribes in the middle of the jungle those tribes where worshiping God..same thing was going on way before the bible was written. If your excuse for not seeking spirituality is because you haven't yet found the perfect leader, then you have trust issues, the good news is...when your in a fox hole and the end is near, you will.

I didn't jump on the bandwagon, it was a joke.

Ha ha, good one!

Spence, here is the difference between you and me. You pointed out (actually Sea Dangles pointed it out, you jumped on the bandwagon) something bad about Bergoglio's past. I admitted the truth, and addressed it as honestly as I could.

I pointed out a legitimate hypocrisy among many liberal politicians (supporting abortion while claiming to be Catholic), and you won't respond, you'd rather hide inder your desk.

So, you'll always pile on when a conservative does something wrong. But when a liberal does something wrong, you pretend not to see that post.

I wonder why?
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