I just heard on the radio and see it in print that Pope Francis has stated that contraception can be justified for protection against Zika virus. If this is true, we have a huge problem here! Nuns who Pope Paul allowed to use it is not contrary to Catholic doctrine, because it assumed they were not having planned sex! Pope Francis is clearly wrong on this if he is saying that women can use contraception, while having planned sexual relations. Whoa!! Pope Francis Says Contraception Justified in Regions Hit by Zika Virus Pontiff also criticized Donald Trump and suggested Catholic legislators could vote for same-sex unions By FRANCIS X. ROCCA Updated Feb. 18, 2016 12:19 p.m. ET ROME—Pope Francis said the use of contraception could be justified in regions hit by the Zika virus, a stance that could reignite a debate over the church’s prohibition of the use of condoms to stop the spread of the AIDS virus. With the mosquito-borneZika viruscontinuing to spread through Central and South America,Pope Francissaid today that contraception could be seen as "the lesser of two evils" if women are concerned about having children with thebirth defectmicrocephaly. The Zika virus is usually mild, but has been associated with a rise of the alarming birth defect, characterized by an abnormally small head and brain, often leading to significant developmental delays. The pope compared the situation to a decree issued by Pope Paul VI, which said nuns in Africa could use contraception due to the threat of rape. "Avoiding pregnancy is not an absolute evil," Francis said. "In certain cases, as in this one, such as the one I mentioned of Blessed Paul VI, it was clear. I would also ask doctors to do their utmost to find vaccines against these mosquitoes that carry this disease. This needs to be worked on."
Wait, why would preventing a child from existing (with a real, but small risk of problems) be the lesser of two evils? I certainly hope this is not true. This is a very worldly perspective, not an eternal perspective at all.
Brace Yourselves! The Pope has spoken to reporters on a plane again! This is another who am I to judge twisting of meaning. He was asked directly of contraception was better than abortion in this virus outbreak. He answered as I would. It's the lesser of two evils which is true. It's still evil. Non story Bigger one is decrying wall building when The Vatican is surrounded by one
You are so right Fatima Pilgrim. The Vatican guards won't let you go to the supermarket there, much less seek asylum!!
I also am just hearing that Pope Francis has said Donald Trump is not a Christian because Donald Trump would enforce the laws of this land regarding immigration and build a wall. Strangely, Marco Rubio has also supported the Wall but the Pope didn't have any words of chastisement for the Catholic Rubio (Rubio also personally supports contraception by the way). What ever happened to "Who am I to Judge?" Let's just hope the Pope's words about Trump were a mistranslation, because if they are accurate then we have a major problem.
Rubio said in following in 2015 about contraception: "“No. I don’t want to ban any contraceptive efforts. Obviously, my faith has a teaching that governs me in my personal life on these issues. But I think our laws on those issues are different.” That doesn't sound to me that he is "personally" for contraception.
If that is what he is saying, OK. But it's misleading because it isn't an either/or situation. Both choices are evil.
'The goal, end, or intention is the part of the moral act that lies within the person. For this reason, we say that the intention is the subjective element of the moral act. For an act to be morally good, one's intention must be good. If we are motivated to do something by a bad intention—even something that is objectively good—our action is morally evil. It must also be recognized that a good intention cannot make a bad action (something intrinsically evil) good. We can never do something wrong or evil in order to bring about a good. This is the meaning of the saying, "the end does not justify the means" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, nos. 1749-1761).' http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/morality/
Sorry, but you are wrong. Both Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz personally support contraception. Rubio should know better since he is a Catholic. Using contraception is a mortal sin. Here are Rubio's own words: Rubio was first asked whether he thought contraception was wrong. "Of course not," he said to CBS 4 Miami. "Who says it is? You’re going to get into this whole argument about contraception. No one has ever said that contraception should be illegal, that contraception should be discouraged, that people should be looked down upon for using it. The only argument that there ever has been about this issue isn’t even about contraception, it’s about religious liberty." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/13/marco-rubio-contraception-blunt-amendment_n_1423640.html Here are Ted Cruz's own words: "Last I checked, we don’t have a rubber shortage in America. Look, when I was in college, we had a machine in the bathroom, you put 50 cents in and voila. So, yes, anyone who wants contraceptives can access them, but it’s an utter made-up nonsense issue,” Cruz said at a campaign stop in Bettendorf, Iowa. "Now, listen, I have been a conservative my entire life,” Cruz said. “I have never met anybody, any conservative, who wants to ban contraceptives. As I noted, Heidi and I, we have two little girls. I’m very glad we don’t have 17.” http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/ted-cruz-birth-control-dont-rubber-shortage-america/story?id=35501705
What do you mean, I am wrong? I quoted Rubio's own words. They are a matter of public record. Your quote comes from 2012, so it isn't as applicable as the quote I gave from 2015. He probably just found a better way of expressing himself since then. Of course Cruz isn't against birth control - he's a Protestant. What's the difference anyway? No politician is going to attempt to ban contraception in this septic tank of a culture. It's political suicide. Shooting down others is Trump's own method, so I'm not surprised you are following it, but Trump doesn't have a chance of winning. Not even a 1% chance. The only way he could possibly win in the general election is if Hillary was indicted and I'm still not sure he'd win even then. Voting for Trump is a good way to ensure losing. He has the highest negative perception of any candidate by far: http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/donald-trump-is-really-unpopular-with-general-election-voters/
Let's hope what the Pope said was just a mistranslation, because if what he said is being accurately reported, we have a major problem: ROME— Pope Francis said the use of contraception could be justified in regions hit by the Zika virus, a stance that could reignite a debate over the church’s prohibition of the use of condoms to stop the spread of the AIDS virus. The pope also criticized Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as “not Christian” for his immigration stance, and broke with his predecessors by suggesting that Catholic lawmakers are free to vote for same-sex marriage and civil unions. The pope spoke during an overnight flight Wednesday back to Rome following an intense,six-day trip to Cuba and Mexico that saw him hold a historic meeting with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, blast corruption and exploitation of the poor and defend the plight of immigrants. The pope’s comments on the use of contraception in Zika-afflicted areas comes amid proposals that women in regions hit by the virus—largely in Latin America—use abortion or avoid getting pregnant to prevent the birth of children with microcephaly. Bishops in Latin America have said the Zika virus doesn’t justify the use of abortion or contraception. However, responding to a question, the pope distinguished between abortion, which he said was never acceptable, and contraception, which he said could be justified as the lesser evil in certain circumstances. He recalled that Pope Paul VI, author the 1968 encyclical “Humanae Vitae” which affirmed the immorality of contraception, permitted its use by nuns in the former Belgian Congo because rape was being used as a weapon during fighting there in the 1960s. Pope Francis said the spread of Zika was another exceptional circumstance that could justify the use of contraception. “Avoiding pregnancy isn’t an absolute evil, and in certain cases such as this one, as in that one I mentioned of Blessed Paul VI, it was clear,” the pope said. His words could encourage those calling for the church’s approval of using condoms to fight the spread of HIV, the subject of a long-running and acrimonious debate that Pope Francis hasn’t pronounced on. During his news conference, Pope Francis also addressed another sensitive topic: gay marriage. A 2003 document from the Vatican’s doctrinal office, under then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, categorically forbade Catholic legislators from voting for same-sex marriage or unions. But Pope Francis said a Catholic legislator is free to vote on such matters in accordance with the dictates of a “well-formed conscience,” which he said wasn’t the same as merely subjective opinion. The Catholic Church regards homosexual acts as sinful, but Pope Francis has advocated a more open approach to gays, even as he reiterated the church’s opposition to same-sex marriage. The pope addressed the problem of sexual abuse of children by priests, calling it a “monstrosity” and condemning cover-ups by bishops of abuse by their priests. “A bishop who moves a priest to another parish when a case of pedophilia is discovered is an irresponsible man, and the best thing he can do is to present his resignation,” the pope said. Pope Francis last year accepted the resignations of two U.S. bishops, in Missouri and Minnesota, for mishandling cases of sex abuse by priests under their authority. But victims’ advocates have criticized the pope for appointing a Chilean bishop accused of covering up abuse he witnessed years earlier. The pope praised his predecessor St. John Paul II, whose long and intense friendship with a Polish philosopher, Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka, was the subject of fascination in recent days as the result of a television documentary. “A man who doesn’t know how to have a relationship of friendship with a woman is a man who is missing something,” Pope Francis said. Stressing that any “romantic relationship” outside marriage is sinful according to the church, the pope said he often sought women out for advice on important matters. “They look at things in a different way,” he said. “Women form life in their wombs, so they have the gift of being able to give you things you can build with.” http://www.wsj.com/articles/pope-fr...ified-in-regions-hit-by-zika-virus-1455814800
We'll let Rubio's words speak for themselves. Saying that one is personally opposed to contraception but that "our laws on those issues are different" is like saying that I am personally opposed to abortion but our laws on that should be different. Both contraception and abortion are intrinsic evils. Rubio is absolutely wrong to think that you can be "personally opposed" to contraception but that our laws on that issue can be different. Absolutely wrong, Marco. And Marco should know better claiming to be a Catholic. Rubio not only gets it wrong on contraception, but on the issue of foreign policy he is an absolute nightmare. He has supported arming the so-called "moderate" terrorist Syrian Rebels and Marco fully supports the "Assad must go" mantra. Sorry, Marco, I'll never give you the authority to be commander-in-chief, as your foreign policy is an absolute unjust and unwise disaster and seeing that you fully supported the violent coup in Ukraine as well as the violent removal of the Christian-protecting Assad.
I am not a big fan of Rubio's foreign policy either, honestly. Unfortunately, I can't take bits and pieces of each candidate. Essentially, on contraception, then, you are saying that no faithful Catholic should bother running for office, because they are obliged to attempt to criminalize contraception, which would doom any chance of winning an election.
Bill Donahue says the Pope was also baited and quoted out of context (big surprise there, when are we going to learn not to read media reports on what Pope Francis says?) about Trump and the wall: http://www.catholicleague.org/pope-trump-and-immigration/
In context, I don't really see a problem with the Pope's remarks on contraception. The media, as usual, has an IQ of about 50 when it comes to Catholic matters, and the Pope doesn't seem aware of this, otherwise he would speak more carefully and draw the necessary distinctions. Paloma García Ovejero, Cadena COPE (Spain): Holy Father, for several weeks there’s been a lot of concern in many Latin American countries but also in Europe regarding the Zika virus. The greatest risk would be for pregnant women. There is anguish. Some authorities have proposed abortion, or else to avoiding pregnancy. As regards avoiding pregnancy, on this issue, can the Church take into consideration the concept of “the lesser of two evils?” Pope Francis: Abortion is not the lesser of two evils. It is a crime. It is to throw someone out in order to save another. That’s what the Mafia does. It is a crime, an absolute evil. On the ‘lesser evil,’ avoiding pregnancy, we are speaking in terms of the conflict between the fifth and sixth commandment. Paul VI, a great man, in a difficult situation in Africa, permitted nuns to use contraceptives in cases of rape. Don’t confuse the evil of avoiding pregnancy by itself, with abortion. Abortion is not a theological problem, it is a human problem, it is a medical problem. You kill one person to save another, in the best case scenario. Or to live comfortably, no? It’s against the Hippocratic oaths doctors must take. It is an evil in and of itself, but it is not a religious evil in the beginning, no, it’s a human evil. Then obviously, as with every human evil, each killing is condemned. On the other hand, avoiding pregnancy is not an absolute evil. In certain cases, as in this one, such as the one I mentioned of Blessed Paul VI, it was clear. I would also urge doctors to do their utmost to find vaccines against these two mosquitoes that carry this disease. This needs to be worked on.
No, what I am saying is that Catholics can run for office and tell the truth at the same time. Marco is not doing that and yet is being passed off as "more pro-life" and "more conservative" than Trump when the fact is that Marco is 100% wrong on contraception and 100% wrong on foreign policy, two life and death issues. The fact is that none of the Republican candidates are 100% pro-life. They all either have exceptions or get it wrong on contraception. That includes Trump, who I support. The question that every conservative has to answer right now at this pivotal moment is this: which candidate stands the best chance of beating the Democrat nominee? If we answer that question wrong, this country is finished and Democrats are going to have power for decades.
Exactly, let's not let ourselves get worked up again by the media selectively quoting Pope Francis out of context. What he said, both about contraception and about Trump and the wall is precisely correct. He was baited on Trump and responded correctly "if someone did that" and that's not Trump's position. Non-story again, don't let you know who sow fear confusion and doubt again. As a priest friend just posted: "If the content of your faith comes solely from news coverage of off the cuff interviews of the pope on an airplane, neither are you a Christian." I posted the meme on my Facebook today: https://imgflip.com/i/zfqz6
