For many years I looked at the Roman Catholic Church, in the modern era despite the efforts of Pope John Paul II, as remarkably open-minded and receptive to ideas that were not necessarily compatible with the orthodoxy pronounced by the central authority. Part of this view was influenced by the first college I attended, Christian Brothers College, now Christian Brothers University, in Memphis, Tennessee, a school run by the Christian Brothers monastic order.
In other words, the Church recognized it was strong enough to actually discuss and intellectually consider the merits of ideas that upon facile examination were conflicting with the central ideology of the Church.
Unfortunately, the Catholic Church in the United States seems to be on the same path as the Baptists and other intolerant Protestant Christian denominations, see this:
No Communion For Obama Supporters, Says South Carolina Priest
Yes, let’s return to the ages immediately after the Protestant Reformation, where any slight deviation from pronounced Orthodoxy merited the rejection from Communion, the most sacred ritual of the Catholic Church.
Yes, let’s return to the attitude that resulted in the imprisonment of Galileo Galilei, because of course that is a heritage to be proud of.
The Church has been so effective at identifying “intrinsic evil” … (yes, that’s sarcasm).
I am so sick of the deliberate ignorance displayed by so many, and not just on topics related to religion.
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Cross-posted to Random Fate.