Dear Pro-RH Catholics,
You’ve been asking the Vatican for pro-RH reforms for over four decades. During that time, your leader, the Pope, has made it absolutely clear that to be Catholic means to be anti-RH. You have been called “fake Catholics,” “cafeteria Catholics,” and even “oxymorons.” You have been told that if you cannot obey, you should just leave. Your Pope has answered requests for reforms by saying he prefers searching agnostics over fake believers.
You have no control over what your church officially does and decides. Yet you have fought long and hard to cling to your Catholic identity. I respect that, but I respect even more the fact that you recognize the moral value of RH despite the denigration of your detractors. So I’m suggesting that you consider indulging them.
What if you left the Roman Catholic Church completely and formed your own one? It would be identical to your old church, except for one critical difference: it would be pro-RH officially. Of course, your new church will no longer be recognized by the Vatican.
But what would losing Vatican recognition do anyway? If you cared about the Vatican’s official position, you wouldn’t be pro-RH Catholics. This implies that you don’t think the Vatican is the highest authority.
You probably think that Jesus Christ is, and that He is pro-RH. So don’t you owe it to Jesus to create a church that truly represents Him? If you create a church with pro-RH bishops and priests — and you’ve claimed that there are many of them — don’t you think that Jesus would let them represent Him even without the Pope’s permission?
Surely you don’t think Jesus gave the Vatican unconditional power. If the Catholic Church suddenly taught that child abuse was a sacrament, do you think Jesus would still be OK with them representing Him? Similarly, do you think Jesus would have a problem with good bishops just because they removed the “Roman” in “Roman Catholic”?
So you should have no doubt that Jesus will bless this Pro-RH Church that you are forming. Being a pro-RH God, it’s even reasonable to think He’d bless it even more. Your new church may not be as extravagant as your old church, lacking the expensive decorations and extravagant costumes (and you won’t have billions in reserve for that occasional child abuse settlement). But I don’t think a carpenter’s son who was born in a manger would care much for appearances.
You may find the different surroundings striking at first, but I’m sure you’ll get used to it soon. Because you can keep almost everything in your new church the same as your old one. A blind person attending a Pro-RH mass wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. At least not until the priest sermons about the importance of informed choice, freedom of conscience, and of course, contraception.
Imagine not having the urge to walk out because you vehemently disagree with your priest. Imagine not feeling tricked whenever you’re asked to kneel, bow your head, and then pray against the RH Bill. Imagine not thinking twice about donating money that could be used to fund anti-RH campaigns. Imagine not feeling cognitive dissonance about supporting an anti-RH institution that claims to represent the pro-RH God you have faith in.
Forming a new church would surely take some courage, not to mention resources. But it wouldn’t take a lot individually if you did it together. If most of you joined this new church, yours would still be the largest church in the Philippines. Since most Catholics are pro-RH, you’ll be bigger than the Roman Catholic church.
The Philippines would now be predominantly Pro-RH Catholic (which it already is anyway). Your new bishops — who will actually represent your RH stance — will have more clout than your old bishops, who can no longer claim to represent 80% of the population.
Knowing the danger of bullying bishops, your new leaders probably won’t use their religious authority to meddle in politics. And they wouldn’t even have to. Because from now on, your representatives will no longer fear pressure from the bishops.
Anti-RH legislators who were just bullied by bishops could change their position. Closeted pro-RH legislators could now openly support the RH Bill. The passage of the RH Bill will finally be a reality, enshrining RH as a fundamental human right. This alone should make you consider forming a pro-RH church. Pro-RH Jesus would be pleased.
Sincerely,
Red
PS
It wouldn’t hurt to disassociate from an organization that censures progressive theologians and nuns, discriminates against women, LGBTs, and non-Catholics, protects pedophile priests more than potential child abuse victims, and thinks that you deserve to burn in Hell.
//You know what, I will forward your comment and a link of FFt to the Dolphy fan pages so you can tell them what you told me! //
Perfect.
It will be fun telling them that you're a homophobe and, by relation, you hated that chapter of Dolphy's life when he played gay roles.
//Wow you even had the temerity to insult, what to many, was a generous and loving person! //
So because he was a generous and loving person, it's not alright to criticize his film career? Maybe you like being a brainless sycophant, mate, but I prefer to be brutally honest.
Dolphy was indeed one of the nicest guys in show business, but that doesn't change the fact that his career's been waning over the past few years, and that his gags were tired and unoriginal.
//Oh I know why you're so offended, Dolphy played homosexuals, now I get it. You know what, I will forward your comment and a link of FFt to the Dolphy fan pages so you can tell them what you told me! //
That's why they're called fanpages, dear – they're prone to getting their feathers ruffled. Even the My Little Pony fans – me included – have a bit of grit and savagery in them when somebody disses the show.
As for you posting my comment, go right ahead. I'll simply acknowledge that you did that because you're unable to put up any reasonable responses, and are now resorting to getting other people to fight your battles, as you did when you started parroting your daughter's supposed comments on our blog on more than one occassion.
For somebody who identifies himself as a "Man," you don't have much cojones, cabron.
Break away from the Catholic church? What a novel idea. The author would make a good Protestant.
LOL!!!!!! Atheist na gusto gumawa ng church na naniniwala sa Diyos? Desperado na kayo?
I will have to agree with Dickie here.
I would love to see a new church populated by the RCC's more progressive minds, the sort of people who are able to see the problems of the world and are able to provide relevant teachings that offer practical solutions.
A church where people like Fr. John Carroll won't have to butt heads with conservative superiors on whether or not our women need modern family planning education to help them plan their family size and safeguard their reproductive health.
A church that embraces the LGBT community as human beings deserving of equal love and tolerance as everybody else, and will be quick to pass judgment on any form of bigotry or inequality.
A church that finally admits female priests into its ranks, and doesn't launch mindlessly pointless crusades against progressive priests and nuns.
A church that would have a zero-tolerance policy for child molesters.
A church that would, ultimately, consider the CBCP, the current Pope, and people like Ricardo Bondan as relics of an outdated ideology that has long outlived its relevance.
It will be glorious.
//Public espousal of measures that directly undermine these non-negotiable principles of the Catholic faith is a sharp wedge that cuts the unity of the Church. //
That your own priests would protect molesters, while crying bloody murder against progressive laws like the RH Bill is what drives a wedge through the unity of the church, Dickie. You don't have any moral authority, and neither does your cabal of senile old coots.
http://articles.philly.com/2012-07-26/news/328492…
//In a soft and clear voice, disgraced Catholic Monsignor William Lynn stood Tuesday before a packed courtroom and apologized for the years of sexual abuse a young man suffered at the hands of defrocked priest Edward Avery, whom Lynn transferred to the boy's parish despite knowing that he had abused another boy.//
//The uncompromising stand of the Church to uphold the dignity of the person and to protect and respect the life from conception to natural death has always been the constant teaching of the Church.//
Protection of the dignity of the person, you say? http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC26364…
http://freethoughtblogs.com/dispatches/2012/07/31…
Full of shit as always, dickie.
//Let it be clarified that the Church does not recognize the “Catholics for Reproductive Health” as a genuine Catholic association or organization in accordance with Canon Law. Any Catholic who freely identifies himself or herself with this group gravely errs. //
And yet priests who molest kids are given a free pass, and have to be PAID just to leave the church.
http://www.snapnetwork.org/nyc_s_cardinal_dolan_p…
I love the company you keep, dickie.
P.S. How was the C4RH August 1 March? Can you post some pictures of the crowd that you were able to garner. Wow it must have been successul that I can't find absolutely any news about it.
//Wow it must have been successul that I can't find absolutely any news about it. //
By your standards, Dolphy, a has-been actor, is more relevant in Philippine society than the CBCP since he gets more media coverage. 😛
Wow you even had the temerity to insult, what to many, was a generous and loving person! At any rate you didn't answer the question …meron ba? you know, pictures, news and crowd?? Oh I know why you're so offended, Dolphy played homosexuals, now I get it. You know what, I will forward your comment and a link of FFt to the Dolphy fan pages so you can tell them what you told me!
Red, Thank you for encouraging them to do so. For your information, the Church has already made it clear
that contraception and Catholicism don't mix!
Clarificatory Note on ‘Catholics for RH (C4RH)’
It came to our knowledge that a group the calls itself “Catholics for Reproductive Health bill” or C4RH has been publicly claiming to be a Catholic association or group whose published mission is “to bring Catholics into full harmony with their faith and realize that there is no dissonance with their being Catholic and simultaneously believing in the advocacy and goals of reproductive health and rights.”
We wish to make it clear that the Church does not recognize this group to be an authentic Catholic association or group since it espouses and supports a stand contrary to the magisterial teachings of the Church. The uncompromising stand of the Church to uphold the dignity of the person and to protect and respect the life from conception to natural death has always been the constant teaching of the Church. Public espousal of measures that directly undermine these non-negotiable principles of the Catholic faith is a sharp wedge that cuts the unity of the Church.
Let it be clarified that the Church does not recognize the “Catholics for Reproductive Health” as a genuine Catholic association or organization in accordance with Canon Law. Any Catholic who freely identifies himself or herself with this group gravely errs.
For the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines,
+NEREO P. ODCHIMAR, DD
Bishop of Tandag
President, CBCP
May 17, 2011