by Beth Hallet
Some people think that the pope is nothing but a joke, fraud or even a hypocrite.
But I would like to set the record straight. Pope Benedict XVI was an adolescent when World War II wrought havoc upon the world, and like so many others was forced to join Hitler’s Youth to stay alive. I am personally friends with a young woman whose father was forced to do the very same thing during World War II.
So the pope joining Hitler’s Youth is not a horrible thing; it was so that he would not die. I cannot imagine anyone else blaming him for wanting to live. What I find inspiring is that he had the strength to resist the Nazi regime and stay true to himself.
He did not let them bring him down or control him with their desire to kill and their hatred, but he let his love and compassion for people grow so much that he decided to become a priest to serve others.
I think what we have to focus on is that while it is hard to fight for the things we believe in, it is much harder to fight for something that you do not believe in.
The pope asked the Catholics of Africa to not use contraceptives because they are Catholic. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, which states everything a Catholic believes and why, says that all Catholics do not believe in contraceptives (#2399 and #2370).
Catholics believe that sex is used only for creating life, and if you do not want the consequences of creating life then do not have sex. It is not the pope’s fault, or other priests’ fault, for the spread of AIDS.
If the people of Africa do not have sex then they will not spread the disease; it is their own choice if they chose to have sex despite the risks they are taking. It seems the lack of control over immediate pleasure is the problem, not the religion.
I am a woman, and I can walk into a drug store at any time if I wanted to, go down the “Family Planning” aisle and grab a box of condoms. Any man or woman can do that.
So I find it hard to believe that there are Catholic women out there who cannot get contraception if that is their desire. Last time I checked they don’t card for Catholics in drug stores. Your conscience is the only thing that will stop you because it is a sin.
Women who work in any Catholic institution and want their health care to cover oral birth control, then the situation is the same as above. This is a Catholic Institution: they are not going to supply birth control if they do not believe in it.
If you would like oral birth control to be an option, go find a job somewhere that isn’t Catholic or buy it full price yourself. If not, buy condoms!
Catholics shouldn’t have to compromise on their beliefs because of anyone.
What the pope does for the Church is simple: he defends the Catholic traditions when others tear them apart. He reminds the Catholic community why we believe what we believe, and he reminds the world that we have to respect people in all forms of life.
His power is balanced by his cardinals and priests who surround him; and he is balanced by his own powerful connection with God.
Catholics need the pope to remind not just us but the entire world that we still believe and that we are here to stay.
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6. March 2012 at 2:05 pm
this is a perfect response to the other guy’s web article. Great job Beth!
7. March 2012 at 10:00 am
“If the people of Africa do not have sex then they will not spread the disease; it is their own choice if they chose to have sex despite the risks they are taking.”
The thing you are forgetting here is that there are tons of women in Africa who are raped. They never had a choice, sex was forced upon them. If birth control is not available to them due to their religion, then perhaps some way to protect against rape is in order. But to make a blanket statement like this is just mind-boggling to me. Please think through all the implications of your argument before you make it public.
8. March 2012 at 9:11 pm
This article is not only badly written, but badly edited. Please look for an editor that will actually help you write. The blatant ignorance towards those in Africa that are raped, sold into sex slavery, and just lack the basic understanding of how AIDS is spread, is disturbing in this article. It is clear that the writer has absolutely no idea what she is talking about. The writer has no idea what the world outside her religion is like. We need articles in this newspaper that aren’t just conservative, religious and narrow-minded ignorance towards other cultures.
Much like her previous written article, she leaves out basic facts and knowledge and manages to contradict herself, stray from the main point of the article, and bring on mindless and meaningless ramblings.
Really? If they don’t have sex in Africa, then they won’t get AIDS? THAT is your sentence? THAT is your argument? Please. You need a realty check.
8. March 2012 at 9:12 pm
Do they really pay you for writing such a general article that goes on and on saying just “DO NOT HAVE SEX YOU SINNERS”, without any decent research -or at least, not shown?
Wow.
9. March 2012 at 12:24 pm
it’s the editorial section buddy. This section is supposed to be where people write about their opinions. It’s her opinion and she can write what she wants. I don’t agree with everything she says, but that doesn’t matter. It’s free speech. Also, don’t let one editorial summarize your entire opinion of the flyer. Believe it or not, the paper is more than just her article.
10. March 2012 at 1:07 am
Not the OP of this subthread, but I want to point something out to you Steven:
“this is a perfect response to the other guy’s web article. Great job Beth!”
It seems to me that you do, in fact, agree with Beth wholly on this one.
I personally do not care that this article is in the Editorial section, since I cannot change that it did appear in it. However, anyone can make a blog and it is not a big problem most times if there is no concrete research to back up the opinion. This is a college newspaper. I don’t know about anyone else, but I expect that it print opinions in the editorial section that are informed. Beth’s opinion, protected by free speech, is nonetheless uninformed, and does not come across as a cohesive argument. Put bluntly, it comes across as a rant. That’s my problem with the article, and the problem I think this subthread’s OP has with it as well.
I happen to agree with Beth that the Pope having been in the Hitler Youth as a teen should not be that big of a deal (cultural indoctrination for 2 years, then the rest having nothing to do directly with the Nazi party). However, I mostly disagree with her position. I do not want unresearched opinions being featured in the editorial section by recurring writers. I want recurring writers having informed, thoughtful opinions on important subjects in the paper, or in any other paper, which is what I think any reader should be entitled to.
As it stands, Beth’s argument is problematic and, yes, ignorant of many affecting facts pertinent to the discussion. I’m not all that angry; I’m disappointed.
8. March 2012 at 10:44 pm
I’m ashamed of the ignorance displayed in this article. I hope my money doesn’t go towards paying people to write ignorant trash like this. This writer gives Catholics a bad name.