Catholic Church Announces 7 New Updated Deadly Sins for the 21st Century!

Submitted by Lone Wolf on 12 March, 2008 - 01:39.

HI guys

Bizarre but true - the head of the Vatican department that deals with the forgiveness of sins has announced in the Vatican's official newspaper that there are now seven new mortal sins that this time offer a social perspective.

They are: drug abuse, genetic manipulation, morally dubious experimentation, environmental pollution, social inequalities and social injustice, causing poverty and accumulating excessive wealth at the expense of the common good of society.

Given that the Catholic church itself has played a major role in creating and maintaining inequality and injustice and has feathered its own nest at the expense of its flock this would seem to be ironic. I guess the Church hierarchy will "forgive" each other and go right on sinning... roll eyes much in the same way they have identified child abuse as a mortal sin whilst protecting the perpetrators at the expense of the innocent.

This move has been introduced in response to a decline in the faithful attending confessions, in part because the priests have been, basically, rubbish at hearing confession which is why these new sins were announced at the close of a priestly confessional refresher course. neutral

Havng been bought up in a non-religious household, i still find this stuff all really bizarre eek and would welcome comments from fellow posters esp. lapsed catholics.. laugh out loud including what any family members who are still Catholic think of this.. i mean looking at social causes rather than hammering individuals is a good thing.. but that isn't the Church's reasoning of course - this is a marketing move!!

Love

LW XX

12 March, 2008 - 16:43
Quote:
They are: drug abuse, genetic manipulation, morally dubious experimentation, environmental pollution, social inequalities and social injustice, causing poverty and accumulating excessive wealth at the expense of the common good of society.

Heyohh.... Catholic Church goes green!

12 March, 2008 - 17:00
Quote:
accumulating excessive wealth at the expense of the common good of society.

reformists

12 March, 2008 - 20:48
bozemananarchy wrote:
Quote:
They are: drug abuse, genetic manipulation, morally dubious experimentation, environmental pollution, social inequalities and social injustice, causing poverty and accumulating excessive wealth at the expense of the common good of society.

Heyohh.... Catholic Church goes green!

Not during Lent, it doesn't. Purple's where it's at. cool

12 March, 2008 - 23:58

I heard on the news over here that abortion was on this new list too - anyone else hear that?

13 March, 2008 - 00:03

Abortion is a sin crying out to heaven for vengeance, rather than a mortal sin per se. As is "defrauding the worker of his wages," IIRC.

Actually, abortion isn't a sin crying out to heaven for vengeance. I just checked. Unless it comes under "wilful murder." Which it probably does. I was right about "defrauding the worker of his wages" though.

13 March, 2008 - 02:45

I'm sure my Catholic mom will be pleased. She's basically living in dreamland when it comes to the reality of the Church; I'm sure it will ease her liberal feminist heart to know. Same goes for most of the other Catholics I know, it's generally just a given that "oh, the Church has its problems, but it's getting better." I like telling some of the more tolerant ones that if the Church was held up to any kind of standard, it would've been deemed either a crime family or a terrorist organization, were it not for its wealth and influence.

I'm an ex-Catholic myself (going Jewish then Atheist around early adolescence) but from a pretty liberal middle class background, which like George Carlin's upbringing, meant that they gave you the bullshit mythology without any of the scary discipline, and lo and behold, my "faith" folded like a house of cards. But it also meant that I really didn't get any of the indoctrination about deadly sins and the more reactionary parts of Catholic ideology (anti-feminism, heterosexism, etc) so mostly I just got the righteous justice and moral behavior end of it, which was probably more beneficial than harmful in the long run. I have a feeling this is true of lots of religious folks these days, Catholic or otherwise, so perhaps these whole new Save the Planet sins are trying to play to that. That seems to have always been the tug-of-war with the Church hierarchy: being the single most violently reactionary institution in the West (or world) while at the same time trying to make the faithful think that there's some level of humanity in the hierarchy.

(Hint: there's not!)

13 March, 2008 - 12:09

The Catholic church exists to keep power and the keys of heaven to itself. You can only enter into heaven through the church which is why it is so hierchical. The point of confession was that ordinary people could not access god by themselves only through the anointed priests, this means that the church has to scare people into coming into confession in the first place. Updating the list of sins just means that the Church has identified some major issues of the day and targeted them as deadly sins so that the frightened will flock back to church.

13 March, 2008 - 12:54
Quote:
... is a sin crying out to heaven for vengeance

That's some awesome rhetoric!

Catholicism even in it's most reactionary form kicks proper fucking arse!

13 March, 2008 - 12:55
2existis2resist wrote:
The Catholic church exists to keep power and the keys of heaven to itself. You can only enter into heaven through the church which is why it is so hierchical. The point of confession was that ordinary people could not access god by themselves only through the anointed priests, this means that the church has to scare people into coming into confession in the first place. Updating the list of sins just means that the Church has identified some major issues of the day and targeted them as deadly sins so that the frightened will flock back to church.

GO ANABAPTISM!!!!!!!

13 March, 2008 - 12:56
circleamatt wrote:
I'm an ex-Catholic myself (going Jewish then Atheist around early adolescence) but from a pretty liberal middle class background, which like George Carlin's upbringing, meant that they gave you the bullshit mythology without any of the scary discipline

i'm jealous. i'm ex-catholic from a WC background, and they gave us the bullshit mythology and the scary discipline.

then again i have more stories.

13 March, 2008 - 13:09
newyawka wrote:
circleamatt wrote:
I'm an ex-Catholic myself (going Jewish then Atheist around early adolescence) but from a pretty liberal middle class background, which like George Carlin's upbringing, meant that they gave you the bullshit mythology without any of the scary discipline

i'm jealous. i'm ex-catholic from a WC background, and they gave us the bullshit mythology and the scary discipline.

then again i have more stories.

that's more your age, the scary discipline shit went to the wall years ago, they can't enforce it and so tend to keep quiet about it.

27 March, 2008 - 21:53

So the Catholic Church updates the seven deadly sins for the 21st century? Ask them when they are going to make covering up child abuse by their very own priests a sin.

27 March, 2008 - 21:54

but genetic manipulation is cool - all my friends do it sad

28 March, 2008 - 01:22

dp sad

28 March, 2008 - 01:29
mel wrote:
but genetic manipulation is cool - all my friends do it :(

No they don't they just manipulated you into thinking they do. cool

2Exist - yeah i reckon you are right - what can we scare you with this century and also what makes us look ,like, a bit trendy so we can attract the nice well-meaning types like circleamatt's relo. sad

Haven't heard much more about the sins thing of late - the Catholic church is mostly going for the PR stuff on the hybrid embryology issue atm - this whole thing about should Catholic MP's have a free vote or whatever... and the abortion limit stuff... prefer the sins talk tbh - it is just so bizarre and abstract from my pov... unwitting light entertainment from the Church.... smile

Any other reaction from relos or friends??

Love

LW XXX

28 March, 2008 - 01:30
Lone Wolf wrote:
necropink wrote:
So the Catholic Church updates the seven deadly sins for the 21st century? Ask them when they are going to make covering up child abuse by their very own priests a sin.

A point I made in my OP. Welcome to the boards. cool

circleamatt - Really interesting stuff - sort of post i was hoping to read. Your relo's reaction makes sense; what i expected. sad

Button -and newyawka - loving your crazy anecdotes and insights from the inside lol.

28 March, 2008 - 01:31

dp - kinda! sad

28 March, 2008 - 12:32

drug abuse - whith ones? Do the Italian priests have to lay down their coffees?

morally dubious experimentation - What does this even mean?, Pope for the Ethical Treatment of Animals?

environmental pollution - I assume this means the Pope will walk to his state visits, humble man of god as he is?

causing poverty and accumulating excessive wealth at the expense of the common good of society - them's some weaselly words, cos from their point of view, the church getting excessive wealth is for the common good...

28 March, 2008 - 20:41

as a catholic I know the church can't just make up sins. The pope can't just make up stuff as he goes along.
These were always sins ,their just issues relevant to todays world that need to brought to attention today.
To fair most priests i know live in relative poverty, the hierachicaly needs a certain amount of money to keep the country the vatican is going and support the aid programs going.
And in regards to the gene manipulation, the church has always been very against it.
Its serious dangerous technology it could allow dna and life itself to be owned and bought and sold.

28 March, 2008 - 20:53

Are you really called Roibeard?

29 March, 2008 - 00:01

yeah Roibeàrd De Paor . Its the Irish form of Robert.

29 March, 2008 - 11:50

That is the best name. Ever.

29 March, 2008 - 11:52
Quote:
the hierachicaly needs a certain amount of money to keep the country the vatican is going and support the aid programs going.


Must be worth a few bob...

29 March, 2008 - 13:26

Thannks einauslander cool

Saii wrote:
Quote:
the hierachicaly needs a certain amount of money to keep the country the vatican is going and support the aid programs going.


Must be worth a few bob...

Know, most of the church wealth is locked in medieval buildings and antiques. Its practically useless wealth, considering how unwilling they are to sell.

In areas where their downsizing e.g. Ireland they have sold much property that’s no longer needed.
All those shares dividends they hold pay for a vast amount of schools, clergy, relief programs etc.
For example In Ireland most public schools are owned and partly payed by for the church, so the church pays for the education of all regardless of religion of the student. The religion of course is voluntary.

I am just trying to point out the church isn't quite as hypocritical as they might at first seems

29 March, 2008 - 13:26

double post

29 March, 2008 - 13:34
Quote:
In areas where their downsizing e.g. Ireland they have sold much property that’s no longer needed.

Interesting, is that linked to falling attendance do your think or is it more financial restructuring? Most of the churches in the UK which have been dumped are a result of lack of interest - most rural churches are likely to go in the next 2-3 decades as there's only a limited number of older people currently maintaining them who are eventually going to drop off. I don't know much about the current demographics of Irish Catholicism.

29 March, 2008 - 14:12

Its both.
They no longer have brother/nuns to run the schools so they switching hands, in those cases there isn't money switching hands. Practically all schools here were set up by brothers and nuns but virtually none have any left.
There are still plenty of people going to mass but stuff like convents, seminaries and empty parochial houses are being sold.
but since vatican2 i think they have tried to hoard property less and to use the money practically.

29 March, 2008 - 15:26
Roibeàrd wrote:
I am just trying to point out the church isn't quite as hypocritical as they might at first seems

Yeah, right!

29 March, 2008 - 17:54

I'm just glad masturbation wasn't on it. Also domestic abuse.

29 March, 2008 - 17:55

what annoys me about religion is religious people do a pretty good job at conversion.