TruthBook Religious News Blog

'There's been a lack of emphasis on the notion that in the end it's the individual who's responsible.'

If, following church scandals, the public is looking for common moral ground, where might they find it?

GERARD CASEY Professor of philosophy, University College Dublin

"I can’t understand people losing faith because of scandals. I’m not making light of what happened, but for me it’s not where faith comes from. Religion and morality are not the same thing, but for most Irish Catholics the two are one and the same. When you tell them the moral code associated with Catholicism is pretty much the same as in any religion, they find it hard to believe.

"You have to get morality from reason – morals are either a set of conventions in a utilitarian way or a real code to live by. The problem with utilitarianism is that morality only survives when the going is good, otherwise it’s every man for himself. There is nothing specifically Catholic about natural law. When you look at what human beings are, you see they have needs and that means we know the kind of actions that are [morally] destructive.

"A classic way of looking at morality is from Confucian philosophy. “There are four concentric circles. The innermost circle is the basic, natural state where we individually are the centre of the universe. We understand this in children and find it quite cute, but it would be sinister in an adult. The next circle is the utilitarian level: we still want things for ourselves, but have to at least simulate an interest in others.

"The breakthrough comes at the next moral level – this is when you recognise that other human beings are exactly like you: each has hopes, dreams and fears. There can be a sense of shock when we realise this.

"The final circle is the transcendent, where the human world is understood in a larger context. Traditionally this has been religious, but it can be other things, such as politics, for example – anything that says there is a dimension above us.

"The key for us as individuals is to match up the emotional and the intellectual sides of our lives. It’s a developmental process and, to some degree, a pattern of habituation."

This is an interview-type article, with the respondents giving their opinions on morality and the Catholic church. In addition to the one one this page, there are several others worth reading. Please click on "external source" for the complete article.

Labels: Aileen Fyfe, Ann James, Catholicism, church, David McConnell, faith, Gerard Casey, Martin Downes, morality, priest sex scandal

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Sunday, January 03, 2010

Decade in review: Scandal, conflict in religion

Decade in review: Scandal, conflict in religion

The decade's religious news featured scandal, conflict, new leaders and a new statistical portrait of American religiosity — or lack of it:

Please click on "external source." This page will provide you with numerous links to follow regarding the most important stories of the decade past.

Labels: conflict, priest sex scandal, religiosity

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Friday, May 08, 2009

Catholics lead the exodus

MARK E. RONDEAU, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/04/2009 03:00:24 AM EDT

Monday, May 4
The departure of U.S.-born Roman Catholics from their church is a major factor in the rise of those not affiliated with any religion, as documented by the American Religious Identification Survey, which was released in March.

This crisis exploded into the news in early 2002, after the second of the ARIS surveys in 2001. In Vermont, those identifying as Catholic were 37 percent of adults in the 1990 survey, 38 percent in the 2001 survey and then down to 26 percent in 2008, Silk noted, providing the number for 2001, which wasn't included in the published survey.

A follow-up Pew survey published on April 27 focusing on religious switching asked former Catholics why they had left the faith. This survey offered respondents both a list of reasons to choose from and asked them to explain why they left in their own words. The most chosen response by the religiously unaffiliated from the list was just gradually drifted away from the religion, 71 percent; stopped believing the religion's teachings, 65 percent; "spiritual needs not being met, 43 percent. Other common choices by religiously unaffiliated former Catholics included unhappiness with church teachings on abortion and homosexuality, 56 percent; unhappiness with the treatment of women, 39 percent; and the clergy sexual abuse scandal, 27 percent.

However, there was a difference when religiously unaffiliated Catholics explained their reasons for leaving in their own words. The top reason, at 54 percent of those responding, was disagreement with religious and moral beliefs. While 42 respondents gave reasons for leaving that fell into the broad category of religious institutions, practices and people, only 2 percent of religiously unaffiliated former Catholics listed the clergy sexual abuse crisis as a reason for leaving.

Similarly, 3 percent of former Catholics who had become Protestants listed the clergy sexual abuse crisis as their reason for leaving the Catholic Church. Drifting away from the faith was given by only 4 percent of unaffiliated former Catholics when giving reasons for leaving in their own words.

Labels: ARIS, Catholicism, church, Mark E. Rondeau, priest sex scandal

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Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Diverse religious, political strains to greet pope

By Sharon Schmickle
Tuesday, April 15, 2008

When Pope Benedict XVI lands at Andrews Air Force Base today, he will be welcomed by a nation that is teeming with religious intensity surpassing anything he could hope to find in Europe.

A good share of the religious rhetoric has as much to do with politics as with spirituality in this highly charged election year. And a good share of the religious tension comes within the ranks of Catholics themselves, who disagree with Rome and each other over birth control, the role of women in the church and other issues.

But this pope already has taken bold strides into broader issues that are roiling America in its pews and in its streets. Catholics and non-Catholics alike will be listening for his message on the Iraq war, the environment and the moral state of the nation.

Pope Benedict has consistently opposed the Iraq war from its beginning. On Palm Sunday this year, he thundered, "Enough with the bloodshed, enough with the violence, enough with the hatred in Iraq!"

The pope's main reason for visiting the United States is to speak before the United Nations on Friday, said the National Catholic Register.

Still, pundits don't expect to see the pope launch a direct broadside against President Bush's foreign policy or to comment on the U.S. election, said the Associated Press.

The pope's itinerary also calls for him to address leaders in Roman Catholic higher education, pray at Ground Zero and hold Masses in the new Nationals Park in Washington and Yankee Stadium in New York. His 81st birthday is Wednesday, and a party is planned in Washington.

The environment

At the United Nations, the pope also is expected to deliver a powerful warning over climate change in a move to adopt protection of the environment as a moral cause for Catholics, The Independent of London reported.

Benedict has earned the title "green pope" for his emphasis on a duty to "protect creation" and safeguard the poorest on the planet from the effects of global warming.

"Before it is too late, it is necessary to make courageous decisions that reflect knowing how to re-create a strong alliance between man and the earth," he told a youth audience in September.

Vatican City recently became the world's first carbon-neutral state, offsetting its carbon footprint by planting a forest in Hungary and installing solar panels on the roof of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Clergy sex abuse

Some Catholics are disappointed that the pope isn't visiting the Archdiocese of Boston, where the clergy sex-abuse crisis erupted in 2002 and then spread nationwide, the AP said.

However, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone — the Vatican secretary of state — told the AP that Benedict will address the scandal during his trip and "will try to open the path of healing and reconciliation." A likely forum could be when Benedict speaks to priests during a Saturday morning Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York.

Diverse voices

By several measures, the United States is one of the most devout nations in the developed world. But the faithful often disagree vehemently. And, whether or not he sees it, the full flavor of that diversity will greet the pope. Groups advocating a stronger role for women, gay marriage and peace are prepared to demonstrate along the papal route.

Some Catholics also will urge the pope to remonstrate against mass consumerism, rampant free enterprise, and the neoconservative agenda for global democratic revolution, said the feisty American Conservative magazine.

They may not be disappointed. The Conservative predicted the pope will speak to such issues, reflecting themes of a forthcoming social encyclical, which is expected to be published on May 1.

"The document may touch on subjects that make many conservatives blush," the Conservative said.

Labels: Catholic, environmentalism, Iraq, Pope Benedict XVI, priest sex scandal, Sharon Schmickle, Unites States