Papal Visit to Ireland

[The Iceman]

Pope Francis says it's better to be an atheist than a 'hypocritical Catholic'

The pontiff said it is not good enough to merely go to Mass.

POPE FRANCIS HAS said that it is better to live your life as an atheist rather than be a Catholic who doesn't subscribe to the values of the religion.

The pontiff said it is not good enough to merely go to Mass and said it would be better to be a non-believer rather than someone who says they have faith but who practices otherwise.

According to a Vatican Radio transcript, he said: "There are those who say 'I am very Catholic, I always go to Mass, I belong to this and that association'."


He said that some of these people should also say "'my life is not Christian, I don't pay my employees proper salaries, I exploit people, I do dirty business, I launder money, I lead a double life'.


There are many Catholics who are like this and they cause scandal. How many times have we all heard people say 'if that person is a Catholic, it is better to be an atheist'.

Pope Francis is no stranger to liberal thinking such as this. Last year, he said that Christians and the Roman Catholic Church should apologise to gay people and seek their forgiveness for the way they have been treated.

Speaking to reporters after he flew back to Rome from Armenia, the pope was asked if he agreed with comments by German Cardinal Reinhard Marx that the Church needed to say sorry for the way it has treated the gay community.

"We Christians have to apologise for so many things, not just for this (treatment of gay people), but we must ask for forgiveness," he said.

The questions is: if a person who has that condition, who has good will, and who looks for God, who are we to judge?" the pope added, repeating his famous "Who am I to judge?" remark about homosexuality made early in his papacy.

some more context.... and a bit of research Declano
https://churchpop.com/2017/02/23/no-pope-francis-did-not-say-its-better-to-be-an-atheist-than-a-bad-catholic/

Although in fairness if you read revelations 3: 16 it talks about luke warmness. It's better to be either hot or cold. Because if you are lukewarm you will be vomited out...so maybe there's something there but it isn't what the Pope said...

[Cunny Funt]

Tomorrow morning he arrives,  I'm not religious myself and won't be going to Croke Park,Phoenix park or Knock to see him but with all the crazy money spent to get him here and plan this event it should be mildly interesting to see how it all goes down as Ireland as we all know is very different place from the last Papal visit.

[dec]

Hopefully it will be quite different. In 1979 the traffic on the road between Newry and Dundalk was walking speed at about 6:30 in the morning. We are driving from Newry down to the airport for a flight to New York on Sunday morning. I don't want to have to leave in the middle of the night to make it.

[Boycey]

Quare changed times the Pope travelling in the road in the back of a Skoda, windows down elbow on the sill.

[seafoid]

He isn't going to NI but presumably that is because of the infidels rather than the faithful.
Today's New York Times has an article about a village in Donegal where 8 people were abused committed suicide. A lot of issues have come to the fore since 1979.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/23/world/europe/francis-ireland-sexual-abuse-catholic-church.html

[From the Bunker]

Did not look very comfortable with our Gay Taoiseach!

[Cunny Funt]

Did not look very comfortable with our Gay Taoiseach!

He doesn't look comfortable with any walking or climbing steps either. Sciatica sufferer apparently. 

[armaghniac]

Did not look very comfortable with our Gay Taoiseach!

Previous Popes have met Taoisaigh who were fornicators, but they didn't usually boast about it.

[From the Bunker]

Poor turnout on the streets of Dublin. Archbishop Diarmuid Martin looked very depressed behind Pope Francis.

[Captain Obvious]

[Insane Bolt]

Very good😂😂

[Syferus]

Callan tore the church a new hole there. Wonderful.

[seafoid]

Pope Frank won't commit to anything cos his organisation has sheltered rapists all over the world. The name of the game is power. Religious orgs whether Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindi or Sikh are riddled with abusers.

[trileacman]

Did not look very comfortable with our Gay Taoiseach!

He doesn't look comfortable with any walking or climbing steps either. Sciatica sufferer apparently.

Had part of his lung removed as a child too, supposedly left him with a disturbance to his balance.

[Syferus]

Those are not the fûcking Deftones.

I'd have paid money to see the Deftones performing at this yoke.