Fratelli Tutti is a familiar mixture of dubious claims, strawmen, genuine insights
One of the first things that will strike readers of Pope Francis’s new social encyclical Fratelli Tutti is its sheer length. At about 43,000 words in English (including footnotes), that’s more than the Book of Genesis (32,046) and three times the size of the Gospel of John (15,635).
Despite its length, there’s little in this text that we have not heard Francis say before in one form or another. But whether the subject is capital punishment or his theme of encounter, this encyclical condenses Francis’s particular emphases, specific worries, and general hopes for the Church and the world into one document. That includes Francis at his best, but also what I regard as some enduring blind-spots.
36 comments:
I read the article in question. The author attacked Pope Francis' declarations related to economics.
The following is from the article:
Economic strawmen
"Also insufficient—and, alas, this has characterized Francis’s pontificate from its very beginning—is Fratelli Tutti’s treatment of economic questions.
"The encyclical speaks, for instance, of “those who would have had us believe that freedom of the market was sufficient to keep everything secure” (168). Who, I must ask, are these people? And where do they claim this?
"In the same paragraph, Francis states that “The marketplace, by itself, cannot resolve every problem, however much we are asked to believe this dogma of neoliberal faith.”
"Again. I respectfully ask: who are these “neoliberals” who believe that markets can solve every problem?"
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Is the article's author serious? He does not recognize that Pope Francis referenced the voodoo economics garbage that hucksters of trickle-down economics have espoused for decades?
I thought..."How could the article's author have offered such a poor analysis of the Encyclical's excellent treatment of voodoo, trickle-down economics?"
But then I noted the following at the end of the article:
"Dr. Samuel Gregg is Research Director at the Acton Institute."
Ahhh...the Acton Institute. No wonder the attack upon Pope Francis' orthodox teachings in question.
The Acton Institute...now, I understand. :-)
Pax.
Mark Thomas.
Dr. Samuel Gregg (of the Acton Institute...that tells us everything that we need to in regard to his denunciation of the Encyclical's orthodox treatment of dreadful voodoo trickle-down economics) said:
"In another sentence, Francis states (quoting himself) that “without internal forms of solidarity and mutual trust, the market cannot completely fulfil its proper economic function. And today this trust has ceased to exist”.
"That’s an unqualified statement, and it leads me to ask: has this trust really “ceased to exist”?"
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Sr. Gregg, that is a quotation from Pope Benedict XVI's 2009 A.D. Encyclical, CARITAS IN VERITATE, #35.
35. "Without internal forms of solidarity and mutual trust, the market cannot completely fulfil its proper economic function. And today it is this trust which has ceased to exist, and the loss of trust is a grave loss."
Anybody, other than somebody with the Acton Institute, will realize that Pope Francis' declarations related to economics are in line with those of his holy predecessors.
Pax.
Mark Thomas.
Dr. Samuel Gregg (Acton Institute) denounced Pope Francis' orthodox treatment of voodoo trickle-down economics.
"Also insufficient—and, alas, this has characterized Francis’s pontificate from its very beginning—is Fratelli Tutti’s treatment of economic questions. It seems that, no matter how many people (not all of whom can be characterized as fiscal conservatives) highlight the economic caricatures that roam throughout Francis’s documents..."
I had just read the following on today's Business Insider:
https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/pope-francis-echoes-warren-buffett-blames-inequality-free-markets-2020-10-1029648920#
-- Pope Francis echoes Warren Buffett in a letter blaming free markets for rising inequality
"Pope Francis echoed Warren Buffett in blaming unfettered capitalism for rising inequality in a letter to the Catholic Church's bishops titled "Fratelli Tutti" on Sunday.
"The marketplace, by itself, cannot resolve every problem, however much we are asked to believe this dogma of neoliberal faith," the pope wrote.
"Neoliberalism simply reproduces itself by resorting to the magic theories of 'spillover' or 'trickle' — without using the name — as the only solution to societal problems," he continued, referring to "trickle-down economics", or the idea that as the rich accumulate wealth, money will automatically flow into the pockets of poor people.
"Buffett, a billionaire investor and the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, voiced a similar view in a Yahoo Finance interview earlier this year."
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Is it just me, or is their slobber all over the floor in here?
there!
I read an article today which stated that if one read a good selection of what Pius XII wrote between 1939 and 1958 and then read what Francis has written since 2013 and one was as honest, objective and unbiased, as it is possible to be, it would strike one that these 2 men must be the leaders of different religions.
"Pope Francis echoed Warren Buffett in blaming unfettered capitalism for rising inequality"
Wow,a multi-billionaire (Mr. Buffett) speaking on and concerned about economic inequality. You can't make this stuff up. If only Mr. Buffett would speak about certain billionaires initiatives to reduce economic inequality by funding abortions.
Anonymous, October 6, 2020 at 10:09 AM, said..."I read an article today which stated that if one read a good selection of what Pius XII wrote between 1939 and 1958 and then read what Francis has written since 2013 and one was as honest, objective and unbiased, as it is possible to be, it would strike one that these 2 men must be the leaders of different religions."
Impossible. The Catholic Religion is the same then as today.
But let us play this game:
If one compares Pope Pius XI's Pontificate (1922 A.D.-1939 A.D.) to Pope Venerable Pius XII's Pontificate 1939 A.D.-1958 A.D.), then the two Popes in question must have been leaders of different religions.
-- Pope Venerable Pius XII empowered Monsignor Bugnini to introduce radical reforms to the Roman Liturgy — Pope Pius XI would not have recognized said reforms.
-- Pope Venerable Pius XII altered radically the ancient Midnight Eucharist Fast...Pope Pius XI would not have recognized said Fast.
-- Pope Pius XI condemned the Ecumenical Movement. But Pope Venerable Pius XII not only launched the Church into the Ecumenical Movement, he insisted that the Holy Ghost inspired the creation of the Ecumenical Movement.
-- Pope Venerable Pius XII insisted that women religious orders undergo major reforms, such as simplifying their manner of dress, so as to modernize said orders...reforms that were foreign to Pope Pius XI.
-- Pope Venerable Pius XII modernized Catholic Biblical Studies.
Additional examples are available.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
I downloaded it. 43,000 words. A search found:
Jesus Christ - 2
God the Father - 0
The Holy Spirit - 2
Church Fathers - 0
Pope - 1
Salvation - 0
Heaven - 1
Hell - 0
Sin - 0
Devil/Satan/Lucifer - all 0
Fraternity - 47
Liberty 4
Equality -15
All that needs to be said.
Mark,
I have been thinking lately how that wise saying "the past is another country" applies to Church history.
I have recently read "God's Funeral" by A N Wilson. He claims that most practicing Catholics in our era have views about private morality and about doctrine that would most likely have scandalized Pius X and most Catholic bishops in the era c. 1890 to 1910, and that most Catholics today are at least in some respects Modernists.
Also, in the "magisterial" "Reformation - Europe's House Divided" the Oxford Professor of Church History, Diarmaid McCulloch claims on page 707:
"A modern Anglican - or even a modern Roman Catholic - is likely to be more like a 16th century Anabaptist in belief than he or she resembles a 16th century member of the Church of England."
"Pope Francis echoed Warren Buffett in blaming unfettered capitalism for rising inequality"
Warren Buffett is another phony. A "journalist" when interviewing Buffett one time, had Buffett waxing indignantly that his secretary pays a higher effective tax rate than he does. If the journalist had done a modicum of research prior to the interview they would have discovered two things about this mega hypocrite: 1) He has been in tax court for years fighting his taxes and 2) NOTHING in the tax code prevents him from sending the Treasury more money if he thinks he is not paying his "fair share." Just meaningless grandstanding on Buffett's part and the clueless journalist thought he was just "wonderful."
So I'm guessing the Pope will not be accepting any donations from the U.S.
"The world exists for everyone, because all of us were born with the same dignity. Differences of colour, religion, talent, place of birth or residence, and so many others, cannot be used to justify the privileges of some over the rights of all."
Hey Papa Frankie! That's great! JUST SEND ME MY VATICAN PASSPORT BY MAIL! YOU ADMITTED HERE--MY PLACE OF BIRTH MUST NOT BE USED TO JUSTIFY ALL THOSE PARTYING CARDINALS IN THE CURIA ENJOYING ALL THE PRIVILEGES OF BEING VATICAN RESIDENTS!
Oh, how I love all of this peace and justice and reconciliation! Thanks for the New Church--oops! I meant that "continuity" we are enjoying...BTW, thanks for rebuking St. Augustine Papa Frankie! It's so refreshing to reap the benefits of such advanced thinking!
So many encyclicals begin with language like this:
"To Our Venerable Brethren the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops, and other Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See..."
Pope Francis, however begins with this salutation:
“FRATELLI TUTTI”. With these words, Saint Francis of Assisi addressed his brothers and sisters and proposed to them a way of life marked by the flavour of the Gospel."
Wait...is that even a salutation? Or is it ad copy for a new salad dressing? It has been suggested that since it's not a bit clear exactly WHO the pope is addressing, this long bloviation may not even meet the basic requirements of being an actual encyclical.
I tend to agree.
Tom Marcus
A FLOOD of MT SLOBBER indeed!
Hijack alert! ⚠
Paul McCarthy,
Jesus -- 33
Also
God -- 80
Nice try but no cigar.
If pro-Francis slobber there be, it is more than exceeded by the amount of anti-Francis bile in which this Blog is awash.
"Anti-Francis bile"?
If recognizing that a leader is straying from Tradition and the unchanging positions of the Church is "anti-the-pope" (whomever he might be), then you might have something.
I think it's safe to say that most of us here love the pope (at last as an act of the will) and we want him to solidly lead the Church with the message of Jesus Christ towards Jesus Christ. To express concern that he seems to be distracted by the gospels of freemasonry, environmentalism, globalism and anti-Americanism is not bile. To remain silent would be far worse. To blindly accept it without critical assessment would be an abdication of our common sense.
Amen Tom Marcus!
“[Pope Francis] is straying from Tradition and the unchanging positions of the Church [and] seems to be distracted by the gospels of freemasonry, environmentalism, globalism and anti-Americanism.”
Sounds bilious to me, not to mention presumptuous. And when someone like Mark Thomas seeks to defend Pope Francis by showing the continuities with the teachings of Pope Benedict, or the discontinuities between Pope Pius XI and Pius XII, he is accused of “slobbering.”
By the way, when did “lack of stewardship of the planet,” “nationalism,” and “Americanism” become legitimate gospels? Or more accurately in many cases, perhaps: when did “Trumpism” become a legitimate gospel?
Isn’t the truth of the matter that many people posting here just don’t like what Pope Francis says because it does not sit well with their prior political commitments and that the only papal statements qualifying as “solidly lead[ing] the Church with the message of Jesus Christ towards Jesus Christ” are statements consistent with those commitments? Well, too bad—we are all challenged by our comprehensive Catholic faith one way or another.
I am sorry to sound harsh, but I strongly suspect everyone here could benefit from some serious soul searching (including myself).
Paul McCarthy said..."I downloaded it. 43,000 words. A search found:
Jesus Christ - 2
God the Father - 0
==============================================
Are you talking about FRATELLI TUTTI? I just searched the Encyclical:
-- Jesus is referenced 33 times.
-- "God" is referenced 80 times.
+============================================================
An Encyclical is acceptable only if said Encyclical contains references that we desire to read?
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Anonymous 2 said..."If pro-Francis slobber there be, it is more than exceeded by the amount of anti-Francis bile in which this Blog is awash."
I find it very easy to love and respect our holy and great Culture of Life Roman Pontiff, Pope Francis.
Holy Mother Church expects that of me.
But beyond that, I have every reason to believe that Pope Francis is a holy, God-fearing man.
I view him as a tremendous Pope. He has influenced me greatly.
I give thanks unto God for His having blessed us with such an august Bishop of Rome as His Holiness, Pope Francis.
In union with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, and all the Angels and Saints, I, too, love and pray for Pope Francis.
I pray also that God will bless Father McDonald, Anonymous 2, and each person here with peace and good health.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
"Christ enlightens His whole Church..it is He who enriches pastors and teachers and above all His Vicar on earth with the supernatural gifts of knowledge, understanding and wisdom..."
— Pope Venerable Pius XII, Encyclical, Mystic Corporis Christi, #50.
I think I can simplify this whole debate...
When Jesus came into the world, he did not rail against the poor environmental stewardship of the City of Jerusalem and demand that they do a better job of picking up trash and sanitizing the street, or finding renewable sources of energy.
Jesus did not rail against the "selfish" privileges of the Roman government (which St. Paul later used to get his appeal) nor did He rail against Roman Imperialism.
While it IS true that there was no Freemasonry yet at the time of Jesus, it should be noted that Jesus did NOT co-opt the messages of other pagan sects, worshippers of Greco-Roman deities, Zoroastrians or any other false religion of that time.
Jesus had a far more serious concern: Keeping souls out of hell and converting us from our sinful habits and ways and reminding us that His Father had an unending supply of mercy and a terrible justice, depending on which side we chose.
I can read a lot of encyclicals from our past that reflect Jesus' concerns. Can't say I see that with "Fratelli Tutti Frutti". Sorry--it just doesn't hold up.
I don't know any way to say this, so I'll just lay it straight.
Pope Francis gives every appearance of either hating or resenting America.
Am I the only one who has noticed this?
The biggest evil and biggest killer of the 20th century was Communism and no country did more to fight Communism than the USA. It's hard to watch a pope who accepts a "hammer and sickle crucifix" make veiled (and blatant) denouncement of the country that has saved so many lives. But I guess personal resentments and poor education trump truth in this pontificate of confusion.
Anonymous Wishing for Continuity Doesn't Make It So said..."I think I can simplify this whole debate...When Jesus came into the world, he did not rail against the poor environmental stewardship of the City of Jerusalem and demand that they do a better job of picking up trash and sanitizing the street, or finding renewable sources of energy."
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Pope Benedict XVI taught that environmental stewardship is linked directly to Jesus Christ.
Pope Benedict XVI insisted that the peace that Jesus Christ can deliver is linked directly to our care for the environment.
As long as we pollute the earth, we are not ready for Christ's peace. As long as we abuse the earth's resources, we are not ready for Christ's peace.
World peace is impossible as long as we inflict violence upon the environment, according to Pope Benedict XVI.
Pope Benedict XVI taught that the link between Jesus Christ and environmental stewardship is so profound, that "the redemptive work of Christ, who by his death and resurrection has reconciled with God 'all things, whether on earth or in heaven,' is inseparable."
Pope Benedict XVI:
"Protecting the natural environment in order to build a world of peace is thus a duty incumbent upon each and all.
"...the protection of creation and peacemaking are profoundly linked!
"For this reason, I invite all believers to raise a fervent prayer to God, the all-powerful Creator and the Father of mercies, so that all men and women may take to heart the urgent appeal:
"If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation."
http://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/messages/peace/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20091208_xliii-world-day-peace.html
Pax.
Mark Thomas
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."
— Jesus Christ.
Mark Thomas,
You are correct of course. But to adapt an expression recently used on this thread “I guess personal resentments and poor education trump truth in this presidency of confusion.”
"If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation."
So Creation = Environment?
Hmmmm.
Anonymous 2:
If you think the current president is poorly educated and operates on personal resentments...well, darn! Since--as usual--you had to make this political (the true religion of so many "Catholics" today) a few things to reflect on:
RESENTMENT? You think Democrats don't resent Trump? Before he ever had a chance to be sworn in, the protests had already started. He has wasted most of his 4 years in office fighting off bogus charges of Russian collusion fueled by petty resentment. No one ever thought of Trump as a "racist" until the he dared run against a popular Democrat.
POORLY EDUCATED? There are 2 groups that solidly support the Democratic party: The poverty based, never finish high school types and the "I'm college educated, so I know more than you" types who invariably went through the liberal brainwashing of America's secularized higher education establishment--so well exposed by Allan Bloom in The Closing of the American Mind.
No doubt, you will have a snappy comeback--but it won't change what many of us see. And you can even gloat. It's obvious the old man and the scheming senatress are going to win this time. And when they do...oh, you're gonna get what you asked for in ways you never dreamed of.
Anonymous 3:
So, you don’t like my suggested explanation of why some people here refuse to acknowledge the clear continuities between Pope St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict, and Pope Francis on matters of the environment and climate change:
https://catholicclimatemovement.global/statements-on-climate-change-from-the-popes/
Fair enough. How do_you_explain it then?
You are clearly much more troubled by attacks on Trump than you are about attacks on the Pope (indeed, perhaps you even join in the latter attacks?).
When I tell non-Catholics about some of the attacks on Pope Francis and his “politically unpopular” statements, or about the rejection of various parts of Catholic social teaching, on this Blog, they say: “Well, they’re not really Catholic, then, are they?” How am I supposed to respond?
And I have no idea who is going to win the election. I am pretty sure, though, that Trump will try to pull every dirty trick he can to stay in power because he knows what is going to happen if he is defeated and the long arm of the law catches up with him. But please do not get the impression that I am especially enamored of Biden and Harris. The entire system is corrupt.
Most revealing.
Anonymous Wishing for Continuity Doesn't Make It So said..."
"If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation."
So Creation = Environment?
Hmmmm."
That is what Pope Benedict XVI, "The Green Pope," taught.
Pope Benedict XVI, January 1, 2010 A.D:
"The Church has a responsibility towards creation, and she considers it her duty to exercise that responsibility in public life, in order to protect earth, water and air as gifts of God the Creator meant for everyone, and above all to save mankind from the danger of self-destruction.”
Anyway, Pope Francis promotes the very same "tree-hugging" :-) "liberal," environmental teachings as did Pope Benedict XVI.
By the way, Pope Benedict XVI promoted global warming as a fact.
Pope Benedict XVI supported The Convention of the United Nations Organization on climate change and the Kyoto Protocol.
Then there was this from Pope Benedict XVI:
-- December 6, 2009 A.D.
https://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/angelus/2009/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20091206.html
"Tomorrow the UN Conference on Climate Change will be opening in Copenhagen.
"With it the international community intends to curb the phenomenon of global warming.
"I hope that its work will contribute to identifying procedures that respect creation and encourage development and solidarity, founded on the dignity of the human person and oriented to the common good."
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Particular Judgment/A Possible Scenario:
God: "I had all the Catholics in the world praying for you and you made fun of them for praying my Mother's rosary. I let you take the reins of My Church at a time of rampant homosexuality, abortion, societal decline and international upheaval and you barely mentioned the need to repent or receive Confession, but instead rambled on and on about the environment. At least Joseph R. balanced his environmental concerns with other solid teachings, but you spent all that energy and the power of the office I trusted you with to push for ACCOMPANIMENT and DIALOGUE when what we needed was repentance? Why, Jorge, Why?"
Jorge: "Nature was throwing a fit! Besides, how could I stop all those beautiful protesters from making a mess? Who am I to judge?"
Just Saying....love it!
Why didn't God also question the "Tango" that was allowed to take place on the altar when he was Archbishop. There was no more disgusting sight. Which only proves God has infinite patience......
There is a video of this sacrilege if anyone has the stomach to Google it.
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