Pope Francis Is Keeping The Blasphemous Bauble From Bolivia

As per his usual habit, the pope gave an interview during his plane trip from Bolivia back to the Vatican.

I'll start by providing a treat to my trolls and scolds who wax apoplectic when I point out the errors emanating from Pope Francis on an almost daily basis.  When they're not avoiding me, these "tut-tut-ers" wag their fingers and chide me for being "negative" (note that they don't accuse me of being factually incorrect, just "mean-spirited" and "negative").

Well, guess what?  Thanks to Crud, I can actually agree with the pope on something!  Responding to a question on the Greek economic situation, Crud states and I quote,  "The pontiff began by admitting he’s been “allergic” to economics since he was a boy. He said his father, an accountant, would bring the ledgers of the factory where he worked home with him on weekends, and the future pope found them mysterious.  “I don’t understand it very well,” he said."  AMEN!

We also read, The pontiff acknowledged that his commentary on the economy tends to focus on the poor rather than the middle class, insisting that the poor are at the heart of the Christian Gospel. However, he called the imbalance “an error of mine” and said reconsidering it is “something I need to do.”  DOUBLE-AMEN!

Enough of that.  Let's look at other things. The remarks above had to do (somewhat) with the flawed economic principles underlying the address about which I commented a few days ago.  I had done a little bit of a "word-count" exercise.  Vox Cantoris did more, and nicely pointed out the heresy of liberation theology that ran rampant through the address.

The matter of the blasphemous "crucifix" was clarified during the interview.  I say "clarified" for he made plain (once again) his approval of the piece of trash art, calling it "protest art".  Both One Peter Five and Rorate Caeli delve into the matter; rather than "reinvent the wheel" I link to their excellent pieces.

I will say this, though.  There are some who seem to believe that by laying the monstrosity at the feet of a statue of Mary, that he was "cleverly" entrusting her to deal with the blasphemy.  With all due respect, that theory makes no sense whatsoever.  If that were truly the pope's intention, that would be classified as the quintessential cop-out.  He is the Vicar of Christ.  It would be his solemn duty to point out, in no uncertain terms, why that thing is blasphemy.  He'd have no business trying to punt his responsibility to the Blessed Mother.  "Here, mother!  You take out the trash!"  No, no, no!  That doesn't cut it by any stretch of the imagination!

But we now know that it wasn't the pope's intention at all.  In addition to waxing lyrical about Father Espinal and his embrace of marxism, the pope stated that he was bringing the disgusting bauble with him back to the Vatican.  Will that, like the beach ball, find its way to an altar?

More On The Blasphemy From Bolivia

This past Friday I wrote a bit about the blasphemous "crucifix" offered to the Pope by Bolivian president Evo Morales.  In the blogosphere there was doubt as to whether or not the Pope looked favorably upon that monstrosity.  Subsequent events indicate that he did.

The pope also gave an address to a summit of "social justice" activists.  The full text can be found on Whispers In The Loggia.  This blogger points out that this address of the pope was actually written out, complete with footnotes; it's not just some "off-the-cuff" production.  I urge you to read it.  Quite frankly, it resembles something we might have expected at some community-organizing ACORN convention.

In the first section, he asks a series of questions, each starting with the phrase "do we realize that something is wrong" then names some social ills.  None of these questions touches upon the millions of unborn children being slaughtered in the womb.  We see no mention of the ever-increasing usage of contraception and sterilization.  Neither do we see any mention of the homosexual assault upon marriage.  Of all the things that the pope lists as "intolerable" these mortal sins should top the list, for in addition to endangering the souls of all who commit these sins, they also undermine the moral underpinnings of any society, regardless of the economic condition of that society.

What you have here is a thinly-disguised commercial for Laudato Si and for world-wide government - a socialistic one at that.  Time had some commentary on this exchange.  Yes the author is waxing lyrical about the progressive elements in the events of that day.  Sadly I can understand how she would draw such conclusions.

There is a rather distasteful twist to the bauble saga.  Before he left Bolivia, he placed the "hammer/sickle crucifix" and its matching medal at the foot of a statue of Our Lady.  It would have been far more appropriate to lay these abominations in the nearest trash can.  So now not only is Jesus blasphemed but His mother is similarly mocked as well.

It now seems that what we once thought were simply unfortunate gaffes and media spins were in fact representative of what the progressives in the Vatican really want - and that probably includes the pope!  We do have Christ's promise that the pope will never solemnly promulgate error, but that doesn't mean havoc cannot otherwise be wreaked.  Pray, frequent the Sacraments and study the traditions of our faith.

Pope Francis And The Bolivian Blasphemy

By now most of us are aware that when Pope Francis visited Bolivia, the president, Evo Morales presented to him some bauble that can only be called blasphemous.  A "hammer and sickle crucifix" was hung about his neck and he was presented a mock "crucifix" showing Our Lord crucified upon the hammer and sickle combination that is the symbol of modern communism.  Yes, it's the same design that was on the flag of the former Soviet Union.  The Catholic blogosphere was abuzz with the news and subsequent commentary.  I remained silent for some of the accounts of the pope's reaction were mutually contradictory.

One Peter Five goes into an analysis of the situation.  Some others had opined that the pope voiced disapproval of that "gift".  However, there was examination of both the video and the audio of that exchange.  It appears that the pope did not disapprove of it at all.  In fact, he posed for photos while he was holding it.  The Gateway Pundit has video of the exchange on its site.  They also report the resultant Vatican damage-control spin, saying that the exchange "represents dialogue and commitment to freedom and progress".  History proves that "freedom" and "socialism" are mutually exclusive.

Even that pales in comparison with the blasphemy that was presented to Pope Francis.  And why did a socialist dare to present that crap to this pontiff?  I daresay that he wouldn't have dared to present it to either of the previous two pontiffs.

I suppose the blasphemous trash is accurate in one respect.  Millions upon millions of Christians were slaughtered by communists.  Perhaps we can bear that in mind as we look upon Jesus impaled on the symbols of that demon-spawned mindset.