As head of the Jesuit order in Argentina during the 1970s, Pope Francis was silent as Jesuit priests were arrested and tortured by thugs working for the US-backed dictatorship at the time. Of course, he was a man of faith – probably too much faith.
A Man of Faith
Ted Rall
Ted Rall is a syndicated political cartoonist for Andrews McMeel Syndication, WhoWhatWhy.org and Counterpoint. He is a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, a graphic novelist and author of many books of art and prose, and an occasional war correspondent. He is, recently, the author of the graphic novel "The Stringer."
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In his childhood, Hitler had admired the pomp of Catholic ritual and the hierarchical organization of the clergy.
On March 23, 1933, he addressed the Reichstag: “The National Government regards the two Christian confessions [i.e. Catholicism and Protestantism] as factors essential to the soul of the German people. … We hold the spiritual forces of Christianity to be indispensable elements in the moral uplift of most of the German people.”
@Glenn
It makes sense that dictators would want to endear themselves to the German public through all means possible, though, I think the Nazi phenomenon owes more to the enlightenment and the dis-entrenchment of religion. Instrumental rationality, positivism and a sharp division between ones moral and “real” life combines with that famous work ethic to produce these catastrophes. This might be more true for the technicians and engineers, but it also applies to the general public.
Milgram only tested obedience to the scientist authority figure. One wonders what effect it would be on the experiment if the rational scientist character incorporates liturgical cues, and maybe a hint of catholic garb. My guess is correlation would decrease a bit.
Not according to Adolfo Perez Esquivel. You’re missing out on a hit piece on Yoani Sanchez, since she’s in your neck of the woods now. Also, the cartoon doesn’t seem to match the piece, I mean, the text.
@ bucephalus –
Are you talking about the ‘toon intended for March 20th? That’s the one I’m looking at today (the 16th), although yesterday it was different (and fit the comments). Welcome back to the future – it happens frequently around here.
😉
Talk about phoning it in… Busy week? Sick and tired of domestic politics? What about Ryan’s budget? North Korea? Mali? Buehler??
For instance, bouncing from here to the WAPO opinion page, “Is Capitalism Moral?” piece. Gadzooks!
Why do you suppose Karol Józef WojtyÅ‚a made Señor Bergoglio a cardinal ? With qualifications like these, he was a shoo-in….
Henri
I know. I was pretty miffed when Joey Ratz took it a few years back, and no one seemed to give two shits that Karol had hired him to squash applied christianity in Latin America.
But lets not forget. Romero was also sent to squash applied christianity during that time, and he went native to the point that the reaganites had to take him out.
And as for Joey Ratz, his economic and social messages ended up being indistinguishable from applied christianity. Ditto for Bergie.
In summary, I think there was a quick reaction against “radical” catholic movements in latin america, and that this sin cost the church in that region. But that mistake is realized, and we see signals of this in statements by Bergie and Ratz, as well as in the near canonization of far-left anarchists..
At least the Vatican is keeping the former-Nazi connection alive in tapping a pope from Argentina
>At least the Vatican is keeping the former-Nazi connection alive in tapping a pope from Argentina
I’m just happy they didn’t select one of those Brazilian pentecostal types.