What the Heck, Pope Francis?

It gives me no pleasure – in fact – it saddens me greatly to have to criticize my Pope but he gives me no choice with his latest utterings. I am through holding my tongue. It is clear to me that Pope Francis lacks the intellectual heft of our last two excellent popes.

I can’t believe he actually said this.

Asked by a French reporter to compare freedom of religion and freedom of expression as human rights, Pope Francis linked his answer to the Jan. 7 attacks at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, apparently in retaliation for the newspaper’s publication of cartoons mocking Islam’s Prophet Muhammad.

“Let’s go to Paris, let’s speak clearly,” the pope said. “One cannot offend, make war, kill in the name of one’s own religion, that is, in the name of God.”

So far, so good…but this would be an obvious thing for a pope to say.

The pope said freedom of expression was a “fundamental human right” like freedom of religion, but one that must be exercised “without giving offense.”

Offering a hypothetical example that referred to the Vatican’s planner of papal trips, who was standing beside him as he spoke, the pope said: “It’s true, one cannot react violently, but if Dr. (Alberto) Gasbarri, a great friend, says a swear word against my mother, then he is going to get a punch. But it’s normal, it’s normal. One cannot provoke, one cannot insult other people’s faith, one cannot make fun of faith.”

Ugh.

That is just so dumb.

Noah Rothman at Hot Air explains…

No, it’s not “normal.” The individual moved to violence over an insult has lost control, and that’s unacceptable. It is unequivocally wrong to hit someone in the face regardless of the circumstances that led to that outburst, which is a lesson that parents around the world teach their children every day. Good luck now, mom and dad. When even the Pope says it’s “normal” to go on a violent rampage because your feelings were hurt, those opposed to this uncivilized behavior have lost the ability to appeal to moral authority.

When broadcasters effusively praise the bravery of the Charlie Hebdo journalists but refuse to show the work they are praising for fear of retribution from either extremists or attorneys; when the head of the Catholic Church can find some sensibleness in religious violence; when those who speak their minds are imprisoned for doing so, you know that Europe is on the verge of a new dark age.

Somebody is going to come up with a more nuanced translation for what he said, but I’m sick of the “bad translation” excuse. We didn’t have this problem with the last two popes. What is wrong with this man?!

Whether he’s talking about economics, social issues, immigration, Islam, or the obviously fraudulent “climate change” hysteria – this pope has both feet planted firmly in the world. He seems to care too much about worldly opinions and gravitates toward left-wing solutions.. Worst of all, on many issues, he appears to be an ally of our current president. Proof positive that something is very very wrong…

That was apparent to me early on when he made a big show of eschewing the popemobile and his lavish Papal accommodations in favor of a more humble mode of transportation and personal abode.  I was looking at his “open sided” popemobile in the Philippines. It looks more expensive than the old one. But then, I never cared about any of that. I think the pope should be kept safe. His acclaimed “modesty” always looked like moral preening to me.

A good Catholic lives IN the world – but is not OF the world. We will always be in conflict with worldly opinions. But that’s okay. The eternal TRUTH is what matters.

The problem with Pope Francis is he seems to be wrong about a lot of important stuff and that’s a terrible thing for a Catholic to have to say about a pope. I want to be wrong about this. I truly do.

SEE ALSO:

Pamela Geller: Here are the Pope’s Top Seven Most Outrageous Statements on Islam