Several interesting things are happening with the Catholic Church.

Several interesting things are happening with the Catholic Church.

First, in what could be considered a step backward in China / Vatican relations, China is set to ordain a new bishop who has not been approved by the Pope. In 1951, China instituted a Chinese version of the Roman Catholic church, and since then, Catholics are only allowed to worship in official state Catholic churches. The state-sponsored Catholic Church ordained its own clergy without approval from Rome. Recently, however, relations had improved, with the Chinese Catholic Church ordaining several bishops that had been quietly approved by the Holy See. That China now appears to be reversing course is, of course, of concern to the Vatican.

To read the AP story, click HERE.

This issue was a topic of discussion as the Cardinals met at the Vatican earlier Friday. According to a Vatican Information Service release, this meeting, part of the consistory at which twenty-four new cardinals will be created, also focused on religious freedom.

Of note in the article below, is the demographic description of the Cardinals. The article notes that 40% of the College of Cardinals have been chosen by Pope Benedict. By selecting “conservative, tradition-minded prelates” the Pope is virtually ensuring that the Catholic Church will continue along a conservative path. Also worth noting is that twenty-five of the one-hundred-twenty-one Cardinals who are eligible to vote are Italian.

To read the AP story, click HERE.

Finally, a previous TwoMinuteBriefing noted that several priests from the Church of England had announced that they were moving their church membership to the Catholic Church. The article notes that 50 Anglican priests have are planning to make this move. Under rules established by the Vatican, these priests, even if married, will be allowed to function as priests in the Catholic Church. This is a trend worth watching.

To read the Telegraph story, click HERE.

White House Support of Gays and Lesbians

Today, for the first time ever, the White House held a reception to commemorate the Stonewall riots, an event that is frequently cited as the beginning of the Gay rights movement in the United States.

Today's reception, in combination with other events, shows clear Presidential support for Gays and Lesbians. This support is coming not only in the form of rhetoric or pageantry, but through a very significant appointment in the area of education.

Kevin Jennings, the founder of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network has been appointed Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education.

Read more about these events and their implication in our latest TwoMinuteBriefing, available by clicking here, or by visiting www.TwoMinuteBriefing.com.

Why Transsexual/Transgender Rights Matter

On June 11th, various news sources announced that Chastity Bono, the only daughter of Sonny and Cher, had begun sex change procedures earlier this year.

Although the transsexual/transgender segment of the population is very small, their fight for rights, and the attention they are receiving in the media, are a significant assault both on the traditional family, and on those religious authorities and denominations that proclaim that gender is divinely assigned.

Read about this issue in the TwoMinuteBriefing - Why Transsexual/Transgender Rights Matter.

To access the PDF file, click here.

The Selling of Homosexuality

The din subsequent to the California Supreme Court decision on Proposition 8 to be issued May 26^th at 10:00 a.m. may cause attention to focus on the protests, the protesters, their cause etc. and by doing so, two critical points may become lost: first, the legal decision itself, and second, and perhaps more important, how the protest or celebrations themselves fit into the broader plan of selling homosexuality to America.

Read about how a plan written in 1990 for selling Homosexuality to America is being implemented today in a new TwoMinuteBriefing entitled “The Selling of Homosexuality”.

To access this TwoMinuteBriefing, visit www.TwoMinuteBriefing.com or simply click here.

Moral Right or Political Might?

The last few weeks have seen a flurry of news articles discussing the future of the Republican Party. Most have called for change and a move to a more moderate stance.

Steve Schmidt, senior strategist for Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign has said that Republicans are in danger of losing younger voters.

Meghan McCain, Senator McCain’s daughter has similarly called for a moderating of some of the Party’s positions.

Senator Arlen Specter, who this week switched to the Democratic Party, noted that groups who target moderate to liberal Republicans in state primaries, are costing the party wins in general elections. He specifically noted former Senator Lincoln Chafee who spent resources to fend off a conservative challenger in 2006, and then narrowly lost in the general election.

Although there is some agreement that the far right wing of the Republican Party, and its unwillingness to compromise, are hurting the Party’s electoral successes; there is perhaps less agreement on how much and where that compromise should take place.

Of concern to some is that there is more willingness to compromise on morals than on economics.

For example, Schmidt’s concern about losing younger voters is that the Party does not realize how they feel about same-sex marriage. “Republicans should re-examine the extent to which we are being defined by positions on issues that I don’t believe are among our core values . . . .”

Meghan McCain expressed similar feelings, hoping that the Republican Party could become an umbrella party, more inclusive, and broader in its appeal.

How will the Republican Party change? On what will it compromise? If, as Schmidt intimates, moral issues are not among its core values, what are its core values?

For a PDF version of this post, please visit TwoMinuteBriefing.com

The Catholic Church - Retrenching to Advance

In June 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre consecrated 4 bishops without the consent of the Vatican. The Archbishop was the founder of the Society of St. Pius X which is still the world's largest Traditionalist Catholic priestly society.

For his actions, Archbishop Lefebvre, his co-consecrator, and the four bishops they consecrated were excommunicated from the Catholic Church.

Pope Benedict has now granted a remission of the excommunication of the four bishops.

This is significant on two counts:

1. As noted in a briefing published by TwoMinuteBriefing in July of 2007 entitled The Catholic Church - Retrenching to Advance, under the direction of Pope Benedict, the Catholic Church appears to be retrenching, becoming more conservative, in order to court its more conservative core. It's conservative core is where its' strength lies. By courting its most conservative members, the Catholic Church places itself in a better position to face the challenges of the world today, and possibly to expand into Africa, Asia, and India.
   
   
2. Causing controversy, however, is the fact that one of the four priests reinstated by this recent action is Bishop Richard Williamson who is on record as essentially denying the Holocaust. That the Vatican has looked favorably upon him in any degree, let alone reinstating him, has ired Jewish groups around the world. (Read the London Times article HERE.)
   

Bill Maher’s Movie, Religulous

Yesterday, Fox News reported on “Bill Maher’s Anti-Religion Movie” titled Religulous (think of the word religious combined with the word ridiculous). This movie is apparently Maher’s effort to document the ridiculous nature of religious beliefs, whatever they may be, and to express his concern that all religions are bad and in effect dangerous. Maher is quoted as stating that “Religion is detrimental to the progress of society.” In the movie trailer, Maher says, “It worries me that people are running my country who believe in a talking snake” referring, of course, to the Genesis account of Eve being tempted by the serpent.

Certainly these feelings are not new. Dr. Richard Dawkins, biologist and author of “The God Delusion”, has expressed similar sentiments. However the cynical, and mocking nature of how Maher expresses his opinions are rather startling.

Some time ago, TwoMinuteBriefing expressed concern that as a society we appeared to be moving into an era where the level of animosity against religion was increasing. Bill Maher’s new movie would appear to be another indicator of this trend.

Click HERE to see the movie trailer.

CAUTION: TwoMinuteBriefing cautions its readers NOT to follow the link from the movie's website to disbelief.net. Disbelief.net contains some material that readers of TwoMinuteBriefing may find objectionable.