Religion
In reply to the discussion: Corruption, Duplicitousness, and Lying are Important Christian Values, Apparently. [View all]Pendrench
(1,356 posts)I just had a few personal thoughts (from my perspective as a 50+ year old Catholic) that I wanted to share.
First of all, as a Christian, I realize that I am also a sinner so I realize that those in positions of power in the church are also sinners. Still, even with that realization, it shocks me when I hear of a priest or someone else in authority who abuses their power for their own gain and/or to hurt others. In short, I see such behavior as a betrayal of the values that we as Christians are supposed to espouse.
A long time ago, I was taught that the Church is not the building we worship in, or the hierarchy of priests, bishops, cardinals, and the pope - but the Church is us. So if we remain silent and do not acknowledge these failings and (in some situations) crimes, then we are also at fault. We cant say that they are not true Christians, because as I said before ALL Christians are sinners, and so we need to deal with the sins, not make excuses.
If Corruption, Duplicitousness, and Lying are seen by others as Important Christian Values then we as Christians need to change that perception by addressing and dealing with these failings, as best we can.
When I was much younger, I remember we used to sing a song called: They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love. Perhaps that is what we should strive for.
Again, these are just a few of my personal thoughts.
Thank you again for beginning this discussion.
Wishing you well and peace.
Tim