Lightning Strikes the Vatican~Pope Quits!

Lightning Strikes the Vatican

The possibility of lightning striking didn't occur to me on that warm day in 1967 when, on a dare, I chose to enter the opened gate of the perfectly manicured Catholic diocese residence on Palm Blvd. , just a few doors down from my friend Tom Robinson's house.  Having heard and read about the newly appointed Bishop Humberto Medeiros, I was curious.  As a young man of perhaps twenty, I was eager to meet someone who seemed to control so many lives.

A lady wearing what may have been maid's clothing answered the door and waived me in when I asked to speak to the bishop.  She came with tea and some sweet bread that I remember not eating.  The tea I balanced in my hand as the glass-topped coffee table was too far away. The bishop came out with a very genteel manner, greeting me graciously.(I was fortunate to have worked under Gustavo Hernandez-Beltran, a saleman from Mexico City who exhibited this same grace, sort of preparing me to deal in mannerly way with those who had manners.)

When we got down to the purpose of my visit, the only question I could come up with was something I had read about the Catholic Church being in crisis.  Everything was in crisis in 1967.  The question was enough for the bishop to run with as he acknowledged some of the problems of the Church, most of which had not occurred to me, then quoted something from the 3rd Epistle of St. John about a mother in travail during birth going through great pain, only to be joyful at the final result.  That was smooth.   Medeiros later moved to Boston, where he replaced the frequently quoted Cardinal Cushing.  Medeiros himself gained some notoriety for opposing the bombing of Hanoi in 1972.

Lightning did hit when Pope Benedict XVI quit, coincidentally of course.  I assumed the man quit because of all the sex scandals involving priests and young boys.  If that is the case, I have more respect for him than I do Joe Paterno.  But then Pope Benedict seems to be an anachronism, against abortion, priests marrying, gay marriage, women priests. . . . .fighting windmills all the way.

Barton, why are you writing about religious matters?  Aren't you an atheist?  Are you responding to the chastisement from Duardo Paz-Martinez for no local bloggers covering the story?  Well, Paz was actually incorrect.  Juan Montoya of the El Rrun Rrun blog released a story on the Pope's resignation 7 hours before Paz released his account according to the google timeline.  I haven't gotten around to reading either one.

Mchale has described me as an atheist, probably because I'm somewhat irreverant on religious matters.  I prefer the designation backsliding agnostic since I know nothing for certain.

Design elements are apparent to me in my surroundings:  Earth's atmosphere composed of 21% oxygen, 78% nitrogen, .04% carbon dioxide and a trace of argon doesn't seem accidental to me.  Water expanding when it freezes allowing lakes to freeze on the top, not from the bottom, thus preserving the underwater life, seems to be by design.  The many things that must happen simultaneously for a baby to be born, the slight tilt of the earth on an axis allowing for seasons, the design of the eye, the production of oxygen by plants all seem too organized to be accidental.  Too many things seemed designed for there not to have been a designer.

I see no evidence that whoever designed our universe cares much for his creation now.  No heavenly father could watch 100's of thousand die excruciating deaths from starvation daily.  No responsible parent could watch a tsunami wave kill thousands exactly as it had done hundreds of times before without at least shouting "watch out!"  No almighty god would stand by with his hands on his hips while his children played with hydrogen, nuclear or chemical bombs.  Reckless endangerment of a child is the crime that comes to mind.

I was told years ago that I had been fooled by the omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent definition of god.  What if he is not what you think?  What if he isn't that powerful, doesn't know everything and isn't behind every tree?  I could almost accept that except that He has never made any attempt to correct things on the planet.  If he once existed, he is long gone either physically or mentally.  Nothing I've seen makes me think he gives a shit.

Of course, the world's religions and religious books have their explanations, platitudes, prophecies and hopes.  The Bible is classic bullshit.  Written by Jewish men, it finds the Jews to be god's chosen people!  Duh!  The Amalekites, Hittites, Amorites and people of other countries the Jews came into contact with were worthless heathens worthy of destruction, men, women and children!

The story of Caan and Abel is bullshit.  No fair god decides between two brothers who both give him their best just because he is carnivorous, likes his steak.  By the way, the Bible claims men were not allowed to eat meat until after the flood, 2000 years later.  What the hell was Able doing raising cattle?  Was he racing them or selling the hides?  Bullshit.

The law of Moses is bullshit.  It calls for stoning a juvenile delinquent but a king like David who takes someone's wife and then has the man killed, goes unpunished.  Oh, god chose to kill the baby produced by the adultery, the only innocent person in the whole scenario.. . Bullshit!

Abraham's good cousin Lot has sex with his two daughters because heathen men are banging on the door.  Better the kids be true worshippers!  Bullshit!  I could go on and on.

The Book of Mormon is bullshit with much of it plagiarized from the King James Version Bible.  While many Mormons are intelligent people, do they ever even wonder how the angel Moroni could deliver golden tablets translated into the Shakespearean English of the 1600's in 1850?  It's bullshit as are the Koran, the Thipitaka, the Sutra Pitaka and the Vinaya Pitaka. . . all bullshit!

I see some dark clouds.  What if they are positively charged and the ground below me is negative?  Should I stay away from the computer or at least use a surge protector?  Lightning could be on its way!