Ask everybody and they’ll all agree it’s a good thing priests don’t run the world.Read the rest here.
I agree with this view.
I also believe it’s even better that members of religious orders don’t run the world, whether they are Sisters of Mercy or, lemme think, Jesuits … or some other kind of religious.
Why?
Religious don’t live in the real world.
Don’t get me wrong; I believe firmly that many religious do alot of good for the world, but they don’t live in it.
Sure there are exceptions of savvy religious who know the score, especially those who may have had a career before entering religious life. But in general, religious formed in community don’t live in the real world.
For example, unlike diocesan priests, individual religious don’t pay income taxes. Religious don’t worry about unemployment, health care, food, housing and nursing care when they are aged, or the cost of their funerals. Their religious communities take care of all that. Religious contribute all of what little (or in some cases much) money they earn from their apostolates into a common fund that is administered by their superiors. That common fund takes care of the needs of all community members.
That’s why I get a little edgy hearing religious talking about social justice, universal health care and other federal mandates and entitlements.
The idea that religious have of the state is far too analogous to that of a religious community.
Fr. Z's blog doesn't usually do too much politics so this is a rather unusual post. I found it to be thoughtful, and as far as it goes I think I agree with most of his points.
3 comments:
I actually see a lot of similarities between religious orders/hierarchy/group-think and textbook Communism. The way I see it, there's always the danger of bringing the spiritual down to the corrupt political level, but that is part of the fallen nature of man, I suppose. Let your faith guide your love and concern for your fellow man, yes, but it shouldn't be used to beat your fellow man over the head and force him to do anything.
Eurosleep: I agree. I also see a lot of textbook Communism, although not nearly as pure, in tribal village societies. In small communities, where social ties and mutual benefit rule the day, it works extremely well. It is when the same system is writ large that the whole ideal breaks down. It is much more difficult to share with the faceless fellow countryman than the village elders. Of course, in American culture, we've taken to abandoning the village elders as well.
A lot of Catholics confuse social justice with socialism. I can't believe how many people are falling for the lie that the Obama mandate is for the common good.
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