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1. 

   russell5419 said, 4 months ago

   I’m really hoping it’s a black woman, that would make my day,,lol..
2. 

   Kylie2112 said, 4 months ago

   @russell5419

   The Catholic Church needs something to make it more “lively.” I grew up Catholic, and couldn’t bear the drudgery of mass. Black American churches know how to “celebrate,” though.
   -
   I don’t really give a crap, since they’re basically electing the Next Guy To Bork Up The Sex Scandal.
3. 

   Clark Kent said, 4 months ago

   Announcing Pope Irving (crowd says….HUH?)
4. 

   ossiningaling said, 4 months ago

   @russell5419

   In God’s own image…
5. 

   Jase99 said, 4 months ago

   The actual teachings and message of Christ more or less got lost when the Church organized and began pursuing power and wealth. Jesus was a poor man who preached to the poor and dispossessed. The pope lives in opulent palaces wearing silken robes. The Church spends millions upon millions of dollars maintaining said palaces and their extensive art collection while so many literally starve to death in Africa on a daily basis.
6. 

   Ms. Ima said, 4 months ago

   @Jase99

   That is sad, but there have ALWAYS been starving Africans since the beginning of mankind. What would it take for them to become financially independent? Not being a Prince from Nigeria who has a lockbox with millions of dollars in cash sitting in a London storage area.
7. 

   Omnius said, 4 months ago

   Now that sounds a tad racist to me, Arial ought to know better. Anyway what a waste of a good cartoon on the most corrupt institution in human history.
8. 

   Bruce4671 said, 4 months ago

   @Jase99

   You say, and certainly you have been taught, that " Jesus was a poor man who preached to the poor and dispossessed." But is that true? Another opinion states:
   
   “Jesus is identified in the Gospel of Matthew (13:55) as the son of a τέκτων (tekton) and the Gospel of Mark (6:3) states that Jesus was a tekton himself. Tekton has been traditionally translated into English as “carpenter”, but is a rather general word (from the same root that gives us “technical” and “technology”) that could cover makers of objects in various materials, even builders."
   
   Further, “scholars have argued that tekton could equally mean a highly-skilled craftsman in wood or the more prestigious metal, perhaps running a workshop with several employees” and, “that the terms ‘carpenter’ and ‘son of a carpenter’ are used in the Jewish Talmud to signify a very learned man, and he suggests that a description of Joseph as ‘naggar’ (a carpenter) could indicate that he was considered wise and highly literate in the Torah.”
   
   There are a number of passages from the Gospels which state or imply that Jesus could read, that it should not be assumed that Jesus was a peasant, and that his extended travels may indicate some measure of financial means.
   
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_Jesus
   
   So tell me, as he “preached to the masses” – thousands of people – was there anyone there taking a survey and cataloging rich and poor (unlike churches today) OR was the instruction to those there to go forth and preach the good news ans since they “received” free they should “give” free?

   Hey I’m just asking a question…..
9. 

   Fourcrows said, 4 months ago

   @Bruce4671

   Thanks for the post, Bruce.
   I remember this argument from my (uncompleted) theology Masters courses. I believe most scholars (as of 1996) agreed that Jesus was not born into poverty, but because he could read and was versed in the scriptures, was most likely the son of a skilled craftsman and therefore fairly well off at birth.
   However, it is believed that he turned his back on his wealth at the beginning of his ministry, preferring to live off donations from those to whom he preached and stayed with. He was most likely a well respected Rabbi, otherwise many of the stories of him staying with wealthy merchants would have never happened. He called some of them “friends”, which would indicate a possible earlier business relationship, if only through his father.
   I find it interesting that Jesus’ travelling ministry was similar to those of the travelling Buddhist monks of Asia (read “Jesus and Buddha as Brothers” by Thich Nhat Hanh). While not unique in the Middle East at the time, not many of them were so popular.
   I do not have my books with me here (they are in storage), but what you may also find interesting are some of his contemporary Jewish mystics. Hanina Ben Dosa and Honi the Circle Maker were both 1st century contemporaries who performed the same miracles attributed to Jesus during their lives, and these were recorded by the Talmudic scholars during their lifetimes. Jesus’ miracles were not written down until nearly 100 years later, so some scholars have argued that Jesus’ miracles were actually performed by these other mystics and later attributed to him 2 generations later. Since Christianity began spreading beyond the borders of the Jewish world, new converts (especially of Pauline sects) would have had no knowledge of the Talmud or Jewish history, therefore making it easier to “enhance” Jesus’ reputation.
10. 

    Larry said, 4 months ago

    It is (humorously) said that “God must have loved the poor people; He made so many of them.”
    So of course if you want to sell a new religion it must appeal to the “masses”.
11. 

    Bruce4671 said, 4 months ago

    @Fourcrows

    Thanks for the info. I will check that book out of my library if available.
12. 

    David said, 4 months ago

    @Ms. Ima

    there have ALWAYS been starving Africans since the beginning of mankind

    Actually, that’s not at all true. Most of Africa was succesfull, although tribal, prior to colonization. It was the extraction of wealth by the colonial rulers and the horrors of King Leopold that has sent the continent on the current path.
13. 

    dtroutma said, 4 months ago

    David is correct. Prior to European occupations in Africa, Asia, and the Americas, indiginous peoples did quite well, with occassional natural disasters like doughts forcing them too move around to survive, quite well actually. Along came “agriculture”, and mostly Euorpean churches, and “new moralities” increased the cycles of death dramatically. What the churches didn’t do with slavery and disease, following ’the faith" led to tribal wars far more violent and brutal than any before those “nice” Euoropeans taught the natives how to get really brutal. BTW, eating your enemy on occassion still killed fewer people, and innocent bystanders than the wars taught with “modern methods”.
14. 

    swr said, 4 months ago

    @Jase99

    Actually the Church is going great guns in africa, which is why some of the names in contention are african.
    What your little bigotted mind can’t comprehend is that all of those things you lust after that the church has were aquired over two millinia. You can get a lot of cool stuff in that amount of time.
15. 

    swr said, 4 months ago

    @Omnius

    I agree particuly in light of the fact that those are the very people who are getting some attention. early money says it will most likely NOT be a europian.
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