The Pope wants to ban all weapons. All weapons, which potentially means almost every physical object. Water is a weapon.
OK, so, the goal isn't practical. But should it at least be aspirational? After all, the Bible says something about beating swords into plowshares. On the other hand, the Bible also says something about beating plowshares into swords, and pruning hooks into spears: and "let the weak say, 'I am a warrior.'" For everything, there is a season.
As for the New Testament, Jesus came not to bring peace but a sword, and urged his disciples to buy themselves swords if they had to sell their coats.
In terms of Natural Theology, it's hard to think that God is very interested in a world without arms. Animals tend to have natural weapons better than our own for their size; and all animal life, including human beings, can only sustain itself by the consumption of other things that were once alive. If you can know something about God by knowing His works, you would have to reason that God is not opposed to violence. Violence has a purpose in God's scheme.
Banning weapons means that the strong rule over the weak; men over women; the large tribe over the small one. But God favored the David and his sling over Goliath, Judith and her sword over Holofernes, and the Jews over the Egyptians, as well as the other tribes they destroyed in the age of Joshua.
It's a strange sentiment for a Pope to express. It is out of order, as far as I can tell, with reasoned theology whether based on revelation or nature.
It is founded on feelings about weapons rather than rational thought. It is ultimately a belief that tools dictate behavior.
ReplyDeleteBecause this is obviously insane, there must be some other reason behind it. I continue to assert that this is a branch of culture war. Gun-controllers want those who disagree with them to be disempowered, believing that this will gradually make everyone less violent.
It should be noted that strict gun laws did not make Europe less violent. Europe became less violent as it settled its tribes into separate nations, especially post-WWII. Not entirely, but far more than before the two World Wars. The homicide rate dropped first. Then they changed the laws. Now that they are less homogeneous, crime is rising again. Homogeneous American states have low violent crime rates as well.
Before guns were in common use, or even invented, Europe was a pretty violent place. And there was a huge advantage for men (only men) who were able to devote a lot of time to physical, horsemanship, and weapons training.
ReplyDeleteAnd, of course, there was plenty of violence between Native American tribes prior to firearms.
One effect of the abolition of guns, and further of weapons of any kind, would be great empowering of the mob against the individual. See Robert Avrech's post Jew Withoutt a Gun:
http://www.seraphicpress.com/jew-without-a-gun-25-years-ago-the-la-riots/
If I lived near a radical college campus, and especially if I was a professor or was otherwise known to the students, I would certainly want to carry for self-protection.
The Pope is free to ban them in Vatican City and on Church property. I'd thank him for his concern but ask him to mind his own business when it comes to the laws in our country, as he's not head of state here.
ReplyDeleteIronically (or perhaps not), I sort of doubt he's prepared to ban weapons from the Swiss Guard.
His practical freedom to do that without instantly being conquered by barbarians is provided by men with weapons — in this case, the Italian military backed by the forces of NATO.
ReplyDeleteJohn Paul II was a bit more modest. He only asked for an end to war.
ReplyDeleteIt betrays his leftist leanings and indoctrination- the focus on the material, the obsession with a utopia here on Earth, which is strikingly misplaced in the man who is supposed to be symbolic of our concern for the next world, not this one.
ReplyDeleteWouldn't it be nice if we could eliminate original sin by removing particular objects from the material world? Or by passing a new law? Wouldn't it be nice if we could eliminate original sin by any means at all than redemption of individual corrupt wills? Jesus wouldn't even have had to die if He had thought of this first. Cain would never have slain Abel and a whole lot of heartache could have been averted. Instead of telling people not to commit violence on each other, you could just remove the means and leave their consciences alone from then on. (Then on to removing genitalia so there wouldn't be adultery, and food so there wouldn't be gluttony, and cattle so there wouldn't be coveting.)
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of appalling that the Pope of all people could drift into this kind of error. I thought there were, I don't know, seminaries or something. Or the Bible.
Texan. Yes, there are seminaries. Sadly, some of them are JESUIT seminaries; that's not necessarily congruent with CATHOLIC seminaries.
ReplyDeleteThe Jesuits used to be known for logic and the precision of their reasoning, back when their schools were the best.
ReplyDeleteSigh.
I saw a sign the other day:
ReplyDelete"The Dominicans were founded to fight the Albigensian heresy,
"The Jesuits were founded to fight the Protestant heresy.
"SEEN ANY ALBIGENSIANS LATELY?"
I'll give up my Bec de Corbin (actually a Vaughn 20 oz framing hammer) when they pry it out of my twitching fingers.
ReplyDeletePeople in the know, that is, folks with some savvy regarding the Catholic church, seem to regard this particular pope with great suspicion , if not outright disdain.
The weapon is the human mind, everything else is just an extension.
@ T99 - I'd forgotten that Cain shot Abel. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDelete@ Grim. Loved the sign. Using it.
No, silly, he didn't shoot him, he took advantage of lax jaw-ass control laws. But the new initiative will eliminate all weapons, from sticks to guns, and so will solve all that.
ReplyDeleteOr I guess that's really "ass-jaw."
ReplyDeleteDad reminds us of Thomas Aquinas and the Catechism which Francis seems to ignore in his modernist frenzy...
ReplyDeletehttp://dad29.blogspot.com/2016/07/self-defensefamily-defense-obligatory.html
Meme: My Rifle is a useful tool, But "I" am the weopen.
https://raconteurreport.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2018-04-11T03:45:00-07:00&max-results=20&start=29&by-date=false
-Mississippi