ETA: New sins for modern times.

[OhMissScarlett]

"The Vatican has brought up to date the traditional seven deadly sins by adding seven modern mortal sins it claims are becoming prevalent in what it calls an era of "unstoppable globalisation":

*Environmental pollution
*Genetic manipulation
*Accumulating excessive wealth
*Inflicting poverty
*Drug trafficking and consumption
*Morally debatable experiments
*Violation of fundamental rights of human nature

BBC NEWS ARTICLE

 

[rgraham666]

I saw that this morning.

Personally the old ones work best for me. I even blogged about them recently.

 

[Xelebes]

*Morally debatable experiments

Nebulous as the Lord himself.

 

[Boxlicker101]

"The Vatican has brought up to date the traditional seven deadly sins by adding seven modern mortal sins it claims are becoming prevalent in what it calls an era of "unstoppable globalisation":

*Environmental pollution
*Genetic manipulation
*Accumulating excessive wealth
*Inflicting poverty
*Drug trafficking and consumption
*Morally debatable experiments
*Violation of fundamental rights of human nature

BBC NEWS ARTICLE

I don't see anything new about these.

Environmental pollution has always happened, except that now there are ways to reduce it, although these ways are not always used as much as they should be.

Genetic manipulation has existed ever since people realized they could breed livestock to emphasize desirable traits.

Accumulating "excessive wealth" has always happened. Some ancient kings and emperors were richer, relatively speaking, than Bill gates is now. The Vatican is probably one of the bigest sinners in this one.

Inflicting poverty has always happened too, and The Vatican, with their absolute opposition to reliable birth control is one of the worst offenders.

Drugs and their manufacture, sale and consumption have been around throughout history.

I don't know what they mean by "morally debatable experiements".

Violation of fundamental rights have always happened too, largely done by absolute despots, and frequently with the blessing of organized religion, including The Vatican.

 

[3113]

Nebulous as the Lord himself.

My thought exactly. "Morally debatable experiments" is a catch-phrase for "something our priests can use if you do something that seems wrong to them and they need a reason why it's wrong."

I don't see anything new about these.

Environmental pollution has always happened, except that now there are ways to reduce it, although these ways are not always used as much as they should be.

Genetic manipulation has existed ever since people realized they could breed livestock to emphasize desirable traits.

Accumulating "excessive wealth" has always happened. Some ancient kings and emperors were richer, relatively speaking, than Bill gates is now. The Vatican is probably one of the bigest sinners in this one.

Inflicting poverty has always happened too, and The Vatican, with their absolute opposition to reliable birth control is one of the worst offenders.

Drugs and their manufacture, sale and consumption have been around throughout history.

I don't know what they mean by "morally debatable experiements".

Violation of fundamental rights have always happened too, largely done by absolute despots, and frequently with the blessing of organized religion, including The Vatican.

Oh! Touché Box! Excellent post.

 

[3113]

Crimmney! This list is going to have me using up my quota of eyerolls! These are so iffy it's no wonder the Vatican has so little credibility these days.

*Environmental pollution: well, that's nice of them but I'll wait till the Pope-mobile is a hybrid.

*Genetic manipulation: of what? Show dogs?

*Accumulating excessive wealth: my, my, this is the pot calling the kettle black.

*Inflicting poverty: Does a recession count, 'cause I'd sure like our government to feel guilty about the way they've inflicted poverty on us....

*Drug trafficking and consumption: Does that wine the priest has everyone drink at communion count? What about doctors giving people pills to help their diseases?

*Morally debatable experiments: Hm...Kama Sutra anyone?

*Violation of fundamental rights of human nature: The fundamental rights of human nature? Oh. Well, THAT certainly isn't open to interpretation, is it?

 

[Katyusha]

*Accumulating excessive wealth - said the desert to the grain of sand...

 

[Liar]

*Accumulating excessive wealth
*Inflicting poverty

I only have a problem with the first, if it involves the second.

*Accumulating excessive wealth - said the desert to the grain of sand...

Ah yes. This.

 

[OhMissScarlett]

Accumulating "excessive wealth" has always happened. Some ancient kings and emperors were richer, relatively speaking, than Bill gates is now. The Vatican is probably one of the bigest sinners in this one.

Exactly. They always seem to forget about that, "Let he who is among you without sin cast the first stone," business. And, liquidating your wealth to settle lawsuits does not absolve you either.

 

[cantdog]

You hear the one about Jesus and the hooker?

"She's a strumpet," they said. "The Law says, we must stone her to death forthwith."

"Save me, teacher," said the strumpet.

Everybody looked at the Teacher, wondering what he was going to say.

"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone," pronounced the Avatar. (Judgment is Mine, saith the Lord.)

Well, that was a poser. The oldest ones doped it out first, and dropped the stones and began to wander off.

Suddenly, from out of the second row, a huge chunk of Syrian porphyritic rock was launched, striking the harlot in the shoulder. The crowd parted, and the Teacher beheld a middle-aged woman.

"Mother," he complained, "You're always fucking everything up!"

 

[3113]

"Mother," he complained, "You're always fucking everything up!"

Love that joke. Of course, the way I heard it, we see a middle-aged woman launching a boulder down the hill which rolls down and flattens the harlot. Then Jesus turns and utters the punchline

 

[3113]

Addendum to that "First Sin" post: they say that what Jesus might have said was "Let he who is without sin with this woman cast the first stone." I like that better myself.

 

[3113]

All this talk of sins makes me want to go watch the original 1967 version of Bedazzled with Peter Cook and Dudley Moore.

http://scifipedia.scifi.com/images/0/0c/Bedazzled_1967.jpg

Peter Cook plays the Devil and he complains that the only people he has working for him are the 7 deadly sins (Raquel Welsh plays Lust, of course). He lives with them in an old apartment building with Anger as the bouncer.

"Move your arse, Sloth, you worthless old sin!" he snaps at a the sleeping fellow manning the front desk. Later on, Dudley Moore runs into Envy who complains that Lust and Gluttony have rooms nearest the bathroom. To which Dudley sympathetically replies, "Well, that kinda makes sense..."

Love that movie.

 

[Jenny_Jackson]

I've thought hard about this issue and come to the conclusion that it's very unfair of the Pope to add a few more sins before I have finished working on the originals.

 

[rgraham666]

I've got Wrath and Lust down pat.

Don't like Gluttony very much though. My taste in food is too simple to be much good at it.

 

[Boxlicker101]

I've got Wrath and Lust down pat.

Don't like Gluttony very much though. My taste in food is too simple to be much good at it.

I don't believe Gluttony has to involve really good food - just a lot of it.

 

[xssve]

Love that joke. Of course, the way I heard it, we see a middle-aged woman launching a boulder down the hill which rolls down and flattens the harlot. Then Jesus turns and utters the punchline

Uh, technically, Mary was an adulteress.

I have no problem with the new sins, Globalization is out of control - it will likely be the end of us, and sooner than anybody thinks.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

Nebulous as the Lord himself.

Indeed - I was going to say I love the bright-line guidelines these provide - not. Each is completely subjective and ambiguous. What is this, the post-modern church?

 

[Stella_Omega]

*Morally debatable experiments
*Violation of fundamental rights of human nature

I am about positive that what I think these two are-- and what the Vatican thinks they are-- are diametrically opposed.

 

[TE999]

Exactly where does pedophilia fall in these categories?

Morally Debateable?

 

[3113]

Uh, technically, Mary was an adulteress.

Um, technically, no:

"The New Testament describes her as a young maiden who conceived by the agency of the Holy Spirit whilst she was already the betrothed wife of Joseph of the House of David and awaiting their imminent formal home-taking ceremony (the concluding Jewish wedding rite)."

She wasn't married yet--unless you're saying she was married to god?

 

[3113]

Exactly where does pedophilia fall in these categories?

Morally Debateable?

I'm voting violation of fundamental rights of human nature. Which, given the Catholic Church, probably includes being gay as well

 

[TE999]

I'm voting violation of fundamental rights of human nature. Which, given the Catholic Church, probably includes being gay as well

I'm down with that. And being gay,while deplorable, is morally retrieveable given enough penance (and brainwashing).

 

[3113]

Morally debatable experiments

Help me out here. So...it's a sin to do any experiment that might create a moral debate? Or it's a sin to engage in any experiment that the church finds morally debatable? If the debate ends, can you then engage in the experiment even if the debate concluded it bad because it's no longer morally debatable?

 

[TE999]

Help me out here. So...it's a sin to do any experiment that might create a moral debate? Or it's a sin to engage in any experiment that the church finds morally debatable? If the debate ends, can you then engage in the experiment even if the debate concluded it bad because it's no longer morally debatable?

That makes my head hurt!