DCP's backhanded compliment to the late former pope

[Dr Exiled]

Joseph Smith makes up some $hit and years later certain dupes feel entitled to make comments about which they know nothing.

[drumdude]

I think Dan and Midge have a bit of mean spirited holy envy with respect to Catholicism.


Mormonism can only dream of being as large and well respected. Which is why it doesn’t even notice the Midge bitting at its ankles with his child abuse scandal “insider scoop” tease. A tease that I suspect is complete BS.

[Gadianton]

If he posted after midnight then Dr. Scratch has some material for 2023 already.

Mr. Midgley's disgust at "Mormonism" is like he's been accused of "Satanism". The explanations apologists have given for not being "Mormons" are usually pretty clinical. Midgley puts real anger and feeling into it. He's coming off as the Christian minister standing on the porch screaming that Mormonism is a cult to missionaries.

Prior to being elected Pope, Ratzinger was head of the agency that long ago was known as the Inquisition. In this role, he was known for being very strong on insisting that Roman Catholics at all levels manifest fidelity to the foundations of Christian faith in both teachings and behavior.

Even more telling. His fascination with a certain part of Europe even more clear. You can tell that Midgley really wants the SMC to grow in power and in fact, bring on the inquisition.

I wonder if that "unspeakable act" he mentioned isn't what we think? Maybe the unspeakable thing was an archbishop refusing to torture a liberal believer? Maybe a child refused to acknowledge the sun goes around the earth in Sunday School and the Catechist let it slide without a beating?

[drumdude]

DCP is outraged that this board noticed his not-so-subtle choice of words used to describe the passing of the former Pope:

And as for the use of his pre-papal name, Joseph Ratzinger, please read through the tributes to which I’ve linked above and notice how frequently that name is used by devout, conservative Catholics to refer to him, along with his regnal title of Benedict XVI. When I wrote my final line, thinking of Pope Benedict’s entry into eternity, I had in mind not only the fact that, when we die, we probably don’t carry many of our earthly titles (e.g., Doctor, Professor, President, Senator, Congresswoman, or Mayor) with us into the next world, where they’re irrelevant and count for nothing, but also a very specific ritual that has been connected with the death of popes for centuries now. It originated in a world where confirming death was a bit more uncertain than today’s medical technology allows:

When a pope is thought to have died the papal chamberlain (who assumes temporary stewardship of the Vatican after a pontiff’s death) takes a silver hammer made for the occasion and taps the pope’s head three times, all the while calling out the pope’s baptismal name with each tap. Whether this was actually done in the case of the no-longer-reigning Pope Benedict XVI, I currently have no idea. (It’s a situation without traditional precedent.) But it means that, in the case of Pope Benedict, the chamberlain would not have called out his regnal name, Benedict, after each tap of the hammer but, rather, his given baptismal name of Joseph (or perhaps, depending upon the nationality of the chamberlain, Giuseppe). At that moment of transition into the world to come, Pope Benedict XVI would have been, simply, Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger. If the pope does not respond to the three taps, the chamberlain then turns to the others in the room and ceremonially declares, “The pope is truly dead.” Thereupon, he immediately falls to his knees and prays Psalm 130, the De Profundis, which is a penitential psalm.

I note, too, just as an interesting but supportive detail, that there is, so far as I can recall, only one pope who is explicitly identified in the early-fourteenth-century Paradiso of Dante Alighieri as residing in heaven. It is John XXI, who briefly occupied the papacy from 8 September 1276 to his death on 20 May 1277, the only physician and the only Portuguese ever to have held the office. But does Dante, that great and devout late-medieval Catholic poet, refer to him as Pope John XXI? No. He does not. Instead, he refers to him as Pietro Ispano or Pietro Spano (“Peter of Spain”). Pope John XXI, you see, was born as Pedro Julião in what is now Portugal, and was widely known before (and, clearly, after) his pontificate as Petrus Hispanus in Latin and, in Portuguese, as Pedro Hispano. I don’t believe that anybody on the Peterson Obsession Board can plausibly argue that Dante intended to be “disrespectful,” discourteous, “mean spirited,” or “incredibly offensive” when he singled “Peter of Spain” out as being in Paradise.

I'll simply refer DCP to the AP's style guide regarding the former Pope:

https://www.ap.org/press-releases/2013/ ... uted-by-ap

To help with coverage of the selection of a new pope to succeed Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, The Associated Press has compiled a style guide of essential words, phrases and definitions. Some are based on entries in the AP Stylebook: http://www.apstylebook.com/. Others were suggested by AP’s religion writers in Rome and New York and based on decades of AP coverage of the Roman Catholic Church and papal successions.

pontiff
Though a synonym for pope, it is not a formal title and always spelled lowercase.

pope
Capitalize pope when used as a title before a name: Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Paul. Lowercase pope in all other uses. The pope is the bishop of Rome; the office was held by the Apostle Peter at his death.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI
Also, "Benedict XVI, the pope emeritus," or "former Pope Benedict XVI" or "Benedict XVI, the former pope." On second reference, Benedict without the numerals. On Feb. 28, 2013, Benedict became the first leader of the Roman Catholic Church to resign in 600 years. (The church uses resignation instead of abdication.)

papal infallibility
A pope invokes apostolic authority derived from the apostles of Jesus Christ to define doctrine or morals for the entire church. Only the sitting pope has this authority.

Holy Father
The preferred form is the pope or pontiff. Use Holy Father in direct quotations or in special contexts where a literary effect is desired.

Roman Catholic Church
The church teaches that its bishops have been established as the successors of the apostles through generations of ceremonies in which authority was passed down by a laying-on of hands. The church counts more than 1.2 billion members worldwide. Use Catholics and Catholicism for those who believe that the pope, as bishop of Rome, has the ultimate authority in administering an earthly organization founded by Jesus Christ.

religious titles
The clergy below pope are, in descending order, cardinal, archbishop, bishop, monsignor, priest and deacon. Capitalize the title before a name. Do not routinely use father or pastor before a name, but capitalize this description before a name in a quote. For priests, use the Rev. on first reference before the name.

Nowhere in the style guide is it considered appropriate to refer to the Pope by his birth name.

Compare it to the LDS style guide:

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/style-guide

The official name of the Church is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The full name was given by revelation from God to Joseph Smith in 1838.

In the first reference, the full name of the Church is preferred: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

When a shortened reference is needed, the terms “the Church” or the “Church of Jesus Christ” are encouraged. The “restored Church of Jesus Christ” is also accurate and encouraged.

While the term “Mormon Church” has long been publicly applied to the Church as a nickname, it is not an authorized title, and the Church discourages its use. Thus, please avoid using the abbreviation “LDS” or the nickname “Mormon” as substitutes for the name of the Church, as in “Mormon Church,” “LDS Church,” or “Church of the Latter-day Saints.”

When referring to Church members, the terms “members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” “Latter-day Saints,” “members of the Church of Jesus Christ” and “members of the restored Church of Jesus Christ” are preferred. We ask that the term “Mormons” and “LDS” not be used.

“Mormon” is correctly used in proper names such as the Book of Mormon or when used as an adjective in such historical expressions as “Mormon Trail.”

The term “Mormonism” is inaccurate and should not be used. When describing the combination of doctrine, culture and lifestyle unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the term “the restored gospel of Jesus Christ” is accurate and preferred.

When referring to people or organizations that practice polygamy, it should be stated that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not affiliated with polygamous groups.

It would seem to me, that there was an absolute abundance of approved Catholic terms that DCP could have used to describe the former Pope. Pope, Holy Father, Pontiff, Benedict XVI, the Pope emeritus, etc etc.

If DCP can't see the irony here in asking the world to follow Mormonism's style guide, while not having the simple decency to color inside the lines with respect to Catholicism, well, it wouldn't be the first time he hasn't recognized he is a hypocrite.

[Marcus]

DCP:

After referring to the late pope multiple times under his regnal title of Pope Benedict XVI (or some variant thereof), I had closed my blog entry with this statement: “I firmly believe [that] Joseph Ratzinger has now entered into a new life after decades of attempting to serve God in the best way he could. Requiescat in pace.” How arrogant! I had insulted him as having merely attempted to serve God…

Well, I think that I’ll briefly respond….

I absolutely do not believe that Pope Benedict XVI would have been even slightly outraged at my summarizing his mortal life as “decades of attempting to serve God in the best way he could.” Anybody who has read what he wrote (or glanced through the links that I supplied on Saturday) would recognize that characterization as nothing more nor less than his own modest self-understanding. (See, too, “Former Pope Benedict XVI asks for forgiveness, thanks God in final published letter.”) Moreover, my personal understanding of our universal human condition is that “attempting to serve God in the best way we can” is the best that any of us can achieve. My description of Pope Benedict as having done so was intended to praise him, not to denigrate him.

No, Peterson absolutely meant to disparage him with his statement. The phrase he uses is clear:

“.. Ratzinger has now entered into a new life after decades of attempting to serve God in the best way he could…”

[Wonhyo]

It would seem to me, that there was an absolute abundance of approved Catholic terms that DCP could have used to describe the former Pope. Pope, Holy Father, Pontiff, Benedict XVI, the Pope emeritus, etc etc.

If DCP can't see the irony here in asking the world to follow Mormonism's style guide, while not having the simple decency to color inside the lines with respect to Catholicism, well, it wouldn't be the first time he hasn't recognized he is a hypocrite.

One of Dan's amusing microaggressions is doing exactly this. Then, when called out for it, he enjoys standing in front of the virtual chalkboard, academic regalia donned, to lecture about why he is correct. After the lecture, the applause from students such as Raymond Swenson, Ideeho, and others rings in Dan's ears like sweet music.

Has Dan ever lost an argument, an academic controversy, a chess match, a checkers match? Has he ever been wrong?

[Marcus]

It would seem to me, that there was an absolute abundance of approved Catholic terms that DCP could have used to describe the former Pope. Pope, Holy Father, Pontiff, Benedict XVI, the Pope emeritus, etc etc.

If DCP can't see the irony here in asking the world to follow Mormonism's style guide, while not having the simple decency to color inside the lines with respect to Catholicism, well, it wouldn't be the first time he hasn't recognized he is a hypocrite.

One of Dan's amusing microaggressions is doing exactly this. Then, when called out for it, he enjoys standing in front of the virtual chalkboard, academic regalia donned, to lecture about why he is correct. After the lecture, the applause from students such as Raymond Swenson, Ideeho, and others rings in Dan's ears like sweet music.

Has Dan ever lost an argument, an academic controversy, a chess match, a checkers match? Has he ever been wrong?

Only in the part of his mind that he immediately and deeply represses.

[drumdude]

I just started smiling when he went into those long convoluted explanations about checking il Papa with a hammer. He really is something.

[Marcus]

I just started smiling when he went into those long convoluted explanations about checking il Papa with a hammer. He really is something.

Yes he is. And very gullible.

[Marcus]

A commenter on SeN:

Laralee Nelson
2 hours ago

The POB members are just continuing their time-honored role of allowing you to have a noticeable influence in what they think about and what they do in their lives. Your posts have significance to them, if only to allow them to build up pressure they 'must' release. After all, one of the best ways to 'silence' an opponent, is not to encourage them or even pay attention to them. So by constantly being focused on you, they validate your importance to them.

Hmm. I can’t decide…

Poe's law is an adage of Internet culture saying that, without a clear indicator of the author's intent, any parody of extreme views can be mistaken by some readers for a sincere expression of the views being parodied

Even this continuation is unclear…

Perhaps I'm unusual, but most people of my acquaintance, if there is someone in their lives that they find objectionable, just ignore and avoid them if circumstances permit. They don't spend their valuable time or their emotional energy obsessing about them, or even thinking about them. So you mean something to them, in a twisted sort of way, unfortunately.