A growing trend of Western Secularism as well as a sudden rise in militant Atheism has recently left religious folk constantly on the defence against attacks on their faith.One Church in particular seems to attract more criticism than any other;this is of course the Catholic Church.
The Church has been charged with everything from being sexist, intellectually repressive, homophobic, spreading AIDS, sexually abusive, greedy, racist, starting the crusades, burning witches and murdering millions in the Inquisitions of Europe.
These charges can make decent arguments in proving religions and the Catholic Church evil, but these charges are more than often mistaken.
Catholicism is often seen as an outdated passenger of history, a force that has arrived in the 21st century purely by accident.
“Politically incorrect” beliefs like those on abortion, gay rights, divorce and contraception can help to confirm this myth. It is important to remember that the Church’s beliefs in these difficult areas are based on the morals that Western Europe held for over 2000 years.
The morals of the Church are based on the attainable natural laws as confirmed by Aristotle, Augustine and reaffirmed by Aquinas.
These views on moral issues are not outdated, because naturally morals cannot become ‘outdated’, rather society has changed.
This does not make the Church’s morals wrong, rather it can make them unpopular.
It would be irrational of the Church to change its moral code of over 2000 years purely because some of its beliefs are unpopular, if this were the Church’s policy then it never would have lasted the distance.
Respect, not ridicule is needed for the Church’s moral system, it should be remembered that the Church has been the moral mainstay of the West since Early Modern times.
It has after all been the morals and beliefs of the Church that have led to many of Western Civilization’s greatest advances. Universities for examples were the invention of the Catholic Church.
It was the Church that help funded the Renaissance and the amazing art and music and social developments that came along with it. Again it was the Church and its dedicated scholars who developed many of the early scientific theories of physics and biology.
It was a Jesuit Priest who came up with the ‘Big Bang Theory’, and biology scholars would acknowledge the role played by Father George Mendel among others, in the history of their science.
Law scholars would also remember that it was the Church through its canon law system that invented the evidence based trial system. It is too easy to forget these advances when no one has ever pointed them out.
A quick glance at the current Australian education, health and social justices system would also serve to quickly remind us of the good that the Church and Christianity plays. Literally thousands of students, both at university and at schools are educated at the hand of the Catholic Church each day.
Thousands of people each day are also recipients of Catholic health and aged care. Catholic social justice and charity programs also play an invaluable role in helping those who are poor and marginalised.
The Vatican itself, is the largest non-government aid giver in the world, and closer to home the Sydney Catholic Archdiocese only a few months ago gave $1,200,000 to fund medical research on adult stem cells.
It is easy for people like Dawkins and Hitchens and a whole troupe of others, especially in the media to point out the ‘politically incorrect’ beliefs of the Church, as well as some questionable acts by the Church in the past.
It is also easy to find a history book to see the positive impact the forces of the Catholic Church and Christianity has had on the whole of Western society.
Education, medicine, physics, biology, the arts, social justice would not be as advanced or developed as they are today if it were not for the Church.
The Church has been around for 2000 years, it has seen Empires rise and fall. The current attacks are simply one in a long line.
Over the last 2000 years the attackers of the Church always seem to vanish as quickly as they had arisen.
SIC: TCLOA