Vatican expands product line

The Roman Catholic Church is launching a new model of priest to compete in today's tough theological marketplace. The Mission of the Gospel of Life (tm) is loaded with new features like picketing and ultrasonography--all with the same ruthless efficiency and almost fanatical devotion that consumers have come to expect from the Catholic brand.

It is not known when new prototypes will roll off assembly lines.

New Order of Catholic Priests Is Forming to Fight Abortions

The Roman Catholic Church plans to establish its first religious society devoted exclusively to fighting euthanasia and abortion, church leaders said this week.

The male-only Missionaries of the Gospel of Life -- founded by the Rev. Frank Pavone, an outspoken opponent of abortion rights -- will be housed in a vacant Catholic high school and dormitory on the grounds of the Diocese of Amarillo.

The order will have a decidedly political bent, and will be active rather than contemplative, Pavone said.

Priests will be trained to conduct voter-registration drives, use the media to get out their anti-abortion message and lobby lawmakers to restrict abortion rights. They also will learn to lead demonstrations outside offices where abortions and family-planning services are provided.

"There is a difference between knowing the teachings and knowing how to effectively advance a movement," Pavone said. [LA Times]

Via Jeanne D'Arc.

Comments

[Hippodameia]

So if they're going to be so political do we get to tax them?

[peBird]

Maybe they'll start a day care center.

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

So dark, pe, but so funny.

[chris]

oooh...now that's just a downright icky thought.

accurate. but icky. (can you tell i'm into deep philosophical pondering mode tonight?)

[Mnemosyne]

Hey, who knows what they'll be transformed into after a while? The Jesuits started off as torturers for the Inquisition and now run high-quality educational institutions and sponsor all kinds of science research. (Real science! I think a Jesuit astronomer just published an interesting paper.)

(Full disclosure: my master's degree alma mater is Loyola Marymount University.)

Of course, it took about, um, two or three hundred years for the Jesuits to put down the rack and pick up science instead.

But it could happen! Give them time!

[Squashed Lemon]

Of course, it took about, um, two or three hundred years for the Jesuits to put down the rack and pick up science instead.

But it could happen! Give them time!

Posted by: Mnemosyne | April 1, 2005 06:50 PM

I won't put my money in this. They are in LA. There is this thing called fad. 5 yrs from now, they move to saving the earth or other new fangled cause. I am not sure who they are, but they don't seem like a bunch of smart priests.

The jesuits were at least intellectuals since they need to pretend to interrogate. And some of those heathens are pretty smart and outspoken. :P Of course trying to be smart and thinking sometimes have the unfortunate side effect of growing conscience.

If you ask me, catholic church intellectuals would be a pretty good place to start changing the entire religious wingnutery. Elect progressive pope, and purge the church. Then make it ideological machine again. If I were the power that be, I would also converts those wingnuts protestants too. It works to some degree in Latin america.

heh heh.

(okay, taking off my aluminium foil hat now)

[Marysquito]

Um, wasn't this the pope that demanded that priests remove themselves from the political world? Oh, that's right, those were lefty priests doing the whole anti-war, fighting for the poor thing.

Gotta love PBS. In the whole pope-a-thon BS, they are running the Frontline episode on JPII, surfed across it as they were talking about how he screwed over Romero. Didn't realize that it was so personal. That Romero met with him, showed him pictures of murdered priests and dead, mutilated peasants. The Pope told him he needed to work harder to find conciliation with the government. Can't wait to hear Timmy Russert bring that one up.