h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Catholicism: A Religious Dictatorship? - A8384114
Author: teamelectra - U985519

By no means a racist entry, but merely a topic open to debate.

Since this is a topic open to debate, you've put it in the wrong place. Peer Review is for factual descriptions of the world, not discussion documents. Please remove it.

The entry also presents as "facts" things that are completely inaccurate, and would be no means be well-balanced enough for an Edited Guide entry.

Can you please order this under headers it helps make it more presentable and more managable to read.

Yeah, If it is a topic for debate it shouldn't really be in peer review.

Also some facts are a bit one sided. The Virgin Mary is worshiped as someone close to God, a slightly better class of saint might be a good definition. 'Graven Idols' aren't graven as they are not prayed to but prayed at. They act as a focus for prayers. Yes the Spanish Inquisition was basically a thin shroud of religion over a bloody massacre. But the higher up 'leaders' of the inquisitions, not just Spanish, really thought the end of the world was nigh and they REALLY REALLY believed that they were going to burn in hell for millenia, they thought, mistakenly in my view, that they were saving their souls. But like every organisation on earth the Catholic Church was open to massive corruption during the middle ages. But in all fairness the tying unity of one religion, one power, one infallible man ruling was of great comfort to the peasants of the middle ages and also a unifying power that definitely contributed to the Renaissance for example.

Anyhoo rambling a bit. But if it is a debate topic it shouldn't be here.

As has been said before, entries for peer review are meant to be factual and balanced, and this isn't either.

Catholicism is not the most fanatical form of Christainity - that's the American Fundamentalists who believe in the literal truth of the Bible. Catholics do not believe that the world is a few thousand years old.

No Catholics think that the Pope is superior to God. Popes are not God's messengers, but are God's representatives. Popes are not elected democratically, but by a group of unelected, appointed cardinals who consider their decision to be guided by the holy spirit.

There *is* some very tenuous Biblical justification for the Catholic church's bigoted views, and these views (and anti-sematism) are common to other Christian churches too. Catholics historically have been persecuted by Protestants as well as vice versa. The Holy Roman Empire wasn't holy, Roman, or an Empire, and certainly wasn't run by the Catholic Church, though there is no denying its influence.

Catholics do not worship the Virgin Mary, they venerate her. LeRue is right about the images - they are an aid to prayer.

Opinions about 'Life of Brian' vary among Catholics and among other Christian groups. Opposition was not uniquely Catholic, and the film was only banned in a very few places.

Popes have condemned the Spanish Inquisition, and I'm not aware of *any* Catholics who would justify that or the murder of homosexuals. The Catholic line is that homosexual acts are a sin, not the drive. Many Catholics in the Western World aren't homophobic at all.

In fact, teamelectra, if you want to clear up your misconceptions about Catholicism, you'll find there is already an entry in the guide about it at A533828.