With this first blog, I am starting a series of articles about Pope Francis, the Argentinian Jorge Mario Bergoglio.
Let me be clear: I am a sinner by all means. I am not perfect and I do not expect others to be.
In a past piece, I had also proclaimed myself that I am a new-born Christian but I do not form part of any local community.What I mean is that each day I renew my relationship with Christ. For me, the term ‘Christianity’ is a better, appropriate word to describe that I follow Christ and I do not do this because I was taught so. This is explained in this website’s bio.
However, I do attend Sunday mass, I attend the monthly Liberation Masses and my spiritual director is a Catholic Priest.
All in all, I am very saddened when the Catholic church is attacked because I am aware that the attack is coming from the enemy and his minions, through their agendas. I am also very saddened that we are living through an age when, the minute you mention God or Christ, people turn purple, insult you, and turn away from you.
Considering the unique period in history that the world is going through at the moment, Pope Francis has made a lot of controversial statements which made many raise eyebrows, even among other bishops and cardinals.
We start when he advocated for the deadly and experimental Covid-19 vaccines.
The news that Pope Francis said that health care is a ‘moral obligation’ was on various media portals, including The Malta Independent. In addition, Pope Francis had also “denounced how people had been swayed by ‘baseless information’ to refuse, according to him, one of the most effective measures to save lives.” He also “used some of his strongest words yet calling for people to get vaccinated in a speech to ambassadors accredited to the Holy See, an annual event in which he takes stock of the world and sets out the Vatican’s foreign policy goals for the year.”
Before asserting this, he had also “termed vaccination as ‘an act of love’ and that refusing to get vaccinated was ‘suicidal’.
“He lamented that, increasingly, ideological divides were discouraging people from getting vaccinated.”
“‘Frequently people let themselves be influenced by the ideology of the moment, often bolstered by baseless information or poorly documented facts,’ he said, calling for the adoption of a ‘reality therapy’ to correct this distortion of human reason.”
“‘Vaccines are not a magical means of healing, yet surely they represent, in addition to other treatments that need to be developed, the most reasonable solution for the prevention of the disease,’ he added.”
“Some Catholics, including some conservative U.S. bishops and cardinals, have claimed vaccines based on research that used cells derived from aborted fetuses were immoral, and have refused to get the jabs.” Cardinal Vigano openly stated that these vaccines are the work of Satan.
However, the Vatican’s doctrine office said “it is ‘morally acceptable’ for Catholics to receive COVID-19 vaccines based on research that used cells derived from aborted fetuses.” Not only that, but both Pope Francis and Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI got vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech shots.
“Francis repeated his call for universal access to the shots, particularly in the parts of the world with low vaccination rates, and called for revisions to patent rules so that poorer countries can develop their own vaccines.”
‘It is appropriate that institutions such as the World Trade Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization adapt their legal instruments lest monopolistic rules constitute further obstacles to production and to an organized and consistent access to health care on a global level,’ he said.
Since when is taking vaccines a moral obligation? Since when is taking vaccines an act of love? An act of love towards who? Towards yourself and towards your neighbour because in the bible we are told ‘Love your neighbour as yourself’? And what about the first part of the statement, in which Jesus told us:
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31).