Irish Bishop Says Voting Yes Is a Sin!

[MineralMan]

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/catholics-who-voted-yes-should-consider-confession-says-bishop-1.3511127

Following the landslide victory in the Irish referendum election that supported reproductive choice, including abortion, for Irish women, Kevin Doran, a Catholic Bishops said that people who voted Yes should confess their sin in doing so. Apparently the Bishop believes that voting your conscience in an election is a matter the Catholic Church should have a hand in.

In the article at at the link above, you'll find this statement by Bishop Doran:

He said he believed voting Yes was a sin if someone “knew and intended abortion as the outcome” of their vote.

While “the Catholic Church is a family and nobody ever gets struck off”, he said “what I’d say to a Catholic who voted Yes is this, if you voted Yes knowing and intending that abortion would be the outcome then you should consider coming to confession”.

He said: “Ultimately all sin, and sin is not just related to this area, but all sin is about decisions that impact on our relationship with God.”

It looks like folks are supposed to consult with their parish priest before voting in elections, according to Bishop Doran. Looks to me like a serious overstepping of boundaries by The Catholic Church, which insists on controlling the reproductive behavior of women. However, since women cannot be part of the clergy of that patriarchal church, it can be assumed that the wishes of women in that regard were not considered by Bishop Doran or other members of the all-male church hierarchy.

Irish women appear to have given their opinions in the election, in which the Yes vote won 2:1. I suppose the Yes voters will now have to face their priests in the confessional and admit their sin in voting. Or, perhaps not.

In summary: Someone's not paying attention!

[bitterross]

1. "...nobody ever gets struck off..." Well that's a load of crap.

Clearly he's forgotten the whole concept of excommunication. That's just the formal way of striking people off and isolating them. Let's not forget all the informal ways the Church punishes and strikes off people who do not toe the line and conform.

[PatrickforO]

2. Interesting that white men are mostly the ones

who insist on ruling a woman's right to choose.

Ironic that it is the same white men who, here in the US, are systematically gutting the New Deal safety nets, voting to route more and more of our tax money to a few billionaire freaks and big corporations, engaging us in wars, and seeking to make nazism respectable.

I guess they don't care much for people after they are born, just the fetuses.

[MineralMan]

9. In the case of the Roman Catholic Church, it is celibate men

who will never reproduce, telling women that they must reproduce, without controlling their own reproductive lives. Disgusting!

[Mariana]

3. But we were told, in another thread

that the Church backed off and has accepted the societal change in this democracy!

[trotsky]

5. 11tH ComMaNDmEnT!! n/t

[Mariana]

8. I see. We're not supposed to criticize "good news"

even when it's completely made up and utterly false.

[MineralMan]

7. Yah, well, we were told incorrectly.

This Bishop is trying to shame Catholic women from the Confessional. I say, "Shame on you, Bishop!"

[Mariana]

10. And threatening them with hell for their votes

Isn't that nice.

How much you wanna bet their Penance will include asking their MP's to enact the most restrictive laws they can get away with passing?

[Voltaire2]

4. An institution determined to become irrelevant

The RCC is “looking south” and has accepted that Western Europe is gone.

[Cartoonist]

6. Xian sarcasm

From The Babylon Bee

http://babylonbee.com/news/bono-announces-he-will-resume-pretending-to-be-a-christian-after-helping-overturn-abortion-ban/

DUBLIN, IRELAND—In a heartfelt announcement Tuesday, U2 frontman Bono confirmed he would resume pretending to be a Christian after the official U2 account voiced support for the recent repeal of the Eighth Amendment in Ireland, which had prevented women from having abortions in the country.

The legendary musician had temporarily set aside his claimed Christianity during the campaign to repeal Ireland’s strict abortion restrictions, but confirmed he would be ending his hiatus from Christian values now that the measure has passed. The rock star reportedly feared losing U2’s large Christian fanbase and the adoration of worship leaders everywhere, but was able to assuage the concerns of these groups with his announcement.

“Now that the Eighth Amendment has been repealed, rest assured that I will continue to make vaguely Christian references in my interviews and music,” he said. “While I set aside my faith for a few weeks there to make sure that abortion would take over the once deeply religious nation of Ireland, I’m back and more passionate about Jesus and faith and love and stuff than ever.”