The Pope Met Kim Davis: What Matters Is The Impact

I was waiting for confirmation from the Vatican before saying anything, and now that they’ve confirmed it, it’s time to talk about the Pope’s recent visit with Kim Davis. If by now you don’t know who Kim Davis is, I recommend both reading my September 5th post “Kim Davis Broke The Law,” and doing a quick Google search for her name. This woman is a hero to the evangelical right, and a pariah to the secular left. She is a polarizing figure to say the least, a beacon of God-inspired exclusion. She has been marketed as a martyr, embraced by Mike Huckabee, and now Kim Davis seems to have found favour with the most influential Christian leader on Earth – Pope Francis.

Pope Francis has done a lot of good. He refuses to live lavishly, he shuns the rich to eat with the poor, he is a champion against our destruction of the planet, and he was surprisingly impressive when addressing the U.S. Congress on his recent visit. He is also a skilled hypocrite. Very recent exceptions aside, the Pope panders to his nearest available base. He eats with the poor but does little to help them. He said “who am I to judge,” and then slammed the LGBTQ+ community at a Vatican-run interfaith International Colloquium On The Complimentarity Of Man And Woman. He is, quite frankly, very similar to another well-known Catholic figurehead – talking out of both sides of his mouth while holding to the values and ideals that keep those he claims to care about in the same desperate situation. Francis is nothing new, he is merely a deceptively polished version of the same charlatanry the papacy was built on. His meeting with Kim Davis should come as no surprise, but the impact of it is worthy of discussion.

Now, it should be noted that Charles P. Pierce wrote a piece for esquire.com, published just yesterday, effectively arguing that the Pope may have been swindled into meeting with Davis; an attempt by his enemies within the Vatican to discredit him. Mr. Pierce is not the only one suggesting a set-up here, and I must admit his argument is plausible. That being said, for the reasons stated above, I believe it naive to just give the Pope a free pass. Meeting with Kim Davis is not unbelievable given his loyalty to traditional doctrine, and he may very well agree with the many Christians who praise her ridiculous behaviour as heroic. Given the likelihood of Francis agreeing to meet with her had he known the situation, the issue of whether or not he actually knew and was tricked into it is irrelevant.

On to the important part of this story – the impact. Pope Francis’ approval numbers are through the roof. Catholics, evangelicals, members of most Christian denominations, even some Atheists, like this man. What he says carries a fair amount of weight. So what is a 10-year-old child supposed to think when the man they have been told to revere meets with a woman who is seeking to deny that child the same rights and freedoms as the heterosexual cis majority? Even if Francis never utters a public word about Davis, his actions speak loudly enough. The LGBTQ+ children dragged to mass every week learn that the Pope stands against them, the church stands against them, and their parents tell them to listen to the Pope and the church. In this childhood scenario, the world is not safe. These damaging influences on the developing minds of young people more often than not cause self-loathing, fear, hatred, bullying, too often suicide, and fatal attacks. We know this because it’s not a hypothetical. It keeps happening. Religious and familial influence play a huge part in who we become, and when that influence tells you that who you are is wrong, the impact is devastating.

It doesn’t matter if the Pope knew about Kim Davis, and despite the noise being made about what might have been said at the private meeting, the words spoken don’t matter either. What matters is perception, and the perception here is that the figurehead of the Roman Catholic church had a private meeting with one of America’s most notorious homophobes. The message sent is that the Vatican approves of Davis’ actions, and although not surprising to some of us, the impact this can have on LGBTQ+ Catholics is something we should be concerned about.

The message I wish to give to LGBTQ+ Catholics is this: There is nothing wrong with you. Kim Davis is wrong. Pope Francis is wrong. The doctrine that dehumanizes and oppresses you is wrong. Many of us understand the difficulty reconciling your identity with what the church teaches. We’ve been there, and we can help if you reach out and ask for it. You’re never alone in this. Whatever your identity, no matter who you are, Outspoken Ally has people who can help at the email address on the ‘About’ page. We can also put you in touch with other organizations that are on your side.

You don’t have to listen to the Pope. What’s wrong is wrong, no matter who says it.

 

Nothing New Here: The Hypocrisy Of Pope Francis

*Trigger Warning: This piece is highly critical of Pope Francis and the Vatican … highly critical. Although I would like everybody to read this, I do not recommend it if you are quick to anger or particularly defensive of the Catholic Church*

I must admit, he almost had me fooled … almost. The seemingly progressive statements made by Pope Francis over the past few months have led many to believe that the Catholic Church may, at long last, be on the cusp of major change. I wanted to believe it, I really did, but I have been cautiously optimistic through all of this. Hope and hesitation have to go hand-in-hand when it comes to apparently progressive steps within traditionally discriminatory institutions (in this case, the Vatican). Feigning sincerity and pandering to the nearest available base is, after all, something that the Catholic Church has become very good at; and the fact that they have remained so popular despite thousands of years of criminal activity is a testament to that ability. Caution is indeed justified when a new Pope starts talking about things that go against the written word of his own church’s tenets. Still, he almost had me fooled.

While many are convinced that Francis will be a voice for change, his actions and words on November 17th showed us that this Pope is the same hypocritical, cowardly, and deceptive charlatan that the tradition of his office could not survive without. True to custom, Pope Francis has turned coat, and contradicted every progressive statement he has made about LGBTQ+ people since stepping into his position. This supposed beacon of progress is nothing more than the latest sophist at the head of the world’s largest criminal organization, and we must no longer be fooled into thinking that he is at all concerned with progress. If you haven’t heard of it, the Vatican held their Humanum conference beginning on November 17, titled “An International Interreligious Colloquium on the Complementarity of Man and Woman” … so basically a conference to talk about traditional marriage, and how the gays are trying to destroy it. Featured in an article on The New Civil Rights Movement ( Read Article Here ), were the names of 17 of the most hateful anti-gay US activists in attendance. Now, I would expect this of the Vatican, but the hypocrisy after everything Pope Francis has claimed to believe since taking office made my jaw drop. In his statements at the conference, the Pope reportedly talked about the “spiritual devastation of new morality,” and went on to make multiple thinly veiled attacks on same-sex marriage, and by extension LGBTQ+ people.

So the question has been raised “does he want unity and peace or doesn’t he?” The truth here is that Francis’ only motivation is whatever is going to make his church look good at any given moment. When speaking in the company of LGBTQ+ people, he is going to talk about how understanding and dialog is needed, and he’s going to say things like “who are we to judge?” When in the company of hateful purveyors of misinformation, he is going to tow the traditional “gays are disordered, dangerous, and need Jesus” line. If ever there was a time to realize that this new Pope is not the man we thought he was, it’s now; before he can do any real damage. He has held a conference with those responsible for thousands of LGBTQ+ murders, suicides, and beatings the world over, and has showed his true colours in unity with them. The blood of those who have died because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity is now on his hands as well. Pope Francis has chosen to share in this responsibility with every horrible monster at that conference, including the disgusting Tony Perkins. Does he want unity and peace? Of course not. He wants what the Vatican has always wanted – power, money, and control. They were losing these things, and electing a Pope who appeared to be socially progressive was the perfect way to bring them back.

There is nothing new here. This is the same dishonesty and backstabbing that the Vatican has been doing for centuries. The only reason I’m so angry about it now is because Francis has convinced so many people that he is a true advocate for change. Sure, he may refuse to wear the red shoes, leave his security detail behind to mingle with the masses, and refuse to live in the Papal Apartment (favouring instead to share dorms with the Cardinals), but the rest appears to be all talk and no action. He claims to care about the poor, but what is he doing beyond offering empty platitudes and prayers? The Vatican has enough money to eradicate hunger in Africa, why don’t they? Mother Teresa had the means to help thousands, but instead raised millions of dollars and gave it to the Vatican Bank, allowing her patients to suffer – after all, the last shall be first, right? Should we expect any more from Francis? Is it even fair of us to expect moral behaviour from an immoral institution?

If anything, Christian evangelicals should also be very worried about this man. I’m worried about him because I know this will be downplayed, and the door will then be opened for him to hurt countless more people in the name of God. Evangelicals should be worried about the similarities between Pope Francis and the deceptive qualities they expect of the Anti-Christ. In any event, worry must give way to action. As far as I’m concerned, humanity has a moral obligation to speak out about this. I don’t care if it’s not your cause, it affects you whether you like it or not. Hypocrisy hurts us all, and when the Vatican does it, the scale of the damage is massive. As the biggest Christian denomination, the Catholic Church has a greater obligation to be kind, and as they continuously fail, they are continuously responsible for the harm being done in the name of their doctrine of hate and exclusion. Make no mistake. This could end very badly for many people. How many people have been socially shunned by a community that faithfully follows every word spoken from the pulpit? How many thousands of LGBTQ+ people have taken their own lives because they couldn’t reconcile who they were with what their church told them was “right?” How many preachers and church counsellors have taken members of their congregation in and tried to “pray away the gay?” How many attacks have been carried out as a result of the teaching that the judgment of God is correct, even when it says in Leviticus “they must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads?” This is not loving. This is not righteous. This IS exactly what Catholic Church doctrine has said for a very long time.

Many of us were attracted to the charisma and apparent compassion of Pope Francis, but I think it’s time for us to see him for the hypocrite he is. He will continue to make platitudes to appease every crowd he is put in front of, but nothing will change. That being said, if the Vatican does change their written doctrine, I will be happy to acknowledge it. Like I said, I want to believe it. Unfortunately, there is nothing new here, and I suspect there won’t be in my lifetime. There are countless religious leaders turning around and accepting LGBTQ+ people with loving arms. Pope Francis is NOT one of them.