Blood taken from Pope John Paul II before he died is to go on display at his beatification on Sunday.
One of four small vials of blood removed from John Paul during his final days will be used, the Vatican said in a statement…
More than 50 heads of state and several hundred thousand pilgrims are expected to travel to Rome for the beatification, a step before full sainthood…
The vial will be placed in a “precious reliquary” prepared specially for the occasion by the Office of Papal Liturgical Celebrations.
After being extracted, the blood was mixed with an anti-coagulant in the container to ensure it remained liquid.
What body parts do we get to worship next?
Well Greg–once again we pimp ourselves in agreement. I don’t lie either as indicated by my general obnoxiousness. YOU however are very nice and genial. Obviously, of the two of us, if one of us is lying, its more likely YOU.
I recall saying you are wrong, or mislead, or blinkered in your view, or stuck in a rut, or too unimaginative to see past your dogma. That being the case, I don’t doubt I have opined on ocassion that you have LIED! to yourself at least? More an effort to motivate you to take a serious second look at whatever we were talking about.
Yes, some tangents from the truth have the moral equivalent of a lie, whether they are or not. On a blog of “ideas” not a terrible thing.
Bobbbo,
Religions, of course, are all over the place on the issue of heaven. As you correctly point out, a highly literalistic interpretation of heaven heads into absurdity.
As for me, I tend towards the mystical view of the afterlife. It’s my understanding that the mystical wings of the religions have a surprising unity in this regard — with the idea that your “energy” (spirit, soul, ghost, whatever) merges back into the greater divine “energy”.
I thought Catholics were somewhere in the middle of the religo-loony curve. This places them much closer to Santaria worship than I thought.
Ha, ha. Yea–”energy.” Its funny that a belief system that makes no sense at all finally has its devotees believing in things they can’t even express an understanding about. If the hereafter doesn’t involve “me” at my intellectual best with the added knowledge that there is indeed an afterlife and whatever other knowledge comes with it, then its not “me” that is in the afterlife. Kinda like a bad teleportation with added fly dna.
Just the logical absurdity of it all “should” make one an anti-theist===should the subject ever realistically come up?
Ha, ha. I crack myself up. What humor has god?
Dallas–of course you do, I do, we all do BECAUSE that is our culture. but go through what you do know of the religion. Prayer, all knowing, 3 entities, virgin birth, resurrection. Its “accepted” without thinking. Or, “put in its own compartmentalized box” and not thought about.
but if you think……….
I love religious death cults run by celibate men wearting skirts and gucci shoes.
Catholics need to stop with all this weird stuff because they are giving normal Christians a bad name.
Benji–I totally agree with you. Kinda burns though when you realize the Catholics accept evolution and don’t kill abortion docs. Who does that? Yes, the Protestors that the money skim lead to Rome rather than locally. Just the same old “I’ve got mine, screw you” mentality at play in a different context.
Always, follow the money. Fiat in USA, Corn in Mexico, puka shells in Fiji, and souls in Heaven.
GregAllen/Bobbo – What the hell is this love fest? You two going steady or something? Geez, Greg, send him some flowers while he goes out and buys adjoining grave sites! Haha.
BTW, Bobbie, Lenin was closed for rewaxing when I was there so I haven’t seen Madame Tussaud’s exhibit in Moscow. But I can take you to a couple of Buddhist temples with very “holy” monls sitting in the lotus position inside glass boxes. Creepy. I somehow lost the digital image I took (and may, someday restage) of a spray can of Pledge sitting on a shelf next to one of the cadavers. I know they were using it on the furniture but it was a wonderful coincidence.
BTW, don;t you have to perfomr something like three miracles for the Catholics to even consider you for sainthood? Other than the miracle of not going to prison for supporting child abuse, and the miracle of continuing to serve as pope for 10 or 15 years after he died, anybody know what “miracles” he performed?
As for cremation – don’t the fundamentalists believe the body has to be intact in order to be resurrected? Funny the restrictions placed on the all-powerful Wizard of … I mean, god.
Animby–wtf? Did you find that bottle of old Scotch that rolled under your wire spring cot?
Just goes to show you have to use the language of the gutter to be understood. Greg as always is being an actual good christian to all those he comes into contact with, a bit naive, not understanding who he is in conversation with. I, due to my own nature, have been ripping at the soft underbelly of his unexamined faith. I’ve never been more insulting to anyone as I am constantly to Greg Allan. Even more insulting than when I corrected you on Obama’s Universal Healthcare Plan. As we are into btw’s:
BTW–I was surprised you admitted to a misstatement. Mellow, drunk, just too busy to keep your guard up? How will you maintain god status yourself if you admit to a misstatement? Surely I’m only quibbling to point out Obama didn’t provide “complete” Universal Care when he did increase the number of insured so dramatically? Heh, heh.
BTW–speaking of love fests, let me say Animby you have shown yourself on this blog to be nothing but the better man than myself in every way I can think of except one. More educated, smarter, more experienced, more successful, more eloquent, kinder, hunanitarian. Should I reveal the one thing? Ha, ha. Given my history of failure and second rung status, I am more pragmatic, more realistic than you. More the Iago to your Othello. Yes, just plotting and planning here in the shadow world of lies and innuendo. first the misstatement—THEN the admission of a personal fault. My plan is slow, but unwinding still.
BTW—geez, I had another btw, but the beer is wearing off. I’m sure that pledge was for the lemon smell, not the yellow skin, but it could be both?
You could be conservative, I haven’t seen it except in the heat of argument when, as you say, you misspeak. But to the degree the Pukes are considered the conservative party, Animby YOU LIE just like a Puke:
I challenge YOU Animby to set forth the argument that the Super Rich need more tax cuts while the poor, working, and middle classes need service cuts. Go ahead: make that argument.
If not, Wake Up Foolish Animby. The Republicans want to Kill America but they can’t do it without your vote. You are no Republican and that throws your claim of conservatism into doubt.
yea, verily. Haiku to follow…….
Animby, he lies.
Conservative, he’s not.
The truth? As defined.
Just watching the marriage right now. Interesting concept that the first two reasons of three to get married involves being “fearful” of god. I have always thought my drive thru ceremony at Lake Tahoe was well done. Same first sentence and then talk about the mystical symbol of the infinity of the ring being a circle. HAH! I’d have never gotten married that day had the injunction been the same as that given at West Minister. So close…………
I wish them well. Hopefully they will do some good.
OK, I was wrong. The pope doesn’t wear Gucci. He wears Prada. He really is butch.
#25 agreed the R-L Curve has somewhat of a culture specific (and point in time) reference point. My point is western cultures today like rate Catholics about a five on a 1-10 scale. However, once you start messing with blood, body desecration, etc it does imply a few more tick marks to the right.
Bobbo,
I respect Greg Allen and made a personal pledge never to debate him on religious matters. This is the only thing I fundamentally disagree with him about. It wouldn’t do either of us any good to not respect the other’s opinions. Since he seldom defends things like this, the truce is easy to keep.
I save my anger for those who act stupid all the time.
Mr Fusion–nothing here raises to the level of a debate. A few exchanges, a barb thrown here and there. when we are lucky, a link to some new information.
If we “won’t debate” a person on a subject, do we really “respect” them? You can have your own answer: I debate, or throw barbs, at everyone, hoping only for a well placed return. That the best learning experience in my way of thinking. Too many object to the same thing.
Greg Allan does post as a completely reasonable person, for someone who believes in nonsense and thats the trouble. Without a grounding in reality, who knows who he really is? what will that inner voice tell him one time or another? Course, thats true with any of us===so what do we have but “ideas?”
Too many here also think a debate/exchange is between those here doing it. While true, there is the larger audience of those who read and pass on for various reasons. Who knows what anyone takes away?
It would be “nice” to see some stats every once in a while. A chart on how many people post how many times a month/year. How many read and don’t post? How many people post under “many” different names. A running gadget in the side bar. Information is supposed to set us free.
Fusion–reading for loose threads. Anger???? Really? Gosh, maybe you have some religious roots? No, if your debates aren’t “fun” you should find another activity. Life is short. Find the humor within your anger—its there. Laugh at yourself. Live. Grow. Be kind to yourself. After a few months, you will be happier, and not even notice you are lying to yourself.
Ha, ha. I’m laughing at myself right now! But like Greg Allan, I’m so practiced, I don’t think of myself as lying.
I wonder how JPII felt knowing he would eventually be chopped up for marketing purposes?
Is this supposed to make the new guy look more or less creepy?
Makes me wonder what sort of shadow moves the Holy See is making related to the various Middle East/North African popular revolts. If they are messing with relics again then Crusades can’t be far off. Oops, guess that already started.
I would love to know what Opus Dei is telling client politicians to do.
Ah the Stone Age silliness of evil incarnate.
Chris:
John Paul II certainly has no reason to be upset about his body being turned into relics. After all, he hasn’t been using that body for awhile, and Catholicism venerates relics… “My God how the money rolls in.”
#39 It had to creep him out while still alive. Maybe there is a “donate body for promotional purposes” box on the papal job application.
I got a piece of the Berlin Wall when that came down. Could there be a similar, but much more exclusive, market in holy bits.