An Anglican theologian and blogger, Bosco Peters has replied to a “letter” NZ columnist Joe Bennett wrote to the Vatican suggesting it forget about the theology and just focus on being nice.
Bennett gave a big thumbs up to Pope Francis, saying, “Whatever Pope ‘Tubby’ Francis has, we need to bottle it”.
But he advises the Pope, and presumably religious people in general, to “ditch theology”.
“Leave the scriptural dogma to the mad fanatics of the desert. The wealthy West already has,” he says.
In his “reply“ on behalf of the Vatican, Peters says “We at the Vatican don’t usually read your columns, being tired of the hackneyed anti-religious, straw-man arguments, or as your guru, Dawkins, would say, “meme”.
Peters deconstructs some of Bennett’s straw men.
He goes on to say that Bennett’s guru Richard Dawkins “is an insightful biologist.”
But while “he has helped people understand Darwin’s theory of evolution and its mechanisms,” he “lacks qualifications to expound about philosophy or religion” and he “is clearly quickly out of his depth in those areas...”
Turning the tables Peters advises Bennett to “get ahead of your own game for once.”
“Accept that your secular, New Age, post-modern goose is cooked and that if you want to be a serious player in life you must ditch the lot and just concentrate on the stuff that’s true and good.”
Bosco Peters has an “ecumenical website of resources and reflections on liturgy, spirituality, and worship for individuals and communities”
Source
- liturgy.co.nz
- stuff.co.nz
- Image: d.justpo.st
