Posted on 02/09/2010 3:54:56 PM PST by wagglebee
NEW YORK, February 9, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - As nations around the world are beginning to feel the effects of plummeting birth rates, the Vatican’s representative to the United Nations has stressed that population growth is the key to overcoming poverty. Speaking before the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, Archbishop Celestino Migliore said, “too often population growth is viewed as the cause of poverty whereas it is a means of overcoming it, for only within the work force can the solution for poverty be found.”
The archbishop explained: “where economic growth rates have declined, the answers lie not in trying to close society to others and pushing for population decline but rather in creating a society which is open to and encourages life.” He added, “Promoting life and the family and finding ways to integrate the contribution of all people will allow societies to realize their full potential and achieve development.”
While population control was pushed at the Copenhagen summit on climate change and is still funded in the billions by the world’s elite, population control measures have largely been discredited as a valid means of reducing poverty.
University of Calgary political scientist Tom Flanagan recently spoke of the “now discredited theory that poverty in the Third World is based on overpopulation,” in comments to the National Post. “I don’t think any serious scholar believes that anymore,” he added.
The Vatican push against population control measures was raised by the pope last year. In his World Day of Peace message for January 1, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI deplored the "international campaigns afoot to reduce birth-rates, sometimes using methods that respect neither the dignity of the woman, nor the right of parents to choose responsibly how many children to have; graver still, these methods often fail to respect even the right to life."
Smashing any appeal to undertake population control in the name of alleviating poverty, the pope added: "The extermination of millions of unborn children, in the name of the fight against poverty, actually constitutes the destruction of the poorest of all human beings."
In his message, the Pope brought demographic evidence to defend his views. "Nor must it be forgotten that, since the end of the Second World War, the world's population has grown by four billion, largely because of certain countries that have recently emerged on the international scene as new economic powers, and have experienced rapid development specifically because of the large number of their inhabitants. Moreover, among the most developed nations, those with higher birth-rates enjoy better opportunities for development.
"In other words, population is proving to be an asset, not a factor that contributes to poverty," the pope concluded.
Wrong.
High-level associations in the Church of Rome have "said" just that: humans cause global warming.
Examples from the Vatican website (which, BTW, has an excellent search engine):
Since the tsunami that struck the Indian Ocean on 26 December 2004 there have been other natural disasters in different parts of the world. Hurricanes, earthquakes, typhoons and droughts are attributed to global warming, a phenomenon, due not just to natural causes, but also to human behaviours. In that sense human beings are responsible for global warming and their continued disregard for the environment will prove ever more fatal for human existence, unless the causes are addressed. Human beings are part of a larger whole. They should not manipulate, distort and abuse God's creation. Rather they are called to be responsible stewards, able and willing to restrain their own desires for the good of all in God's creation.
H. Em. CARDINAL PAUL POUPARD, PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE
*************************
Today however the world is confronted with a serious ecological crisis. The earth is suffering from global warming as a result of our excessive consumption of energy. The extent of forested area on our planet has diminished by 50% over the last 40 years while the deserts are spreading ever faster. Three quarters of ocean life has already disappeared. Every day more than 100 living species die out and this loss of biodiversity is a serious menace for humanity itself. With the apostle Paul we can affirm: creation has been delivered into the power of destruction, it groans as in the pains of childbirth.
Do you ever wonder if the politicians and liberals in general have any common sense?
Countries will fall into fertile Muslim hands because these countries need a people to function,people to pay taxes.
The Pope is right..
I'll be keeping this post! :-)
Wagglebee's title:
Population Growth is a Means of Overcoming Poverty, Not a Cause of It
Do these statements have identical meanings?
You are still deflecting.
Wagglebee's title:
Population Growth is a Means of Overcoming Poverty, Not a Cause of It
Do these statements have identical meanings?
First of all, if you are going to accuse me of lying, you should have the good manners to ping me.
Secondly, if you are going to accuse me of lying, you should at least make sure you are right.
YOU are LYING.
I’ll often say “the Pope is right”,
but I’ll never say “the Pope (or the RCC) is infallible”.
LOL! That’s too much. :)
Please, you found one of the most liberal flakes (and flaky “councils”) in the Church to quote. Selective digging can turn up just about anything.
I’m talking about general policy, which has always been pro-human growth and development. Naturally, the Catholic view has always been that man is supposed to be a steward of Creation, the gardener of the Garden, so to speak, but there are many ways to do this, many legitimate approaches and opinions, and none of them involves ZPG (zero population growth).
The link on your original post revealed the following:
Friday December 12, 2008
Pope Against Population Control: “Population Is Proving To Be An Asset, Not A Factor That Contributes To Poverty”
Pope Decries “The extermination of millions of unborn children, in the name of the fight against poverty”
You are an agenda driven religious pragmatist.
Yes, that was a link to a DIFFERENT STORY from over a year ago.
You are an agenda driven religious pragmatist.
Because I'm not okay with you and your ilk murdering a million babies a week?
I got to call the Vatican out on this. They want unlimited immigration to countries that are prosperous leaving the home country with fewer people, who are mostly too poor or feeble to leave. Thus entrenching that country further into poverty.
"agenda driven religious pragmatist."? Someone alert the Admin Mod!
We’re not talking about immigration here, we’re talking about killing babies.
You are the one who posted the link. Careless or intentional?
There is a link with the Catholic Church. They preach about abortion and immigration in the same manner.
First you accuse me of changing the titles to fit my agenda, they you call me a religious pragmatist and now you ask me this.
I posted the story as it was published by LifeSiteNews and left their links intact. They linked to an earlier story that was RELATED, but not the same as this.
It may come as a shock to you, but there is more than one person at the Vatican who speaks in opposition to abortion and this story WAS NOT specifically about what the Pope said. You might have known that, but I doubt you read the article, I'm guessing you just thought, "Oh no, the Vatican is still talking about how it's bad to kill babies, I need to attack the pro-lifers."
That’s fine, find a thread about immigration and complain there. We are talking about population control here.
Do you support population control? YES or NO.
OK. You were careless. I accept that.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.