Vote Jim Wallis for POPE '08!!

Despite my confirmation at the age of fifteen, I feel like I'm just barely grasping what it IS to be a Catholic in this day and age. It's difficult, coming to terms with my own faith, especially when surrounded by countless atheist and agnostic friends. It also gets confusing when the Pope comes out against certain issues that I'm very passionate about. That being said, I was almost sick to my stomach after I read a few passages from the Pope's new book, "Memory and Identity." He said that gay marriages are part of a "new ideology of evil," and equated abortions with the Holocaust. He warns that evil lurks within "liberal political systems." Can I be a Catholic if I reject the writings of John Paul II? I'd like to think so. The heart of the Catholic tradition should not be one set of rules that every person of faith must adhere to, but rather a living testament to the life of Christ. There shouldn't be spiritual narrowness that focuses on singling people out for their beliefs and partner-preference. I like the idea of the Catholic church being that of inclusive generosity and universality, NOT a sectarian institution that shuts people out.

OUTWITTED by: Edwin Markham (1852 - 1940) They drew a circle that shut me out Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But love and I had the wit to win We drew a circle that took them in.