pope

[Kay]

He passed away peacefully tonight. R.I P.

[netibiza]

 I am not a Catholic but what a wonderful man he was - he will be sorely missed around the world amongst all religions.  God Bless.

[slimfandango]

That's sad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Feels like losing a friend. Not a catholic either, but I guess it's a testament to the guy, the farewell he received. Saw the welsh bbc reporter announce it, looking pretty upset!

He was a nice guy JPII. I met him once and he gave me a big smile and shook my hand with both of his hands! I was holding the photo when I heard he died. RIP.

[colmil]

Whilst no-one likes to see anyone die, when are people going to understand that religion is nothing more than a way of controlling those people who need a mental crutch to make their way though life?
To anyone who believes any of this religious rubbish, I say one thing... Bring me your God so I can speak to him.... I'm waiting,and for a very, very, VERY long time. too!.........
Religion is the cause of all the wars in the world, full stop!

[luckyboy]

Oh yes he was a great pope all right...

Perhaps the greatest...organised religion is not for me, But as an individual he was a truly inspiring figure and that is very rare in this world.R.I.P.

[SC00BY]

I don't mean to be disrespectful but why the sudden interest in the pope. Was everyone this interested when he was alive? No, It might be sad for some but did any of these people actually know him? I agree with colmil, more people have died due to religion than anything else. He may have been inspirational, but then again my dad is inspirational to me!

[netibiza]

Well Scooby I was always interested in the Pope when he was alive - I followed his walking tours and his official visits.  He was just an enthralling type of  person.

[slimfandango]

I am sad and sorry to see this man die, he had such an influential life and was such an inspiration to many, he was gentle and suffered for his faith, and led the church through a very difficult set of times.

This doesn't take away one bit from your point, that what he stands for is not just a crock of poo poo, but obviously so to those who will give it more than just passing scrutiny.

[slimfandango]

Proof #301.

1) People all round the world are mourning the death of this good man who preached the Gospel.

2) If they're all mourning him, it must be because he had a great life, and that life was all dedicated to God.

3) Therefore God exists.

[Pootle]

Should not his dead be more of a celebration? Why all the weeping and crying? If you are a believer, then you know that Pope is not in pain anymore and has gone to heaven and surely that is the ultimate goal for any Christain. He has had a long life, acheived so much so lets have more emphasis on that rather than his physical death.

[Dom Tuk]

few questions regarding the praise heaped on the late pope.

Would he have been a wonderful man if he were not the pope. Are all popes great because of their roles as popes.

have there been any popes who were not great??

[slimfandango]

There have been an awful lot of evil men who have been popes.

JPII would have been a wonderful and quite famous man if he hadn't been pope. He may well have been a voice in moral philosophy and theology and poetry in his own right.

[slimfandango]

Pootle, I think that not even believers have had so much of their humanity sucked out of them that even they cannot be capable of a basic human feeling like grief. If one does not feel the pain of someone's loss then one never cherished them being around.

I wonder if we had superpowers and could see the true and exact impact of Christianity on the world and on people, if we would really be celebrating this man's death, however. But let's leave that discussion for another time.

[smudge]

I am not a Catholic either - but RIP Pope.

[netibiza]

I laud him as a decent man - not because he was the Pope.

[jno]

He did much to oppose the former communist regimes of eastern Europe,and spoke out against war, including specific wars in Iraq and the Falklands. But he said contraception was as bad as genocide (both 'intrinsically evil') and took little action over pedophile priests. Sounds like a very mixed record to me.

[delilahcat]

Sorry to disagree with most of you, but the Pope stood for an evil regime and did nothing to ease people's suffering in the poorest countries of the world. To go to countries where people live in abject poverty and in effect tell them to continue to have children they can't feed and continue to spread AIDS is nothing short of criminal in my opinion. But I have to say I'd expect nothing better from the tyranny masquerading as a force for good that is the Catholic Church.

[luckyboy]

whatever peoples views on religion, and for what its worth i'm a non believer, you have to admire a man who donated his life to his faith and ideals.. billions of people find that inspiring, thats not to say i agree with everything he stood for, but you can respect and admire the man, and be sad for his passing.

 

 

[secretspirit]

I don't want to upset anyone but I really feel that an 84 year old man passing with dignity is not something terrible.

He lived a long time and I only wish that my grandmother who is currently in terrible pain in hospital could have the same peaceful end instead of an existence on drips and painkillers and no awareness of where or who she is.

[luckyboy]

Nobodys saying that its terrible.. and comparing it with the less privilaged suffering of relatives..but you can still be sad can't you?, just as you would be sad if someone like nelson mandela died and just as you was when mother teresa died..or would we be all happy about it.or just indifferent.

[donslot]

I never met him (much my loss).

God Bless JP II.