re: Pope: Fake News "very serious sin"

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Not Christianity. Just Catholicism.

I couldn't tell you who the pope is, who the last few popes were and would, quite frankly, put alot more stock into what Billy Graham said than what any Pope ever said.

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Cafeteria much?

It's easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

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Jesus sure didn’t promote capitalism

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Arguably true. He also didn't promote socialism, or enlightened humanism either. He was clear about Caesar.

Christianity is concerned with the afterlife and voluntarily taking care of your fellow man. Government systems aren't part of the Bible (although they are part of the Torah and Koran)

The sheer number of religious people that don't understand the concept of "the poor" as they are referred to in the Bible is disturbing. Not to get into a big theological debate but "the poor" as they are referred to in the Bible refers to the poor in spirit (i.e the unsaved). While the idea of taking care of the physical and economic "poor" is noble and is certainly encouraged the Bible is far more concerned with provided for the spiritual poor (those that need salvation) even more so than the economic poor. That's not a knock on those that mistakenly think it only refers to the economic poor. It's a common misunderstanding of the Bible among most people regardless of political affiliation.

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It's easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

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Yes but not because being rich is sinful but because those who are rich rely on their wealth and not on God.

There were quite a few wealthy people in the Bible who were godly.

Also, Jesus followed the law and taught obedience to it as well. The law included the understanding and protection of property rights, which is a cornerstone of capitalism.

Jesus didn't promote any particular economic system because that wasn't His focus; His focus was to usher in the kingdom of God through His perfect obedience to the law and sacrificial death for sinners.

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A person can choose to be charitable without having the government forcefully take that charity essentially at gunpoint.

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Taxes were a thing back then. Jesus performed a miracle to pay a tax and He taught that people should pay their taxes.

What He taught about helping others was not in terms of political ideology. He didn't lobby the Roman Senate to get tax dollars allocated to new social programs. No, He taught that individuals should give freely of their own property to help those in need. He taught that charity was admirable, and charity can only be done through willingly giving what you have to those in need, not through forced or coerced taking by another entity for redistribution.

Leftists who are completely ignorant of the Bible usually point to Acts chapters 4 and 5 to prove Communism in the Bible. They say that chapter 4 vv. 32 through 34 show that the early church was full of Communists who didn't own any possessions and that everyone was cared for, so therefore it provides a blueprint for what the government should do for us. What they ignore is that the Christians in chapter 4 were not coerced into giving by the Apostles or the government. Instead, "[they] were of one heart and soul" and cared for one another to the point that they would gladly sacrifice their own wants and desires for the other needy Christians (this is another point to consider: Christians were helping other Christians in this case, not just giving their money out to just any poor person).

Not only that, but those who had [extra] lands (property rights/ownership) sold them to help their brothers and sisters in the faith who were in need. This is the very definition of charity, where people are giving freely of what they own in order to help others in need. As soon as the government comes in and removes your property by force, it's no longer charity.

The Communists then move on to the next chapter (5) to further prove that God is also Communist (and therefore Christians should be also) through the example of Ananias and Sapphira. The claim is that this husband and wife were killed by God for not giving up what they had to help others (they sold some land like others did in chapter 4 but instead of bringing all the money to help others, they only brought some of it and held back the rest for themselves). The implication is that God wants us to be devoid of personal possessions and wealth so that others may be taken care of.

What they ignore are two things:

1) Peter says exactly why they were being punished in v. 3: "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?", and also in v. 4: "You have not lied to man but to God.” They were punished for lying to God by trying to deceive the apostles with their partial gift.

Others were selling their lands for the purpose of giving all of the proceeds to charity for the Church and Ananias and Sapphira were trying to make it look like they were doing the same in order to get glory for themselves while keeping some money back after making it appear that they gave all. They were punished for their deception, not for only giving some of the money, which brings us to the second point.

2) The "Christian Communist" pushers also ignore what Peter tells Ananias, namely that his lands belong to him and the money that he received for selling his land belonged to him: "While [the land] remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal?" (v. 4) Peter is saying that Ananias was under no compulsion to get rid of his land or to give money to the Church. The land and its subsequent value were his to do with as he pleased. It sin wasn't in holding back his possessions or his money, but his deception. Instead of supporting Communism, this passage confirms property rights and the goodness of charity.

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You have pretty much only posted on PB in 2017.

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Because the entertainment value here is second to none.

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Jesus sure didn’t promote capitalism.

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What did he promote?

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They don't espouse his Socialist narrative



Jesus sure didn’t promote capitalism.

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I wouldn't say he promoted it but he did say: give unto Caesar what is Caesar's......