I think it is more important to care what God says about it in His Book.
Let’s have a vote. All in favor, say “Aye!”...
Joel Osteen? What the heck!?! He's not even sure Jesus is the only way to Heaven!
How about Billy Graham? Is he on the list?
Blind leading the blind if those are his choices.
I would like to present a little history behind the problem of the muslims and their unwillingness to dialogue, which should clarify what the Francis is doing right now.
About the time the West discovered Aristotle's Ethics and Politics in the twelfth century, Islam had reached it's peak. The top imams at the time decided that Islam would no longer use the elements of philosophy which had been their strong suit for 500 years. So in began their decline when they rejected all that they had been able to glean from the Greek philosophers. In other words they left the dialogue.
The West then took all that the Greek civilization had and entered into the Renaissance with rather amazing results. The West left the muslims in the dust.
So, when Pope Benedict spoke at Regensburg and got lambasted by the muslims, he was only trying to invite them back to the dialogue they dismissed in the 12th century.
It is important to dialogue. Each side benefits from knowing what they all have in common.
John Paul used to have similar meetings which were roundly criticized by conservatives. But, he did it for the very reason to open up dialogue with all groups, not because he wanted to move the Church to a different religion.
Anglicans Michael Nazir-Ali and Nicholas Okoh are also solid on marriage, in contrast to the majority of revisionist Anglicans and Episcopalians.
I think there is something to be gained by this. In addition to accurately defining marriage and delineating its moral structure, it’s essential for Christians and well-intentioned leaders in other religions to find ways to “sell” marriage.
Societies do not work out well when natural families are not initiated, grown, and sustained, or “What’s this we have now?” An individual or group can be 100% right about marriage, straight down the line In God’s Will ... but cultures are going to crash anyway unless they can persuade others that this “marriage” thingie is good for them.
I wish them all a very productive meeting.
Isn’t this meeting a little premature?
Francis has already stated that he and his fellow [Catholic] bishops have a year to mature on their own understanding of such things as the indissolubly of the Sacrament of Marriage or the sins of sodomy or heterosexual cohabitation.
Is he now bringing in the non-Catholics to help us Catholics in our maturation process?