Is it any wonder that the Church is booming in the Third World?

[Placebo]

I don't mean it as an insult, but is it any mystery why the Church's popularity is booming in areas where:

• The rights of women are rarely recognized, if at all
• Education is lacking & extremely poor
• Overpopulation is out of control
• the list goes on...

But in areas such as Europe and America, the Church is in decline.

Coincidence? I think not.

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Read this article

The Third World is not too happy with the new pope.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=518&ncid=2357&e=12&u=/ap/20050419/ap_on_re_eu/pope_third_world_disappointment

[SemiCharmedQuark]

2. Great article

Thanks :thumbsup:

[amazona]

3. IS it booming in the Third World?

My information is that even worse religions like LDS and extreme fundamentalist sects are getting more and more powerful in formerly all-Catholic nations.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[punpirate]

4. I'm not sure it is...

... exactly booming in the Third World. The defection of traditional Catholics to Protestant evangelical churches, particularly in Latin America, might be an indication that it is not. Despite the suggestion in recent news stories that Catholics world-wide number about a billion, other surveys done in the last few years suggest the number is more like 800 million.

[patrice]

5. I think it was Alan Watts who used to say

The objective of any real church would be to make itself obsolete.

Not that I see Christianity as particularly evolved here. Actually it looks like a failure, given our track record on deciding to kill people for their political affiliatios in various places in the world. Not to mention hatred and discrimination against Gays.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. Just to let you know that the phrase "third world"

is apparently offensive now. See http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=3490196&mesg_id=3490513 and posts around it.