The Devil Is Amongus

I've come across a lot of criticism being Catholic...well, raised Catholic - baptism, communion and confirmation. The Vatican has announced a new and improved list of deadly sins that, like its predecessor, leads to an eternity in the arms of Lucifer. From the seven, seven more have been implemented to wreak moral havoc on our God-fearing souls.

The original list: Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Wrath, Greed and Sloth.

The new, modern additions: Social Injustice, Pollution, Contraception, Genetic Engineering, Selling Drugs, Abortion and Obscene Wealth.

Pope Benedict XVI, as the 265th reigning spiritual leader of Catholics world wide, has roused archaic infrastructure into metamorphosis. The new body? Something more contemporary, something the kids can relate to. The original sins just weren't treacherous enough or maybe they were just too broad. These new additives are linear and precise - I'm guilty of more than half of them - I'm pretty sure all of America, maybe the entire world, will be going to hell in a basket if these were really the guidelines to which God tallied our worthiness. But isn't it in the very nature of religion, in all of it's man-made delusion, to muddle the intentions of God? The Bible is the greatest story ever told and it is, and always has been, a metaphor. Creationism will never achieve abolition of biology and maybe Adam and Eve were figurative creatures alluding to the human capacity of choice. The inner workings of the Bible are exceedingly exhausting and laden with historical agendas and social reflections. So maybe updating the sins is relevant? This could be true if the addendum didn't attempt to refute societal progression, to a degree of course. Contraception, despite its Eugenic birth, has liberated the female body from continual insemination. Intercourse, to be euphemistic, is both for procreation as well as pleasure - both duly noted in the bible. By condemning contraception the female body is then placed in servitude to perpetual motherhood. But then again, sex should only be practiced by married individuals, ideally with their husband/wife, but how can you expect to take care of an onslaught of babies? Does that mean that married couples shouldn't be having sex either? The reality of our species is not simply of procreation but emotional intuition and acts thereof. The denunciation of contraception is at best socially irresponsible and a reinforcement to stunted sexuality (which you can see with the priests and little altar boys).

These new supplementary and obtuse sins are amusing in their absurdity. By creating sins relevant to a new age the Pope has omitted the very reasoning behind them. Contraception has evolved from sex which evolved STDs. I'll admit that abortion is something I'd rather not touch on simply because I have never been in the situation, and I'm also pro-choice. That decision seems to be more between the person and God rather than the Vatican and a pool of "unworthy" individuals. Pollution, genetic engineering, social injustice, obscene wealth and selling drugs are definitely social issues that have a long, memorable impression on humanity but are they sin worthy? Genetic engineering shouldn't be used to work as the hand of God but instead used to cure the diseases detrimental to humanity...is it not the same with antibiotics or transplants? Especially due to the new discovery of not using embryonic stem cells. Point blank, these sins weren't thought through before released to masses. I'm more inclined to think the obsessively religious will swoon but for the audience they were aiming for, The Vatican should have done a little more research.