As a non-Catholic, I am a partial owner of the Pope\u2019s institution, the Catholic Church. You see, in the country where I live, the United States, and many other countries as well, the Church receives enormous tax breaks because it is considered to be a non-for-profit organization. So in order for governments to try to raise sufficient revenue to cover their expenses, each of us must pay additional taxes to make up for the shortfall that occurs as a result of the tax breaks given to the Catholic church, as well as many other religious organizations.<\/p>\n

In the United States, and certainly in other countries, the changing of the guard for a Pope is treated by the mainstream media as a story of universal interest. It may be because the Catholic Church is one of the largest religious denominations in the country, because it is rich in history and pageantry, and because it mandates positions on numerous public issues, positions that those in its flock may or may not choose to follow.<\/p>\n

When a new Pope is chosen, mainstream media interviews countless Catholics. The interviewees may be \u201cordinary Catholics,\u201d priests, nuns, bishops, arch-bishops, or cardinals. Invariably they express their joy over the selection of the new titular head of the Church and send their best wishes and prayers.<\/p>\n

But what about those of us in the three-quarters of the U.S. population who are not Catholic? Is the media at all interested in what we have to say? Apparently not, because we seem to never be interviewed. Yet we have thoughts about the Pope, and quite frankly it is important for others to hear what we have to say. Many of us think that the postulates of the Catholic Church are not particularly fact-laden, and the stories that form the basis of its theology seem a bit out of science fiction.<\/p>\n

So just to go on the record, I\u2019m going to interview myself about what I think of the selection of Pope Francis.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What do you think of the election of Pope Francis?<\/p>\n

A:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He looks younger than his age. Perhaps he\u2019s more attuned to the world as it is in 2013 than how it was two millennia ago.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Is there anything that he has said or done that particularly impresses you?<\/p>\n

A:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Yes. He\u2019s expressed a real commitment to helping the world\u2019s poor and he is comfortable living a modest lifestyle. If there was a person named Jesus and he truly cared for the poor, then Pope Francis is a good spokesperson. I don\u2019t get the thing about washing other people\u2019s feet, but if you\u2019re going to do it, then the fact that he included women, one of whom is a Muslim, reveals a true sense of fairness. I know that pissed off some of his conservative followers, but that just seems to make it more impressive.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What about the fact that he is ardently opposed to a woman\u2019s right to choose and has said nothing in support of LGBT rights?<\/p>\n

A:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He\u2019s the. pope. There\u2019s only so much that we can hope to get from him.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You purport to be an agnostic. Through that lens, how do you feel about the pope?<\/p>\n

A:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 To me the Catholic Church has always been a curiosity. Like other religions,\u00a0 Catholicism seems to have some very peculiar beliefs and rituals. It strikes me that its connection with reason and logic is primarily coincidental. I don\u2019t understand why those who want to reform the Church don\u2019t simply leave and either join another religious community where they are comfortable, start their own religion, or bag religion altogether.<\/p>\n

Q:<\/b>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Um, I think that I\u2019m going to have to stop this interview; your most recent pronouncements are so out of touch with the beliefs of our mainstream audience that I have to pull the plug.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m truly sorry that the mainstream media has such an aversion to hearing from non-religious people about religious, or better yet, spiritual, matters. If agnostics and atheists received more coverage, perhaps we could provide some needed fresh perspectives to our collective body of knowledge. And perhaps we could provide some laughs for Catholics and other seriously religious people. I don\u2019t know this pope, but I think that he might have to get a new set of friends to have some good laughs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As a non-Catholic, I am a partial owner of the Pope\u2019s institution, the Catholic Church. You see, in the country where I live, the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23385,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[255,1868,172,476,384,1651,96],"tags":[1919,1918,1917],"yoast_head":"\n