The Pope & Kim Davis, Jesus & Caesar
by Primo Encarnación y Hachecristo
There are a lot of things I agree with Pope Francis on. There are a lot of things I disagree with Pope Francis on. This was not always so. As a child, in Catholic school, I accepted the Catholic version of reality with unquestioning loyalty and faith. That lasted until I found out that there was more to that thing down there than just peeing. Suddenly, the Pope (Paul VI, at the time) and I had a parting of the ways.
The rift has only grown over time.
That rift has narrowed of late, not because underlying Catholic dogma has suddenly been rewritten, but because the emphasis of the Church has shifted. Francis has decided to lead by example instead of by fiat, himself following the example of the Gospels instead of the generations of misogynistic power mongers who have turned the red meat of Jesus’ message into pre-cooked kosher hotdogmas, suitable for re-heating in the pulpit every Sunday.
Feeding the poor, caring for the sick, nurturing our planet – none of these are new concepts. They never went away, they just got drowned out by the power-politics of sexuality. By that same token, the institutionalized misogyny and the outlandish concept that “spilling the seed” is a mortal sin, rather than a really fun, non-prescription relaxant, have not gone away. They’re still there, just – how shall I put it? – in the closet?
Which brings us to Kim Davis. Oh, BOY! Do the Pope and I disagree on this one. On the surface it would seem that this comes down to a classic case of Church/State dichotomy, and that the two positions are irreconcilable. An open, pluralistic society rooted in the concept of basic universal human rights will inevitably come into conflict with any religion hell-bent on being hell-bent. Or does it?
Let’s play in Kim’s ballpark: I am put in mind of the fable where Jesus, is asked about paying taxes. He asks to see the coin used to pay the tax, and demands to know whose image and inscription appear on the coin. On being informed that they are Caesar’s, he avoids the trap being set for him by saying “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s but render unto God that which is God’s.”
This is the Christological answer to the Kim Davis dilemma. Davis, for just about ALL of her adult life, has taken Caesar’s coin, first as a deputy to her mother’s multi-decade reign as clerk, then as clerk in her own right, where each and every year she collects $80,000 worth of Caesar’s coins, some of which she duly renders back to Caesar. But there is something else which Caesar owns, which by Jesus’ own words should be rendered: her job. Her job is not God’s. Her job belongs to the State. By taking Caesar’s coin and not doing the job Caesar expects in return, she is stealing Caesar’s money.
Now we come to the part of the discussion that Jesuits like Francis love: the lesser of two (well, three) evils. Not everything is black and white, and this issue, in fact, is about 50 shades of gay. Which, my friends, is the greater evil? To steal Caesar’s money holding a job – which apparently she considers to be a family sinecure – that she has no intention of doing to Caesar’s liking? Or to do the job she was hired to do and hand out civil marriage licenses to people her private religion tells her should not be married and, in fact, should be murdered, instead? Or to QUIT the job over a matter of principle, keeping what little-remaining virtue she possesses intact?
Jesus has an answer for that, too: “If thy eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it away.” If you can’t in good conscience do your job, then quit your job. No one is expected to stay in a job which endangers their soul. By that same token, Jesus makes it quite clear in these two passages that he doesn’t expect you to bend others’ circumstances to suit your own needs, but rather – however painful it may be – to bend yourself.
I suggest Kim Davis get bent.
Primo: Game, set, match.
1Davis: Please leave the court.
Charles P.Pierce on the Esquire political blog had a good possible explanation for this mishap. She was hustled in, he didn’t know her, bishop getting the Pope in a bind. I don’t know what happened but that seems possible. If so, I hope the Pope has that bishop for breakfast. Go read it. CPP has no patience with the church doing the terrible things that were done to children and he is not a fool.
2Yes, indeed…..the doggone richest “past” sinner in her county….the Pope was barn
3swaggled by some vile current sinners…..is it perhaps our faithful Koch Bros?
Sadly Kimmie-poo ain’t going nowhere. Her momma was Clerk, maybe her momma’s momma was Clerk and her idiot son is gonna be Clerk when Kimmie is too old to clerk. The family thinks its a birthright and as long as the voters are as simple-minded in that County as they seem to be Kimmie’s family will continue to hold sway. I hate that it’s that way but it is.
4And now you know why “Cafeteria Catholics” is such a common but not identified denomination. I too went to Catholic school and tried to warn my progressive friends about some of the other things the Pope wasn’t talking about, yes there is an improvement there but the basic Patriarchy is still there. It’s pervasive thoughout all cultures, except Amazon ones, of course.
5It’s to be expected, no suprises here, but keep in mind there is still improvement and Rome wasn’t built in a day.
BTW, most of the Cafeteria Catholics I know were educated in parochial schools, so don’t be afraid of how the children of Evangelicals are raised, they will rebel sooner or later as reality hits.
YES. Exactly what I’ve been saying (including to Kim Davis in an email) since this mess started.
6I do like it when Bible-thumpers are refuted by their own book, not that it ever really works because they ignore those parts.
Primo probably knows that “get bent” is a milder British version of “bugger off,” and that “bent” has been used as a synonym for “gay”….
7There is no description for Ms. Davis, except RUDE. She is free to practice her bigotry in her place of worship. However, when she steps outside those confines, she needs to learn to treat everyone with dignity. There is no dogma that excuses her horrid treatment of our LGBT friends. Being a ‘witch’ is neither conviction nor principle.
8Thank you, Juanita Jean. This is precisely what I’ve been spreading, too; even the same scriptures!
9I think our thanks for articulating his position on the Kim Davis and the Pope situation must go to daChipster, who takes on the alter ego of Primo Encarnation y Hachecristo when Juanita Jean gives him the keys to the salon.
10I’m not so sure the Pope told her to “stay strong”, but sure wish he had not met with her. It throws doubt on his policy of inclusion.
John 23rd shocked the socks off of people when he personally visited the men’s prison and actually smoked cigs with the prisoners, some of whom were the most dastardly on record. If somebody snookered Paco, they will pay for it cuz all he got out of it was proof that this country is still capable for putting on a random freak show. Now that was bordering on mean as second skimming to say that about Kim Davis. I will be the first to admit it. Let me look at it all a bit differently. Pack personally embraces handicapped people that others find miles past disgusting in appearance or behavior or both. If you consider Davis’s unloving behavior and grasp on money a handicap, this could have come close to one of those “embraces”. The fact that she came away with a rosary tells me that she and whoever popped this situation on the Pope really shouldn’t be all that gratified. Now a photograph with His Holiness . . . that would have been the total max! I even wonder if Paco wanted desperately to wash his hands after such exposure.
11Paco, not pack. Spellcheck is no friend of mine.
12It’s really a crying shamel that the Pope, whether by his choice or because of the actions of others, met with Miz Davis. There are undoubtedly thousands of faithful, good and true Catholics in the US who would have given anything to have had an opportunity to spend a minute with the Pope. That action by the Pope has wiped out much of the good thoughts many of us non-Catholics were having about him.
13We don’t know what he said. We know what SHE says. For all we know, he said, “if you cannot do your job in good conscience, you ought to resign. But I am sure God will have another door open for you. You must stay strong!” And in the time honored misquoting fashion of bible thumpers and holy rollers, we got “the pope told me to stay strong!!”
14I’m sure we’ll find out all about it when Kim’s book and then the movie of her life come out, starring Roma Downey as Kim and Mel Gibson as her husband. (Wonder if he’ll wear the overalls.)
15I’ve read from several sources, including Religious News Service, that there’s quite likely nothing to this. Many people were lined up by local bishops to have a quick meet and greet with Francisco. That includes big donors the local patriarchs want to kiss up to. Ms. Davis was part of the stream. Of course her religious zealot pals are trying to make much of it. I’m not buying it.
16Thank you. As a non-believer, I still hold a great respect for religion and the role it plays in the lives of the people who do believe, when they actually live the life their scripture instructs them. You have exactly pinpointed Davis’ departure from following her faith in that she takes the coin of Caesar and profits by it and then uses her position to impose her personal faith on others. She did not invent the marriage license, she is the provider and should not have the right to inflict her own opinion on how it should it be used. She has, by law, and in my opinion, not done her job. I am disappointed that Pope Francis spoiled the last day of his otherwise inspirational sojourn here by offering her support in this way. In that he did what he said he would not do, and be political.
17I suggest both Davis and the Pope grow up. Soon.
18There is a great article on this written by a Mennonite over at Think Progress, it’s worth a read:
19http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2015/09/11/3700174/religious-accommodation-work/
Read Charlie pierce at esquire.
20Thank you for saying this, Aggieland Liz — I agree.
21I would doubt if the Pope would even remember her if not for the hub bub created by the media. It’s true the Pope met and greeted 1000s of people during his visit not all of them catholic as I think Kim Davis is not, and probably many of them not christian. Most all of them received a rosary as a token of affection. It really does not matter what she said to the Pope or what the Pope said to her…….This to shall pass.
What probably does matter is if this an instance where the Supreme Court has rendered a decision that makes logical sense under the equal protection clause, but places and does not resolve the issue of freedom of religion vice citizens forced to performs acts they find their religious beliefs oppose. Just who is Ceaser here and which of the Ceaser are we discussing. Could it be Caligula? LOL.
22Here is a link to Pierce’s article in Esquire. It’s a good read and sounds reasonable to me, but we’ll probably never know. It is certainly possible some of the priests wanted to make the Pope look bad.
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a38440/pope-francis-swindled-kim-davis-meeting/
23June, thanks for putting up the link to Mr. Pierce’s article. I just don’t know how to do that.
24Deb – Thanks for that article. It was spot on.
25I’m with Aggieland Liz on this one. I personally wouldn’t believe one damned thing Kim Davis has to say. Like so many of her kind, she tends to make up stuff to fit whatever moral stance she wants to take at the time. I sincerely doubt the Pope knew anything about her.
Also, thank you, Primo. An excellent article again!
26I think that Kim Davis and her attorney are going for the book, the movie, and the big bucks however they have to go to get all of it. Misleading the public about a fantasy interview with the Holy Father is just another tool for making money. I don’t think it happened the way it is described by Ms. Davis. I am not an active Catholic, but I do know a bit about the Jesuits, and I just don’t think Kim Davis’s moment with Pope Francis went down the way she tells it. We may never know, but it has not shaken my happiness with the speech he gave to Congress or my belief in the nature of the man who gave that speech.
27Finally! Word from the Vatican that Paco did not meet privately with Davis. She and her lawyer were part of an informal crowd. This sort of experience is part and parcel of routine. Davis did not get anything any more special out of it than the others did. Now how exactly she got to be part of that crowd is another question that I would like answered. And who else was in the room with her.
28I have heard other apostolic fringers call the Pope the Anti-Christ. Of course I have heard that same groups label President Obama as the Anti-Christ. There must be many Anti-Christs in their tiny, tiny brains.
For those into sci-fi you will understand that when I hear these people talk and see them gesticulate I think Daleks. Exterminate! Exterminate!
29Just as i said earlier today, Davis did not get her star time with the Pontiff. Instead – and this should tell her everything she never wanted to know – he spent quality time with a gay couple, one of whom he has known for years!
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