Paragraph 67

Pope Benedict XVI has published his first social encyclical, which was presented at a Vatican press conference on the morning of July 7, 2009 zenit.org. The presentation was made by Cardinal Paul Josef Cordes, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, and Stefano Zamagni, professor of political economy at the University of Bologna, Italy, and consultor of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. The encyclical was then released to the public at noon on July 7, suspiciously just one day before the the G-8 international summit was to begin in L'Aquila, Italy.

The official title of the document is "Encyclical Letter CARITAS IN VERITATE of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI to the Bishops, Priests and Deacons, Men and Women Religious, the Lay Faithful, and All People of Good Will, on INTEGRAL HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN CHARITY AND TRUTH" www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents.

The encyclical is mainly devoted to urging a united world to solve the problems of poverty, injustice, terrorism, starvation, racism, etc. on a global level. It is masterfully written, and in compelling in numerous ways. After all, who would want to be found as opposing "integral human development"?

But it is mainly Paragraph 67 that causes the hairs of Bible-believers (Revelation 13:7-8, 16-17) to stand. This paragraph suggests the means by which these global problems will have to be solved. Look at these quotes from Paragraph 67 carefully . . .

"In the face of the unrelenting growth of global interdependence, there is a strongly felt need, even in the midst of a global recession, for a reform of the UNITED NATIONS ORGANIZATION, and likewise of ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS OF GLOBAL FINANCE, so that the concept of the family of nations can acquire real teeth."

"TO MANAGE THE GLOBAL ECONOMY; TO REVIVE ECONOMIES HIT BY THE CRISIS; TO AVOID ANY DETERIORATION OF THE PRESENT CRISIS AND THE GREATER IMBALANCES THAT WOULD RESULT; TO BRING ABOUT INTEGRAL AND TIMELY DISARMAMENT, FOOD SECURITY AND PEACE; TO GUARANTEE THE PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND TO REGULATE MIGRATION: FOR ALL THIS, THERE IS THE URGENT NEED OF A TRUE WORLD POLITICAL AUTHORITY . . ."

"Furthermore, such an authority would need to be universally recognized and to be vested with with the effective power to ensure security for all, regard for justice, and respect for rights. Obviously it would have to have the authority to ensure compliance with its decisions from all parties, and also with the coordinated measures adopted in various international forums. Without this, despite the great progress accomplished in various sectors, international law would risk being conditioned by the balance of power among the strongest nations. The integral development of peoples and international cooperation require the establishment of a greater degree of international ordering, marked by subsidiarity, for the management of globalization. They also require the construction of a social order that at last conforms to the moral order, to the interconnection between moral and social spheres, and to the link between politics and the economic and the civil spheres, as envisaged by the Charter of the United Nations."

Now, I encourage readers to check out the entire encyclical for themselves. Defenders of the Pope have already tried to point out that he is not calling for a one-world-political-authority, but is in fact against it www.lifesitenews.com. All I can say, is that when I read the document I surely see the Pope calling for "A TRUE WORLD POLITICAL AUTHORITY".