The Death of Pope Francis

 

Pope Francis has died at the age of 88. Under his leadership there was an attempt at making reforms to the Catholic Church. Pope Francis spoke about the need to take climate change seriously, compassion for refugees, and advocated acceptance of LGBTQ individuals. The question remains whether these were genuine changes in thought or had ulterior motives in mind. The real purpose of these positions and reforms are designed to keep the Catholic Church relevant. The youth are not going to be as religious as older generations. Overtime, organized religion could lose influence. The positions that Pope Francis took were about trying to recruit younger members to the Catholic Church. The problem is that tradition and social conservatism is not appealing to the vast majority of the public. Pope Francis did not approve of same sex marriage, abortion, or ordaining women as priests. Social conservatism remains a part of the papacy's worldview, even though some modest liberal reforms are experimented with. The mythical image of Pope Francis is a champion of leftist thought and humanitarianism. His convictions could not be classified as liberation theology. Just like other popes, Francis did little to stop the extensive sexual abuse of children in the Catholic Church. Failure to acknowledge women's reproductive rights or stopping criminal action undermines the claim of a humanitarian pope. Pope Francis was elected pope in 2013. The 11 years of modest reform could possibly be reversed. The Pope Francis era has come to an end and the Vatican will see a new administration.    

J. Robert Oppenheimer Discusses The Use Of Nuclear Weapons (1965)

 

J. Robert Oppenheimer did have regrets about the creation of nuclear weapons. At the time, it was thought it was the fastest way to end World War II. The ethics of killing Japanese civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki continues to be debated amongst historians. Large investments were made in building the atomic bomb, so at some point was going to be used. It was an estimated 2 billion dollars.  Using such a weapon was also a means of threatening the Soviet Union. Oppenheimer does not hide the fact that all scientists had different opinions about the project and nuclear weapons. Some hoped that the war would be over before the atomic bomb was completed. The hope it was not going to used in a war. J. Robert Oppenheimer understood the world would not be the same and that the use of  atomic energy posed risks. His efforts at regulation of atomic energy was met with resistance. He was a victim of the anti-communist witch hunts in the early 1950s. As a result he lost his security clearance and was no longer allowed to work in US government. Nine countries have nuclear weapons in the world today. The technology will spread and it makes J. Robert Oppenheimer's arguments about atomic energy regulation more relevant.