Not much one can really say about that without going over ground which has been trodden many, many times.
It smacks of desperation just a little though. And someone who perhaps knows their antiquated ideology is on the wane yet is stubbornly resistant to change. The idea of coming to the Almighty's defense by insisting on living in the dark ages is almost comical.
"I'll defend you, God! By... um... living in a cave and thinking lightning is a sign of your fury, O Lord! Yeah, curse the evil of electricity generating power stations, for they are a manipulation of nature! Even though they allow your supposedly chosen representative to wax lyrical about the wrongness of manipulating nature! It's still wrong... somehow! And we need more exclamation points!!!"
I can just imagine God facepalming so hard at this right now.
Much of this could be avoided if the Pope just started his rants with the words "Okay, folks, here's what I personally think..." which is all it mostly amounts to.
The fundamental flaw in a lot of what he says, as far as I can see, and quite aside from the entire Adam and Eve premise itself, is the assumption that when something is created, it has to remain the way it was when it was created and cannot grow and change, learn and become more than it was when it was created. And so shall it ever be etc.
Humans give birth to children, who grow and learn, and adapt, and experience. The human race throughout history is like a child growing up, learning about ourselves, the world and how to exist within it to its, and our full potential. The pope seems to want everyone to stay as children, being told how the world is by a father figure who "knows everything and has to be taken at his word". He assumes that, or likes to believe that God doesn't want his children to grow up and think for themselves. Probably because then there'd be no need for a Pope, who knows.
I fail to see how God would become any less significant to anyone who utilises their self-determination to become their true selves. I mean the evidence of that is clear from our religious members here, who have no less love for, faith in, and belief in God. And nor should they. Being able to do something for yourself doesn't suddenly invalidate the idea of a God. And I suspect in some cases that faith and belief only gets stronger as those folks find the strength to do what needs to be done in spite of overwhelming prejudice and seemingly insurmountable odds. So quite why God needs defending is beyond me. I suspect it's more likely that the Pope's particular brand of doctrine and personal values are what are more in need of defense.
