A Narrow Focus

Often, when people focus on contraception, abortion and gay issues, they are coming out of a moral tradition of individual sins that should be avoided in order to be good.  E.g. don't do certin sex things and you are good.  Moreover, in this tradition, people who do these things are bad, and should be condemned and excluded from the "acceptable group," who can of course receive communion, go to heaven, and so on.  Much is missing from this tradition.  There is nothing about the common good, mercy, love, a community of imperfect people striving for social justice, equality, helping the poor.  The so-called conservatives who focus on the sex stuff, generally are not at all concerned about social justice, or the common good.  Their morality is all private.  It is about avoiding certain "sins" and then God has got to take you to heaven, while you are meanwhile in the good graces of the church hierarchy.  I don't think they are very happy with the current Pope.