Pope Francis vs. Dalai Lama

[Zioneer]

Thomas S. Monson.

Seriously though, while I am a big fan of the Pope, I'm fairly sure the Dalai Lama is slightly better on a few social issues. Plus, the poor guy can't even live in his own nation/region anymore. The Pope has his own nation.

[Zioneer]

There's actually some really unsavory stuff about the Dalai Lama that doesn't get talked about much, although I'd say I still have a more or less favorable opinion of him overall. What's unsavory about Pope Francis gets much more open discussion. Voted Francis.

If it's about the Lama rule of Tibet, I give the current Dalai Lama a pass on this since he was what, a teenager when the PRC invaded?

If its after that, then please, go on.

[Zioneer]

There's actually some really unsavory stuff about the Dalai Lama that doesn't get talked about much

What in particular?

The Dalai Lama is these days mostly fine in his capacity as a political leader, but in his capacity as a religious leader he is significantly more authoritarian than is sometimes realized, and has actively suppressed theological and devotional movements within Tibetan Buddhism that differ too markedly from his own.

Ah. That's interesting, considering how open to pluralism he has been in political terms (I've heard somewhere that he's officially renounced to most of the political power he would have if Tibet was independent, and would intend to organize it as a liberal democracy).

Yeah, he's much better politically than theologically (I mean within the context of Buddhism, not just from a non-Buddhist perspective), which is (to my mind) the inverse of most popes.

Are you talking about those guys who go to all of his events and protest him? I've heard that their leader is somewhat... cultish, but I haven't heard much more than that.