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Comment Policy

OnePeterFive exists as a forum for Catholic thought and discourse. The ability to comment here is a courtesy we extend to our guests, and it is a courtesy we reserve the right to rescind at our discretion.

We prefer to moderate with a light touch and facilitate a free exchange of ideas. Not every commenter is going to be right. Some will be quite obviously wrong. The discussion between those who have a more correct understanding and those who are in error has the potential to shape opinion and lead all involved — including the thousands who read but do not participate in the comment boxes — to better form their understanding of the truth, and our faith.

As such, the fact that a comment is allowed to stay in our comments area does not signify our endorsement of that comment. Sometimes, we allow certain comments to remain — even those containing error, uncharity, or heterodoxy — in order to help build a larger conversation that may aid those involved in attaining a more complete understanding of the truth of the issue under discussion.

Winston_Churchill

The Rules

We want to host a constructive, civil discussion where people can discuss topics freely in an atmosphere of mutual respect. With that in mind, these are the rules of engagement for participation in our comment boxes:

1. Refrain from personal attacks and insults; focus your response on the argument, not the individual. Do not insult 1P5 staff or writers. 

2. Do not post any messages or materials that are illegal, libelous, or defamatory.

3. Within reason, stick to the topic of the thread; please do not hijack or derail the conversation.

4. Do not post commercial or promotional material.

5. Encouraging or threatening violence against anyone will not be tolerated.

6. Persistently advocating for unorthodox positions (ie., sedevacantism, the falsity of Catholicism, outright denials of doctrines or dogmas, etc.) will not be tolerated. 

7. Unless your name begins with “pope”, don’t declare anyone else whose name begins with pope an antipope. This is not your job. We allow reasonable and prudent speculation about the confusing nature of the two living popes, but definitive, declarative statements of such and/or accusations that others must reach the same conclusion are not welcome.

8. Trolling/arguing/being a sophist in the comment box without contributing in a meaningful way to the discussion will not be tolerated.

9. If you don’t agree with these rules, don’t participate.

In an attempt to create an environment where all readers feel comfortable taking part in a productive discussion, we will remove any comment that violates the rules or in our judgment detracts from a productive discussion. Exceptions will be made solely at moderator discretion. Repeated violations of the rules will result in the offending party being banned.

Because we cannot get to every comment, we ask our readers to help enforce our policy by flagging comments they deem offensive. This alerts comment moderators with a notification and a direct link to the offending comment. It’s as easy to flag a comment as clicking the flag icon to the top right of the comment itself:

Please help us keep the discussion fruitful here at 1P5.

Thank you,

The Management

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