The Pope in his Palm Sunday sermon says he won’t be intimidated? I haven’t heard or read anything about intimidation. How about justice, though, Papa? I haven’t seen any tears for all those years and all those children. And then the Vatican’s press machine wants to deflect everything and take care of the Pope by accusing everyone of intimidation. Church leaders should really be the last things on their own minds and our minds. Sounds like the church is as self-protective as ever, and doesn’t understand at all what’s going on.
I was amazed, too, to read, in the German coverage, that only 2% of former East Germans, and 8% of West Germans go to church at all! All of Europe is almost de-churched. And Ireland is so incredibly angry. Sinead O’Connor, who was also abused in a church run institution for wayward kids, has been very on target with her writing. Whereas, in much of America, Catholics go to the church they choose, believing what they choose to believe, and turn off when one of those disgusting cover-up or negative letters from bishop and archbishops is read.
Interesting to watch a powerful institution destroy itself because it refuses to see. It’s actually an excellent case study in organizational behavior. And the pace of destruction is picking up. Maureen Dowd, in the New York Times on Sunday, called for a nope – a nun – to be pope. So that when the next pope is announced, they could say Habemus Mama: We have a pope. Sure sounds good to me!