Posted on 08/28/2002 9:15:06 AM PDT by NYer
Dick Burchell spoke for many when he admitted, ``My senses have been dulled.''
A longtime reader, the 58-year-old New Hampshire Realtor called here yesterday to vent, acknowledging, ``I am not enamored by most of your columns on the Catholic Church.''
``You're not alone,'' he was assured.
The timing of his call was significant, coming in the throes of the vilest affront yet to Catholicism, that sexual tryst in the middle of a Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, promoted by radio renegades and eagerly sponsored by Boston Beer baron Jim Koch.
We'll get to Burchell's reaction in a moment.
But what about Protestant, Jewish and Muslim leaders? What are their reactions? What's keeping them so tight-lipped?
Not that an extra dimension was needed to underscore the depravity of what took place, but it surely wasn't coincidental that it happened on Aug. 15, the Feast of the Assumption, one of six holy days of obligation in the Catholic Church, assuring the sacrilege would be witnessed by a maximum number of parishioners.
Do you suppose Koch, who bantered throughout the live broadcast, would have found it just as hilarious if those contestants had been encouraged to cavort in a synagogue on Yom Kippur, or in a black church on Martin Luther King Day?
Would that have amused him, too?
If not, why not?
When a temple is defaced, or an inner-city church damaged, or a mosque threatened, media and government waste no time professing indignation and demanding accountability.
Is what happened in the pews at St. Patrick's Cathedral any less intolerable?
Burchell, a father of five, the youngest of whom is serving with our armed forces in Afghanistan, remembers an earlier time in his life when he was more inclined to get involved, write letters, speak out.
``But then, I got away from theorizing,'' he said. ``I began to realize life was going by, that it was time to start accomplishing things for myself and my family, and if the rest of the world was going to hell in a handbasket, well, that was too bad, but I had to pursue my agenda.''
Lately, however, the news of the day has reawakened a restlessness that prompted him to call.
``For the first time in many years,'' he explained, ``I feel moved to put my pen on paper and express how I feel. I could fax those feelings to you in a tidy, time-efficient manner.''
``Forget the fax,'' he was told. ``Just talk.''
``Well, I despise popular culture. Take a look at any newsstand and you'll understand why. Our society is saturated with so much junk that it's almost hard to take personal offense anymore. It's not that I'm shrugging my shoulders; it's just that my senses have been dulled.
``So I see this thing that happened in New York as a logical extreme of where we're heading. Sure, I wonder what kind of people we're talking about here, but I also feel a lack of surprise. Do you know what I mean? I view it as more of the same.''
But this was not the same.
Indeed, this was the most brazen blasphemy yet, the ultimate display of contempt for Catholicism, and for what?
To sell more Sam Adams beer by drawing attention to the desecration of the pre-eminent church in New York.
At least Jim Koch had an excuse, albeit no defense; he's a bottom-line businessman who understands the Almighty Dollar has no conscience, that there's money to be made in vulgarity, especially in peddling it to a youthful audience.
There is, however, no excuse for the silence of those, especially leaders of other faiths, who should have been the quickest to condemn his venality as well as the abdication of responsibility by radio executives who looked the other way.
It's simple: There are times when neutrality is not an option, times when you're either part of the problem or you're part of the solution, and this is very definitely one of those times.
``I'm just a middle-of-the-road guy,'' Burchell said, ``living in a morally ambiguous world where there are many shades of gray. It isn't that I'm not indignant, but how do you change society? Where do you start?''
``You already have,'' he was told, ``just by making this call.''
It's open season on the catholic church and the media are savoring each and every story.
This proves my point.
Exactly. The Catholic Church is just the first though. The offensive views of being Pro Life, calling homosexuality a sin, and not ordaining women as well as being resistant to parishioner to clergy governance is unacceptable to the liberal media. Now that “Operation Trojan Horse” by the homosexuals has begun, there’s a crack in the armor. Time to attack!
Sadly, many Christians and Conservatives have seen this as a chance to pile on as well. Little do they realize, they’re next on the liberal’s agenda.
Owl_Eagle
”Guns Before Butter.”
Yawn, may those who eat your hypocritical tripe enjoy the seeds of liberal jihad in churches..... (hint: they would have never dared do that in mosque .... full of pedophiles)
No, the hypocrisy is the the way the Catholic Church chose to protect their pervert preists rather than those who put their faith in them. A couple of jerks screwing in a church won't damage the church. Hundreds of pedophile preists and the church's denial and protection of them has damaged them beyond anything the Catholic bashers ever could.
So a couple of perverts touting the benefits of having sex in your house despite your express rules against such behavior is OK? You guys are the freaking hypocrits.
As for the pedophile scandal, don't you think this radio show is actualy encouraging illicit sex? That's another hypocrisy, blaming the church, yet proselytising it into illicit sex.
Secondly the church is not going on the airwaves unappologeticaly preaching. Even if the church's contrition about the inquisition, crusades, treatment of Jews and pedophiles is too small according to some, at least it is not boasting pride in such perversion and abuse as these evil radio show people are doing.
If America want their bedrooms safe from commies, I suggest America to rething its consumerism gone so unappologetic we even let jihadesque radio hosts stream around their fantasies in churches.
Maybe you should read what I actually said. I never said that was OK. What I said was it won't do damage to the curch, whereas pedophille priests and the coverup by the bishops have done tremendous harm to both the church and those who put their faith in them.
Like I said, those guys ar a couple of jerks, but the church and their knee-jerk defenders need to get their priorities straight.
I'm a devout Catholic, and I'm with you 100% on this. The sex act at St. Patrick's was disgusting and highly offensive. The homosexual teenage boy/priest rape scandal in the Church is just pure evil.
You're right.
Seems that way to me too, given that the protagonists were fired, their show cancelled, and the sponsor has had to issue a (rather inadequate, IMHO) public apology. It may be that the author wrote this before those events unfolded, or it may be that he finds it more convenient to pretend that there's been no outrage for some reason. But there certainly has.
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