What I Told the Bishops

Wall Street Journal ^ | Sept 15, 2003 | Peggy Noonan

[polemikos]

A week ago today Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of Washington, Bishop Wilton Gregory, the head of the U.S. Catholic Bishops Council, and a handful of bishops met in Washington with a few dozen Catholic laymen to discuss the future of the church. The official name of the conference was "A Meeting in Support of the Church," but everyone knew the context.

[old and tired]

All I was getting at is that Amtrak is cheap and convenient from DC to NYC

I'll bet she didn't pay a dime and was able to use frequent flyer miles. She probably had enough to bump herself up to first class.

When you're talking to McCarrick, I think the point of living like a normal person is valid. The guy is nothing but a schmoozer, and he likes the finer things. I think Peggy is speaking as a New Yorker, especially when she talks about the subway and rent control. Neither of those things apply to Philly.

When McCarrick was in Metuchen, he really did need a car to get around. But the limo and the driver were overdone. Although the way he did everything in Metuchen left such a bitter taste in my mouth, I don't really have anything good to say about the man.

[Hermann the Cherusker]

Was he from Metuchen? He was one of those who played "Rent-a-Church" with his Cathedral, and let the Lutheran and Episcopal heretics use it for "ordinations".

[Hermann the Cherusker]

I'm surprised that Peggy was so pedestrian in her comments to the Bishops.

I'm not. What she said is exactly what I'd expect of her. No red meat.

[Desdemona]

I'm not sure Peggy always thinks things through. She's part of the whole image making machine of the media. On one hand, yes, she has a point, that there should be less glitz for its own sake, but at the same time, there is a lot she glosses over and doesn't take into account.

It's a little frustrating.

[Varda]

" So, we are demoralized. But there is help. I spoke of the scene in Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion,"...

Thanks for posting this article. God works in mysterious ways. Someone at the Vatican thinks the clergy needs to see this film too.


VATICAN OFFICIAL ENDORSES "THE PASSION"

Irondale, Sept. 14 (EWTNews) Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, the top Vatican official in charge of the Congregation for the Clergy has given his endorsement to Mel Gibson's upcoming film, "The Passion", putting to rest speculation that the film in any way distorts Catholic teaching. Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, after viewing the film, granted an interview to Italian reporter Antonio Gaspari.
In an excerpt from the interview obtained by EWTNews, the Cardinal said "I would like all our Catholic priests throughout the world to see this film. I hope all Christians will be able to see it, and all people everywhere." He described the film as "...a triumph of art and faith. It will be a tool for explaining the person and message of Christ. I am confident that it will change for the better everyone who sees it, both Christians and non-Christians alike." Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos disputes any notion that the film is in any way anti-Semitic."

[old and tired]

Was he from Metuchen? He was one of those who played "Rent-a-Church" with his Cathedral, and let the Lutheran and Episcopal heretics use it for "ordinations".

I think he began his career as an auxiliary bishop in Brooklyn. When the Metuchen diocese split off from Trenton, he was named the first bishop. We had the misfortune of living in the cathedral parish in Metuchen. Disgusted with McCarrick's handling of several issues, we moved back to Philadelphia and our dear Cardinal Krol.

I don't actually know about the "rent a church" business. I'm pretty sure I would remember if he'd rented out the cathedral while we were living there. Did that happen in Newark?

[Hermann the Cherusker]

I attended an "ordination" of a friend to the Lutheran "priesthood" in the Metuchen Cathedral as a matter of courtesy. 1995ish I think.

[TotusTuus]

I'm not sure Peggy always thinks things through. She's part of the whole image making machine of the media.

I guess I haven't paid attention to her as others have regarding her usual columns. I get the impression that she is not the most solidly catechized person regarding her Faith. Hermann's "no red meat" comment suggests as much.

When this is the case, what do people - especially women - do? Turn exclusively to the emotive part of our nature and the imaging that drives it. In this sense, she could actually be representative of not "conservative" (orthodox) Catholicism, but the typical American Catholic. Bishops selling their "mansions" [which they are actually only stewards of on behalf of their respective Dioceses] and taking trains is going to solve the problem of ordaining gay men to the Priesthood how? If they live in cardboard boxes - and therefore become "authentic" enough to tell homeless people snappy things like "Ain't that the case, I know what you're going through" - will it solve the problem of dissident heterodox formation programs as well?

On one hand, yes, she has a point, ....

She lacks a correct understanding of the virtue of poverty leading to a very shallow point that digresses from the entrenched problems that the Bishops must start realistically dealing with.

Does anybody know how it is that she was chosen for this meeting?

[Desdemona]

Does anybody know how it is that she was chosen for this meeting?

Name recognition would be my guess. Despite their popularity on this board, Patrick Madrid, Patty Bonds, and the other orthodox writers and leaders are not household names among most Catholics.

[Desdemona]

Does anybody know how it is that she was chosen for this meeting?

Name recognition would be my guess. Despite their popularity on this board, Patrick Madrid, Patty Bonds, and the other orthodox writers and leaders are not household names among most Catholics.

[Desdemona]

Does anybody know how it is that she was chosen for this meeting?

Name recognition would be my guess. Despite their popularity on this board, Patrick Madrid, Patty Bonds, and the other orthodox writers and leaders are not household names among most Catholics.

[saradippity]

I am not a Peggy Noonan fan,but I thought what she said in this piece was excellent.I breezed over her final comments as something kind of sweet,used to cut the hard truths she had just expressed.

In essence,she used one of their "pet causes" the poor,and told them how they could use their office to really relate to them and in the process chastised them for not better walking their talk.I also noticed she deviated significantly from the "progressive" party line and spoke to the value of the all the beautiful and invaluable art forms the Church possesses and maintains.

I felt that she changed her prepared speech based on the fact that much of the meeting had passed with no mention of the sex scandals.Noticing this she felt compelled to tell them they needed to clean it up because a few more years of dribbling out the name of yet one more past abuser was going to do even more damage than had already been done.

The damage of bishops announcing that "we have released the names of all abusers and we have had no problems for whatever period of time",followed several days later by a newspaper article stating someone came forward with documentation that they had reported and abuser three years previous that had been proven,is devastating. It does incalculable harm to the credibility of the bishops and the Church.

Her example of the priest in Maine,who had been reported to have been running a pornographic website for homosexual priests,and where no action had been taken was a perfect case in point.

In my humble opinion,Peggy Noonan did a great service by bringing to the mind of the hierarchy that we need to sweep up the floor and shore up the foundations before they merrily trip on to some new novelty.

[RobbyS]

Noonan probably is no no more qualified theologically than we are, but she is a superb word-smith and obviously she "feels" things the way we do, so that gives us small fry a bigger megaphone.

[karenbarinka]

Thank you for posting this wonderful news that the Vatican is endorsing Mel Gibson's Passion. Mel deserves the Vatican equivalent of a medal for valor for standing up to all the anti-Christian bigots attempting to destroy him for daring to graphically depict the Biblical truth of Christ's Passion.

Do you think it is toooooo much to ask the Vatican to excommunicate all the Catholic-in-name-only "scholars" who have been parading across cable news programs and editorial pages supporting the anti-Christian activists defaming Mel's faith, family, and film? I've run out of patience with so-called Catholics who want to rewrite the Bible in their image, editing it til it's soooo full of holes that it looks like Swiss cheese. The Bible is the inspired, inerrant word of God -- if "scholars" believe it's anti-semitic hate speech, they should be allowed no place of authority in our Church.

[dsc]

" if "scholars" believe it's anti-semitic hate speech"

What was it Orwell said? There are some things that only an intellectual could believe, because an ordinary man would never be so foolish? Something like that, I think.

[Varda]

"Do you think it is toooooo much to ask the Vatican to excommunicate all the Catholic-in-name-only "scholars"

I hear ya but not all these scholars are Catholic much less Christian (ex.Paula Fredriksen). I want to know why the USCCB has invited anti-christian bigots to seat on a committee bearing it's name.