Pope Benedict XVI

The new Pope may very well be the wise and wonderful person we had hoped for, however I was dismayed (for obvious reasons) to hear rumors the other day that he may have been instrumental in coordinating the cover-up of the priest abuse scandals beginning in 2001. While these are only rumors at this point, it is disappointing that The Vatican does not implement a more strident approach towards ensuring its members that these offensive behaviors will cease, at once. Obviously, outrageous behavior can occur even in the secular world, but the perception by the public is that by maintaining virtual silence on the issue, the Church is condoning abusive behavior, which is not the case. But perceptions sometimes can be reality. Even though we agree these cases are relatively rare, the "sweeping under the carpet," or even the perception of such, makes me feel somewhat uncomfortable. It angers me that this casts a dark cloud over the Church and is obviously very disturbing news. I, as I'm sure many of you do too, hope for and look forward to the day when this issue would be addressed in a manner befitting a civil and moral organization. Or, at least, have the public perceive this problem as being handled in a prosecutorial manner and not just a manner which is that of forgiving sins, as important as that is, too. I would urge Pope Benedict XVI to condemn any abuse of children, apologize for any past transgressions by the minority of offenders out there, and to issue a statement ensuring every parishioner around the world that any future cases will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I will remain hopeful that the new Pope will fulfill his mandate to have the Catholic Church held in high esteem and to maintain a strict following of moral and ethical behavior.

Habemus papam!

Pope Benedict XVI (the former Cardinal Ratzinger of Germany) appears to have just the sort of passion and sense of mission that will help carry members of the Catholic Church, and (do I dare say) others, towards a more moral view of the world. In his pre-election homily on Monday, (highlighted in a CNN.com article here) he warned against “relativism” and said having a strong faith, based on church teaching, is often labeled today as a “fundamentalism.”

“We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one’s own ego and one’s own desires,” he warned.

As you can see from some of my own posts (this is me speaking now), I have been outspoken on this very topic of moral relativism, so I couldn’t be more thrilled that there is someone in this position of influence to remain steadfastly determined and not be swayed by often errant public opinions. Sometimes “progressiveness” is not always progress. I would urge everyone to at least listen to this new Pope’s voice of traditionalism and reason. Much of what he says may very well make sense, even in today’s complex world.

A victory for the good guys!

There's a beautiful story out of Kansas City today about a little boy being rescued by a good Samaritan. You can read about it here.

Moral relativism in flux

Earlier today, I was speaking with a co-worker about an interview I saw recently with Michael Schiavo, the callous and insensitive individual who did not even have the decency to permit the parents of his dearly departed (now) ex-wife to be present at a proper funeral. Death by starvation and dehydration one day, the next day an autopsy, the following day a cremation, hands wiped clean of the situation, thank you very much. But, I digress.

We're going back a few weeks now, but some of you may recall the discussion on CNN's Larry King Live in which Mr. King was debating the pros and cons of Mr. Schiavo's termination of hydration/nutrition for his then wife. I found this interview to be extremely disturbing, but not for only the obvious reasons. Michael Schiavo was telling Larry King about his reasons for his decisions in the case. Mr. King responded by asking him (I may be paraphrasing somewhat, but you get the gist) "what if your morals are different from my morals?" Now I have a question for Larry King which I believe someone should challenge him on. Is it really possible for each and every one of us (all 6 billion people in the world) to have a different opinion on what moral codes, if any, are significant and worthy of adherence? Who is really to say that my morals are right and yours are wrong if it is dependent upon all of us to decide amongst ourselves what is really right or wrong? Stand to Reason has a wonderful essay on this topic here. Picture this: you walk into a new restaurant; we'll name it The Cafeteria of Morals. You may select those morals that you like, that fit into your current lifestyle, and you may even decline to acknowledge the sheer existence of those morals which you find to be distasteful or merely inconvenient. Let's just call it your moral buffet, as it were, in which you can select a la carte those societal rules you wish to follow. What would be your criterion for selecting certain moral ideals? For that matter, why even bother to select any moral code to follow? Let's just stop and think how utterly preposterous is the notion of moral relativism implied by Larry King's question. If we can all pick and choose our own morals that are contrived by men and women, why bother having any morals? Shouldn't morals be something that stands for something greater? Something that may have been initiated by (do I dare say) God? I would urge anyone reading this to be thoughtful in their musings regarding whether or not our society's morally relativistic leanings are truly the road down which we desire for us, our sons, and our daughters to travel. Moral relativism is a sickness permeating the very foundations of our society. If left unabated, the prognosis for our very existence may be in doubt. After all, how are we as a people to have any foundation for steering young people in the correct direction if there are no guidelines or consensus for what constitutes right and wrong or good and evil?

Saint John Paul II The Great

Pope John Paul II died yesterday after a long battle with severe health problems. I would like to offer my small tribute which I have culled from various news sources today. The magnificent story of John Paul II began unceremoniously, as he came from humble beginnings in Poland. As a child, born Karol Jozef Wojtyla, he often played with non-Catholic neighborhood children which, at that time, was not customary. His personal life was burdensome as he lost many family members early on. He went on to help shelter Jews being persecuted during the Nazi invasions. In fact, he himself had been oppressed by the Nazis as he would later find it necessary to conduct his theological studies "underground." It would have been very easy for him to succumb to the pressures of the time, yet he is known to have never displayed any signs of anti-Semitism. A trained actor, his theatrical skills were most-assuredly an asset later in his papacy as he believed actions spoke louder than words and became a master communicator worldwide. He was instrumental in developing a church in his native Krakow, which had been intentionally forbidden from offering places of worship by its Soviet occupiers. Later as Bishop and Cardinal of Krakow he further deepened his faith and in 1978, was elected Pope. His moral advocacy was an instrumental factor in the downfall of communism in Eastern Europe. Even an assassin’s bullet could not stop his righteous and idealistic leadership as he later met and forgave this very same individual who most would call an evil-doer. His papacy had been criticized at times as not being progressive enough or of not being in touch with the world of today. He was conservative on many issues, yet liberal on others, as highlighted in this insightful article. But, there is one fact that is not in doubt; his faith was unwavering and, even though his ideas may not have always been viewed as popular or politically-correct, he stood his ground to maintain traditional church doctrine. He refused to cower to majority rule and insisted on professing the truth as something worthy of protecting. In our society which is sometimes morally relativistic, his teachings were meaningful, sometimes beyond the comprehension of us mere mortals. God-willing, the next Pope will be similarly inclined to help steer us down the correct moral, ethical, and values-based path, instead of the dysfunctional path down which our society appears to be headed. To be perfectly honest, I was not aware of his unbelievable level of greatness until I viewed the countless hours of media coverage this weekend following his passing. Although I was, of course, aware of his goodness, I can now only envy those who were fortunate enough to have met this most marvelous, inspirational person. He was truly respected and beloved by individuals of many faiths. Some have speculated that his legacy will be reflected by him eventually being named Saint John Paul II The Great. This was indeed a man who was a bright light, a shining beacon, to the world and his life is something that we can now all celebrate. As many have intimated, his was truly a remarkable and wonderful life. Amen.     

PBS’ Frontline has a very enlightening account of the life of Pope John Paul II which you can access by clicking here.

Another thorough historical account of The Pope’s life is accessible here.

CNN.com presents an article here.

Let us Pray

As we have just gotten through the emotional ordeal of Terri Schiavo, we are faced with the prospects that yet another beloved individual is apparently terminally ill. Pope John Paul II appears to be in a condition which seems, by all accounts, to be quite hopeless. Regardless of one's faith, or even if you are not a person of faith, I would like to kindly request us all to pray for him. He is a man of inestimable value, especially when viewed from the standpoint that there are many confusing aspects in the world today. We should all revere those among us who are forces for right instead of wrong, positive instead of negative, and yes, good over evil. Sure, some of his views may be considered controversial, yet his overall message has been that of someone who has been a tremendous positive force in the world. Whether one is Catholic or not, we can all agree that his life has been a source of uplift for the human condition. For this reason, let us pray for him.