I was wrong about the first McCain/Obama debate. A third of the way through the event, I said to one of my guests, “My guy is getting creamed!” Note that I did not say, “My candidate is being beaten into the ground.” I don’t have a candidate. Priests, like columnists, are not supposed to endorse a candidate. But one of the candidates is from my state and my city, and we shared a pulpit once. So of course I hope he wins. But that doesn’t mean I endorse him. As I have said repeatedly in this column, I think he will lose because the country is not ready for a smart, attractive, charismatic man — if he has skin slightly darker than a Sicilian’s.
If you couldn’t tell, this is classic Fr. Andrew Greeley.
He is from my state, city, far left side of the political divide, and we shared a pulpit! Of course I hope he wins. Never mind that his positions are intrinsically evil – we shared a pulpit doncha know. You must be racist if you can’t get past his support of abortion, infanticide, euthanasia, cloning, ESCR, and homosexual marriage. Yes presidential affirmative action – vote for him even if you think he is a moral disaster. Otherwise not only will we throw the race card at you we make it a presidential race card.
“Go after him,” I screamed.
“He’s just being a gentlemen,” my friend insisted.
“Nice guys,” I shouted, citing a one-time manager of the Cubbies, “finish last!”
Naturally I couldn’t sleep that night. At 3 a.m., I crawled out of bed and turned on a cursed machine to read the data from the instant surveys.
Please breath in and breath out Fr. “I don’t have a candidate” Greeley. Yes Sen. Obama was really being a gentleman by calling Sen. McCain “John” repeatedly.
Now you might rightly ask why are you even paying attention to a Fr. Greeley article in the first place? Maybe I am like a dissident paleontologists. Even though these progressive dinosaurs are on the way out, they are still fascinating creatures. The contradictions between their faith and what they advocate is an interesting case study. Though looking at the history of the Church the DIssentosaurus never quite goes extinct.
Hat Tip Matthew K.
7 comments
I remember reading a book by Fr. Greeley years ago. Although I thought he was a decent writer, his choice of content left me feeling slightly alarmed. For someone who had taken vows of chastity, his writing was pretty racy.
Now I realize how left he has become. It would seem that many “progressive” Catholics have allowed social justice to become a god. They follow it slavishly, believing that capitulating to the current cultural psychosis of self-gratification at all costs is the way to go.
Although I know there is a place for it, I’ve started to cringe every time I hear a Catholic speak about “social justice.”
Although I know there is a place for it, I’ve started to cringe every time I hear a Catholic speak about “social justice.”
Of course you cringe. We all do because “social justice” has been mangled into euphamism for “Whatever I think is fair.” Which translates into leftist entitlements. There was a great discussion at CA where a social worker called people out on this. He ask for someone to name a “social justice” program. People went for the usual stuff–food stamps, minimum wage, housing projects, etc. He said no, no, no. Those are examples of charity, which is alleviating an immediate need. Social justice is fixing the conditions that caused the need in the first place. Here’s the rub: government enforced charity isn’t charity at all but entitlement–and that gov’t throws gobs and gobs of money at entitlements and almost none at genuine social justice.
I too cringe every time I hear the word “social justice”. One helpful antidote has been to actually read bits of Rerum Novarum. The latter half of Deus Caritas Est is another great authentidote.
“Now I realize how left he has become. It would seem that many “progressive” Catholics have allowed social justice to become a god.”
Mary Rose, it wouldn’t be so incredibly bad if they worshiped true social justice, but as you pointed out in your next paragraph they worship “social justice” with scare quotes (which means whatever they want it to mean, kind of like the “Spirit of Vatican II”). That’s is why everyone cringes when they hear the term. True social justice begins with recognizing the human dignity of every person – it’s absolutely impossible be for social justice and for the “right” to kill our children.
Why did you delete my earlier comments ? what kind of forum is this? I said I am opposed to abortions – was I too hard on Palin and Hagee?
This “young fogey” is voting for McCain!
Ok, I have to take issue with your use of the phrase, “Dontcha know” as this is something inherent to Minnesota. And I’d prefer that Greely and Minnesota not be linked in any way shape or form.
When I’m making fun of our accent, I’ll use the phrase “Dontcha know” with the proper inflections, and so do my good friends from other states. Granted, it seems to make us look stupid, (which we are not…well…the people who think Obama is a messiah are, but they don’t use the farmer phrase quoted above)
Greely is a man in need of both conversion and intelligence. There might be hope for the former, if not the latter.