New and improved ultra-orthodoxy

Here is some real objective reporting on the Legion of Christ by Newsweek; or in this case News-weak.

Rise of the Catholic Right

For a sense of the new forces stirring inside Mexico today, consider the Legion of Christ. The once obscure religious order, founded 62 years ago in the basement of a Mexico City town house, ranks as the world�s fastest-growing branch of Roman Catholicism. It attracts more recruits to the church�s aging priesthood than any other Catholic congregation on the planet, per capita. The legion�s ultra-orthodox doctrine mirrors that of Pope John Paul II, and its influence reaches into the highest echelons of Mexico�s business and political elites.

This demonstrates the problems with secular writers covering religion and in most cases some basic background information is not even looked for. Calling the Legion of Christ a branch of the Church shows that misunderstanding. The use of the term ultra-orthodox means absolutely nothing. If orthodox means adhering to the accepted or traditional and established faith then how can you adhere toward it extremely. You are either orthodox in your belief or you are not.

There is a darker, even somewhat medieval side to the Legion of Christ. Former members of the order say that young seminarians to this day are required to practice self-flagellation as a way of atoning for their sins; many wear an uncomfortable device around their thighs to discourage so-called impure thoughts. Legion officials have reportedly hired private detectives to snoop on some of their own priests. In a 1997 investigative report in a U.S newspaper, nine ex-legionnaires accused Maciel himself of sexual abuse, a charge he has indignantly denied. That same article revealed the Vatican had absolved Maciel of similar charges in an investigation in the 1950s.
[Full Story]

Nice use of sliding “so-called” in before “impure thoughts”, a good technique in objective reporting. Even before as an atheist I would never had slid so-called before my decidedly impure thoughts, I knew they were impure. This reporter would probably have written Jesus’ words as ” But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman with so-called lust has already committed so-called adultery with her in his heart.”