The Cardinal Counters

On the first day of his episcopacy, one thing Danny Thomas can pride himself on is that he got Ted McCarrick and George Weigel into the same room without a whimper.

Sure, it was a big room, but that's not the easiest accolade to attain these days. For a baby bishop, it's nothing short of monumental -- a sign that, contrary to current trends, bishops can be a sign of unity... even if it's just 'til the Mass has ended.

It shouldn't be news to anyone that Weigel and the Ted don't always see eye to eye. In the latest chapter of the saga, the Wojtyla-indebted columnist went after the Wojtyla-created cardinal again last week in a column intended to fisk the recently-retired Washington prelate's penchant for moderation, saying that "It’s not easy to know what Cardinal McCarrick means by his oft-repeated admonition to" it.

Well, in an extraordinary move, McCarrick has broken the low profile he's kept since the late June installation of his successor, Archbishop Donald Wuerl, to respond, accusing Weigel of "at the minimum, deceptive journalism, if not worse." The response will soon run in the papers which syndicate Weigel's column, but for now you can find it at dotCommonweal.

If it hasn't already, this could get interesting.

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