posted by Rocco Palmo at 22:52
One of global Catholicism's most prominent chroniclers, Rocco Palmo has held court as the "Church Whisperer" since 2004, when the pages you're reading were launched with an audience of three, grown since by nothing but word of mouth, and kept alive throughout solely by means of reader support.
A former US correspondent for the London-based international Catholic weekly The Tablet, he's been a church analyst for The New York Times, Associated Press, Washington Post, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, BBC, NBC, CNN and NPR among other mainstream print and broadcast outlets worldwide.
A native of Philadelphia, Rocco Palmo attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. In 2010, he received a Doctorate of Humane Letters honoris causa from Aquinas Institute of Theology in St Louis.
In 2011, Palmo co-chaired the first Vatican conference on social media, convened by the Pontifical Councils for Culture and Social Communications. By appointment of Archbishop Charles Chaput OFM Cap., he's likewise served on the first-ever Pastoral Council of the Archdiocese, whose Church remains his home.
Thoughts for the author? E.mail him: rocco@theloggia.org
7 Comments:
My, it must be hard for NPR to find current priests and sisters to interview.
It may work the other way. Much the most interesting things priests have said to me over the years were probably things they wouldn't want to say in public. In some, but by no means all, instances that means they were approaching rebellion, or (very mild) dissent. In most instances, however, the comments assumed personal situations or knowledge of the way things work in the church that would be confusing or embarrassing in the public media. In most instances ex-priests and nuns are less constrained about speaking their minds -- and not all of them are just nuts or embittered.
Maybe it's just me, but I'm a little leery about folks who--for whatever reason--were unable to fulfill their solemn vows, but then do interviews regarding their opinions about the Church. I know there is a need for mercy and am not trying to demonize all ex-priests and nuns, but I would hope to see more humility and penance.
Greg, would you say the same holds true for Ronald Reagan, Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole, or people who have set aside their original marriage vows? How long is a proper period of penance (assuming humility is a virtue for cultivation in every or any Christian): a year, five years, twenty, or forever?
I guess my point, Todd, is that to me it looks like some ex-priests and nuns seemingly wear their ex-religious "status" as a badge. If you have to leave the priesthood or religious life, so be it. But then to turn around and attack the very Mother who, in her mercy, released you from your solemn vow before God (which the Church does not have to do)? So the issue isn't that they have to live the rest of their lives in a cave doing mortification or something (though they'd probably be saints if they did--heh heh). I tire of the idea that the Church is like a civil government against which we can practice a sort of "civil disobedience" in order to change it. I see saints in history offering their thoughts and on rare occasion, when they are certain that God is calling them to it, critiquing--but never disobeying the pope.
In other words, I have a hard enough time when someone very holy publicly criticizes the pope. So when an ex-priest or nun does so I naturally have an issue with it.
In fairness, I hadn't listened to the program when I wrote my comment and after listening to it, the priest is not an "ex-priest" but simply a suspended one.
That's no obsession. That's an attack.
NPR (as usual) is trotting out as much mockery of Catholicism as they can find. I notice you didn't link to NPR audio about the murder of Catholics in Indonesia for reciting the Rosary. That's right, because they didn't cover that story.
NPR's coverage of murder of Catholics
NPR's coverage of gay priests
I listened to the program just now, and as it turns out, it wasn't about either priests or ex-nuns, but about one son of them. And he does have a very interesting story to relate, which he tells quite well.
I have to say I found the tooth extraction story to be particularly chilling, but not out of kilter from what at least three women have told me about requests/suggestions/coercions priests have made or attempted that don't include matters of an overtly sexual nature.
It's all about control.
I wouldn't take NPR's coverage as mockery because the perception in society is that Catholicism is part of the powers-that-be, and that violence against the Church or its members is not as newsworthy as unjust violence against the oppressed.
To shift it to a sports image, people cheer when the Yankees lose. Nobody cares about the hurt feelings of Yankee fans or players, because of the perception that this team is all-powerful and deserves a dressing down more often than it gets.
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