make yourself comfortable

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Jun 24, 2010

Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who has devoted so much of his episcopal career to the effort to make everyone comfortable, is approaching his 80th birthday, and already the celebrations have begun.

(No, I don’t mean the celebrations of the fact that as of July 7, “Uncle Teddy” will be ineligible to vote in a papal conclave—although that’s definitely reason enough to chill the champagne.)

At a Mass in Washington, DC for the retired Archbishop, one of the readings was done by Sister Carol Keehan, the president of the Catholic Health Association, whose role in helping assure passage of the health-care reform bill had recently drawn the ire of Cardinal Francis George, the president of the US bishops’ conference.

It’s possible that Sister Keehan was chosen because of her clear, resonant voice. More likely—and we’re talking dollars-to-donuts here—she was chosen as a signal that in the benign view of Cardinal Ted, we’re all still friends, despite our little disagreements on subjects such as whether or not babies should be dismembered in the womb.