Smoke signals

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Jul 09, 2004

Cardinal Theodore McCarrick-- who heads the Catholic community in a city named after a man who said that he "cannot tell a lie"-- hasn't yet explained the difference between what Cardinal Ratzinger said in a letter about the Kerry-Communion dispute, and what McCarrick told other American bishops that Ratzinger had said.

When pressed for an explanation, by the Washington Times, McCarrick said that he hadn't yet had a chance to read the full text of the Ratzinger missive.

Actually, your Eminence, you have the full text. It was addressed to you.

Oh, wait. That's not what he meant. Cardinal McCarrick explained that he didn't have the full text of the Ratzinger letter as it appeared in L'Espresso.

From what I have heard, it may represent an incomplete and partial leak of a private communication from Cardinal Ratzinger, and it may not accurately reflect the full message I received," the cardinal said.

Ah! Now that's understandable. And McCarrick, who was out of town, didn't have any way to get the text from L'Espresso? No access to email, fax, or phone? Maybe he was vacationing in the wilderness, and communicating with his office solely by smoke signals?

Actually Cardinal McCarrick is now in Rome. That's where L'Espresso is published. Shouldn't be too hard to get hold of a copy.