unfit to serve?
By ( articles ) | Aug 05, 2010
Today the universal Church celebrates the dedication of the Roman basilica of St. Mary Major. And critics of the Vatican celebrate another opportunity to denounce the continued presence of Cardinal Bernard Law as archpriest of that basilica.
It’s an optional memorial on the liturgical calendar. For critics of the Church, the denunciations are almost obligatory. How, they ask, can a prelate who resigned in disgrace now hold a position of honor? Why doesn’t the Pope replace him?
Good questions. But the matter isn’t as simple as it seems. If the Pope should oust Cardinal Law, doesn’t consistency require him also to:
- Demand the resignation of Cardinal Sodano as Dean of the College of Cardinals, since he (Sodano) evidently helped to cover up the misbehavior of the late Father Maciel?
- Demand the resignations of all bishops who mishandled the sex-abuse scandal as badly as Cardinal Law did—in which case the remaining active members of US bishops’ conference could hold their annual meeting at Taco Bell, rather than renting half the rooms at the Hilton?
Hmm. Wait a minute. Maybe it’s not so complicated after all. I say go for it.
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