In Defense of the Pope

Since I'm Lutheran, I have no special allegiance to the Pope. However, I do respect him, even if I don't always agree with him, just as I respect Catholics as fellow Christians.

When I first read this story, my reaction was a bit defensive. My thinking was, "Hah! Well if the Pope wants to see a increasingly secular, 'soulless' society, he needs to take a look at much of Europe before pointing fingers at America!"

But I overreacted. He does have a valid point, the secularization of Europe notwithstanding. Also, keep in mind he was addressing American bishops. I'm sure if he were addressing, say, German bishops, they would be hearing similar admonishments about their country.

I will say that the child abuse scandals have caused the Catholic Church to lose moral authority when weighing in on moral issues. (Similarly, that's why the Abu Ghraib abuse scandal is so destructive -- loss of moral authority.) Whenever the Pope or another Catholic leader brings up a moral issue, people who don't agree always retort with something like, "That's rich, coming from a bunch of child molesters!" Is it fair? Of course not. However, sad and unfair as it is, it's how a lot of people see the Catholic Church. It will take a long time for the Church to regain its moral authority.

(Via Dean's World.)