New Pope Begins Reign of (T)Error

It didn't take long. This week Pope Benedict XVI struck the first blow in his promised war on open debate, or even discussion, of important Catholic issues. The first casualty: Father Thomas J. Reese, an American Jesuit who is a frequent television commentator on Roman Catholic issues, who resigned Friday under direct orders from the Vatican as editor of the Catholic magazine America because he had published articles critical of church positions, according to several Catholic officials in the United States. Father Reese's great sin was to be "off-message" on the issue of condoms, his "heresy" was that he believed lives might be saved in third world countries if sexually transmitted diseases could be prevented.

That the new pope would come down so quickly and so heavily with the jackboots on one of the most evenly balanced Catholic journals, America, which is known for it's careful discussion of issues and for presenting conservative and liberal sides of debates, is an ugly sign. It's a warning to those leaders of the Church who might be tempted to actually think about some of the most important issues of the day that they better think Right, or they may find themselves in hot water. Jesuits, one of the most respected religious orders in the world, who as the "Army of Jesus" have brought so much light to the worlds of both faith and science, are so stunned they can barely respond. "It can have a chilling effect," says one theologian. No kidding.

I called a Jesuit priest who was a teacher of mine when I was in high school. He was one of those teachers who can light a fire under the lazy brain of teenage boy, and he exposed me to the world of literature and ideas when all that mattered to me was rock music and girls. I asked him about America magazine and the ouster of Father Reese. He told me that the problem is an old one, and he called it "paternalism". It means that debates on Catholic dogma have gone on since The Council of Nicea but that Church leadership often assumes that ordinary Catholics would only be "distressed" by these discussions. So it's OK for scholars, theologians and church leaders to discuss these issues, but the rest of us would only be worried by such information. So really, by gagging a priest who edited a magazine that publishes open dialogue they're really just protecting us. So is it the Pope's concern for our inability to handle the truth, or his fear of open minds that leads him to keep questions out of Catholic life? It all comes to the same thing for Father Reese, who made the great mistake of respecting the ability of rank and file believers to think for themselves.

A few weeks ago, news outlets all over the world reminded us that Cardinal Ratsinger, the man who would soon be named Benedict, was the head of an organization called "The Congregation (for the Doctrine of the Faith)", that used to be known as "The Holy Inquisition". These were the bright boys who tortured and murdered thousands a few hundred years ago because they believed in outrageous things like the Earth revolving around the Sun. Of course, we were told, this is now a benign outfit that simply makes sure Catholic doctrine is authentic, and that what Catholics believe is correctly represented. "There's no more Inquisition," they said. They lied, and the new masthead of the once-respected magazine America is the proof.


I wonder if there are European craftsmen who still remember how to build an Iron Maiden.

[If you're curious about what Pope Benedict thinks is unacceptable, please go to your library and pick up a back issue of America. You will be surprised]