Calling Pope Benedict “a sort of replacement bogeyman for George W Bush,” David Quinn gets to the heart of a lot of the recent coverage of the Catholic Church:
Destroy Benedict, damage or co-opt the church he leads, and you go a long way towards destroying opposition to liberal fundamentalism. This is a cataclysmic battle between those who believe in objective morality and those who think morality is relative. Joseph Ratzinger is smack bang in the middle of the hottest part of this battle.
To acknowledge that this is true is not to ignore terrible things that have happened. But it is a reminder why the Catholic Church — in its leadership and in each and every one of its members — must be ever vigilant. It’s a reminder why you want the Catholic Church to stay strong.
Well, unless you don’t . . .