NOT BECAUSE SHE EMPLOYS ME. Best piece I’ve seen so far on Pope’s anniversary.

“The New York Times, with its typical impeccable timing, marked John Paul II’s anniversary with a photograph of the empty pews of Europe. Of course, it is not just the pews of Europe that are empty; it is also the cradles. …

“Both here and abroad, hopes for a new Catholic Church dedicated to contraception, abortion, divorce, homosexuality and female priests were cruelly dashed. After 25 years, what has also been dashed is the myth that these steps represent irresistible ‘progress.’ We have seen the future, and it is not Episcopalian.

“John Paul II’s most astonishing achievement is a re-imagining of the intellectual basis of the Catholic faith, in creating a genuinely new synthesis between faith and reason that is attracting adherents among thoughtful people across denominations and faith. With a single phrase, ‘the nuptial meaning of the human body,’ he has thrown a persuasive light on traditional Christian (and Jewish) sexual teachings. Plumbing the depths of the subjectivity of the human being, John Paul II has pointed out, opens a new path to respect for human rights, including the right to religious freedom. …

“At the same time, he has called for a ‘new evangelism’ among Catholics, so long accustomed to leaving all that to their professional clergies, to viewing evangelism as a ‘Protestant thing.’ …”

and more…