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Pope Rat
Posted on April 20, 2005 in Pontiff Watch
I was disappointed, though not surprised, when the white smoke spelled out the name of the Cardinal from the Curia. Pope Rat stands so far to the right that he lies on his side. I see him as a signature of post-World War II conservatism, which following the demise of its Depression-era icon Hitler has sought to disguise its motives.
I am a former Catholic. Yet I remain on the rolls of Saint Anne’s Parish in San Bernardino. You won’t see me at Mass there, but they still count me as a member. So when you see the numbers totting up the number of Catholics in the United States and the world, please subtract one. Also be sure to check the death rolls.
If this sounds like a Texas style election, it is and with a twist. Lay Catholics are supposed to be members of the Church, but they don’t get to vote on who gets to hold what office. Since the rise of John Paul II, they aren’t consulted through synods any more. The priesthood and those above the men of the cloth see the ordinary people as sheep. Expect that Pope Rat will use his silver crook to attempt to beat his version of holiness through the skulls of all who dissent to his rule including gays, lesbians, liberation theologians, opponents of capitalism, proponents of secularism, and, worst of all, those accusing clergy of sexual abuse.
This will be a Pope who wants it both ways. He will demand separation of Church and State when it comes to crimes committed by his priests. He will discipline and excommunicate politicians who promote secularism on matters such as abortion. Pope Rat wants power. He belongs to a stream of romantic thought which longs for the glory days when the Papacy was one of a number of warlords vying for control of the Italian peninsula, when it shared the wealth from the enslavement of peoples in the Americas and Africa.
The only advice that I can give to those who are as horrified as I am by the choice is to remind them of the wisdom of the sixth chapter of Matthew which calls on us to forsake the Temple and retreat to the personal spirituality of the closet. The Pope is not Christianity. You are if you strive to live humbly and compassionately as Christ demonstrated.
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