What would I change? Nothing!
Who am I that I should second guess “the man in the saddle”, so to speak?
In time, all that anyone needs to know will be revealed. Fidelity has it’s own “high bar” as our new Abp likes to say. Until then he is in my prayers. His journey will not be easy.
Still, I would urge a bit more shrewdness [a precept of Prudence]. The new Abp advises adherence to Prudence commenting on the causes of Church scandals in his Chronicle interview. In his new assignment, he will especially need this virtue to exercise the fullness of discipleship.
With striking enthusiasm he shares his taste in movies including Seriana, Munich, Capote [his choice for Best Film] and Brokeback Mt., but he adds [voluntarily] he has not seen Chronicles of Narnia. Shrewdness, I think, suffers a bit with this comment. I have to wonder why he would include such a report [not Narnia], but I am glad my own words are not so widely had or so carefully parsed. Further, I confess, I am addicted to everthing C.S Lewis and cannot, honestly, tell you if remarkable authors wrote any of the other four the Abp mentions.
The Abp and I do not share a common taste in movies. Of the five films listed, I have seen [by choice] only Narnia. Still, I am not a “Man of Letters” as he is according to his introduction in the podcast and this may explain to a degree his movie preferences. It is predictable and he must know that the disorders presented in Brokeback Mt. will likely be elevated to “Best Picture of 2005”. But come on, this is California where voters do not think parents should be notified of their daughters choice for abortion.
His use of the word “powerful” has been overplayed in my opinion. He uses it with a degree of frequency that it becomes, in a sense, almost meaningless. Most of the four movies and several favored authors are described with this word. It’s a style of speech he likes and uses liberally, without theological intent I suspect. When style offends, the offender, if shrewd will know it without comment from me. {I taught public speaking for 15 years, so I probably am conditioned to look at language in sort of novel ways.]
Still, his dioceses will hear every public word [just as we have] and, in the service of their own agendas, without great care on the part of the Abp, these may be grossly misunderstood and misrepresented. What an age we live in where our words can be recorded and heard the same day around the world. This is the Abp’s reality. So great care [shrewdness] is required as he must surely know. This has been a recurring problem with the words of JPII for some, even Catholics, with aggressive “Catholic” agendas. JPII’s understanding of the power and the danger of words was unmatched in our own age as his legacy gives adequate testimony. Lets pray for a similar fate for our new Archbishop of San Francisco. He shares the call and, in a special way, will need the graces which inform fidelity.
Far to many of our Bishops see themselves as moderators of “focus groups” where every sort of disorder may go unchallenged in the name of inclusiveness. The renewal of a real understanding of the challenges of Catholic discipleship will, in time, help to resolve our current difficulties. I hope and pray I will live to see it.
God bless Benedict XVI…his journey will be even tougher.
Jim B
