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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsE.J. Dionne: The best choice for pope? A nun.
In giving up the papacy, Pope Benedict XVI was brave and bold. He did the unexpected for the good of the Catholic Church. And when it selects a new pope next month, the College of Cardinals should be equally brave and bold. It is time to elect a nun as the next pontiff.
Now, I know this hope of mine is the longest of long shots. I have great faith in the Holy Spirit to move papal conclaves, but I would concede that I may be running ahead of the Spirit on this one. Women, after all, are not yet able to become priests, and it is unlikely that traditionalists in the church will suddenly upend the all-male, celibate priesthood, let alone name a woman as the bishop of Rome. Nonetheless, handing leadership to a woman and in particular, to a nun would vastly strengthen Catholicism, help the church solve some of its immediate problems and inspire many who have left the church to look at it with new eyes.
Consider, first, what constitutes the churchs strongest claim on public respect and affection. It is not its earthly power, the imposing beauty of St. Peters Basilica or even its determination to preserve its doctrine whole. Rather, the church impresses even its critics, and inspires its most loyal and most dissident members, because so many in its ranks walk the talk of the Gospel. Hundreds of thousands of nuns, priests, brothers and laypeople devote their lives to the poor, the marginalized, refugees, the disabled and the homeless, simply because Christ instructed them us to do so. Matthew 25:40 contains what may be the most constructive words ever written: Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these my brethren, you did for me.
More than any other group in the church, the sisters have been at the heart of its work on behalf of compassion and justice. Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times made this point as powerfully as anyone in a 2010 column. In my travels around the world, I encounter two Catholic Churches, he wrote. One is the rigid all-male Vatican hierarchy that seems out of touch. .?.?. Yet theres another Catholic Church as well, one I admire intensely. This is the grass-roots Catholic Church that does far more good in the world than it ever gets credit for. This is the church that supports extraordinary aid organizations like Catholic Relief Services and Caritas, saving lives every day, and that operates superb schools that provide needy children an escalator out of poverty.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-best-choice-for-pope-a-nun/2013/02/15/83c8be2e-76c6-11e2-95e4-6148e45d7adb_story.html
Helen Reddy
(998 posts)Sister Simone Campbell (Nuns on the Bus) to lead the Catholic church.
But wait! the Vatican may need her to answer the phones at the Vatican. (yes, the men in funny shoes make the nuns answer the phones)
Tumbulu
(6,291 posts)ananda
(28,866 posts)..
Demeter
(85,373 posts)that's like giving up show business...
TalkingDog
(9,001 posts)as I have heard about pedophile priests. And frankly, they are implicated in the scandals as much as any priest who covered for that disgusting activity.
And just so you know, my exposure to vicious nun stories comes from my Spouse, who grew up Catholic and had/has 3 aunts in the Orders. At family reunions you can hear some eye opening stuff.
They don't need a specific GENDER in the position. That's an incredibly sexist notion. They need a good person.
pnwmom
(108,980 posts)as the men of the Church have in the scandal or in the coverup.
They are excluded from the hierarchy that has been carrying out the coverup, and individual nuns have spoken out strongly.
I'm sorry your spouse had negative experiences with nuns. The nuns who taught at my high school -- post Vatican II -- were wonderful -- strong, caring, and compassionate leaders.
valerief
(53,235 posts)OldDem2012
(3,526 posts)That is the absolute worst sentence I've ever seen in writing from Dionne. What the Hell was he smoking when he wrote that line?
Benedict, or whoever he calls himself these days, is about a half step ahead of the law in regards to his non-handling of the Catholic Church's child abuse scandal, and Dionne actually believes he was being "brave and bold" for "giving up the Papacy"?? Benedict is no better than the predators he protected for decades.
As far as selecting a nun is concerned, who has not heard the horror stories about the mistreatment of children at the hands of some of these monsters?
No, it's time to shut down the Vatican and disband the Catholic Church and return all of their ill-gotten gains to the countries in which their facilities reside. Surely, those who are actually doing good work on behalf of the Catholic Church can find other patrons.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)nt
bottomofthehill
(8,334 posts)Then we could call her Poprah