Papal Foolishness

The Church has the right to proclaim the truth in the public square.

Lay people have the right and responsibility to organize civil affairs without undue interference from the Church.

Pope Benedict XVI preached this Foolishness to, of all people, Italian lawyers.

CNA has more:

The Holy Father underlined the need "to create a concept of secularity that, on the one hand, grants God and His moral law, Christ and His Church, their just place in human life at both an individual and a social level, and on the other hand affirms and respects the 'legitimate autonomy of earthly affairs'."

The Church, the Pope reiterated, cannot intervene in politics, because that would "constitute undue interference."

However, he said, "'healthy secularity' means that the State does not consider religion merely as an individual sentiment that can be confined to the private sphere." Rather, it must be "recognized as a ... public presence. This means that all religious confessions (so long as they do not contrast the moral order and are not dangerous to public order) are guaranteed free exercise of their acts of worship."

Hostility against "any form of political or cultural relevance of religion," and in particular against "any kind of religious symbol in public institutions" is a degenerated form of secularity, said the Holy Father, as is "refusing the Christian community, and those who legitimately represent it, the right to pronounce on the moral problems that today appeal to the conscience of all human beings, particularly of legislators.

"This," he added, "does not constitute undue interference of the Church in legislative activity, which is the exclusive competence of the State, but the affirmation and the defense of those great values that give meaning to people's lives and safeguard their dignity. These values, even before being Christian, are human, and therefore cannot leave the Church silent and indifferent, when she has the duty firmly to proclaim the truth about man and his destiny."

Of course, the Reasonable elites of European society and beyond will gag at the thought. Why would that old Fool possibly imagine they, the enlightened people, would ever take such a Foolish idea seriously? Honestly!

I would not be surprised if some "humanist" group or some-such group starts hurling brickbats soon. All that will do is convince the everyman in all societies that the Pope has a point. It's amazing how catching Foolishness can be!

God bless you, your Holiness, for daring to proclaim Christ's Foolishness before a Reasonable world. And may God continue to strengthen you as you march on!

Pope Benedict XVI plays Aragorn Elessar

Who would imagine it? Twice in two decades, a Pope rallies the West!

So says Daniel Henninger of the Opinion Journal:

One may assume that in some Himalayan redoubt, history's latest homicidal utopians, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, believe that coupling their ideology to Islamic suicide bombers--in New York, London or Baghdad--is more than a match for the will of a morally diminished West. Are they wrong?

Benedict XVI has written with force about a morally diminished Europe. So like his predecessor, this pope decided to engage in the greatest military and intellectual battle of our age.

We all know how a few months ago at the University of Regensburg, Benedict made himself a central player in the post-9/11 era by quoting the 14th-century Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus. Not much noted at the time was Benedict's second quotation from Manuel II: "God is not pleased by blood, and not acting reasonably [emphasis added] is contrary to God's nature." Benedict's lecture at Regensburg mentioned "reason" and "rationality" repeatedly. He went so far as to claim that the "rapprochement" between Biblical faith and Greek philosophical inquiry (reason) was "of decisive importance" for world history. "This convergence," said Benedict, "created Europe and remains the foundation of what can rightly be called Europe."

Very simply, he is talking about and defending what we call "the West"--both the place and the classically liberal idea, which radical Islam wants to blow up. Just as John Paul championed the jailed or hiding dissidents behind the Iron Curtain, Benedict is seeking similar protections for persecuted Christian minorities--indeed all minorities--across the Islamic world. Starting in Turkey.

Arriving in Ankara, the pope immediately raised two ideas from the wellsprings of the West. He said on his first day that a just society requires freedom of religion and on behalf of Turkey's tiny Catholic community, he raised the issue of property rights.

He's right as far as he goes. Pope Benedict XVI does what Pope John Paul the Great had done: he witnesses humanity's need for Christ. He emphasizes the unity of Faith and Reason because such unity exists, and only through it can we truly experience Reality.

He defends the West to the extent that the West manifests the lived experience of this reality. Commitment to human rights and the Rule of Law certainly stand as signs of the West's union with Christ. However, much that the West praises the Pope will rightly decry.

Mr. Henninger correctly identifies the Pope's concern for Europe's moral relativism. He may not appreciate just how far the Pope's concern goes. The Church's opposition to abortion, euthanasia and ESCR may have doctrinal foundations. So, too, does her condemnation of the exploitation of the poor and the idealization--or outright idolatry--rampant in society. Human beings are neither autonomous and absolute selves or anonymous parts of a mechanistic society. Human beings are persons, created in the image and likeness of God.

Moral Relativism--of every political persuasion--and islamic jihadism represent the fundamental threats to our societal life. Both rupture our collective lives as witnesses to the God who loved us and saved us through the blood of his Son. The Pope will rally the West to stand as witnesses to this God. In doing so, he stands against the ravenous lions that seek the Lord's sheep.

We should not forget this. Pope Benedict XVI, like all of Peter's successors, is a shepherd appointed by the Good Shepherd. Only in this way is he a defender of the West.

An Interreligious Moment

Pope Benedict XVI continues to upset fundamentalist muslims and RadTrad Catholics alike. He insists on imitating Christ in welcoming his brother--estranged as that brother may be.

How shocking. How scandalous.

How Foolish.

The AP has the details:

Pope Benedict XVI prayed alongside an Islamic cleric in Turkey's most famous mosque Thursday in a dramatic gesture of outreach to Muslims after outrage from the pontiff's remarks linking violence and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad.

The pope bowed his head and closed his eyes for nearly a minute inside the Blue Mosque after Mustafa Cagrici, the head cleric of Istanbul, said: "Now I'm going to pray."

As the pope left the famous 17th century mosque, the pope turned to Cagrici and thanked him "for this moment of prayer," the Italian news agency ANSA reported.

"This visit will help us find together the way of peace for the good of all humanity," the pope said during only the second papal visit to a Muslim place of worship. Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II, visited a mosque in Syria in 2001.

(AP) A Turkish police woman checks the bag of a woman wanting to cross a restricted area near Istanbul's... Full Image

The mosque visit was added to Benedict's schedule as a "sign of respect" during his first papal trip to a Muslim nation, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, said last week.

The pope removed his shoes before entering the carpeted expanse of the mosque, which is officially known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque after the Ottoman sultan Ahmet I, who ordered its construction. But it's widely called the Blue Mosque after its elaborate blue tiles.

Benedict received a gift of a glazed tile decorated with a dove and a painting showing a view of the Sea of Marmara off Istanbul. The pope gave the imam a mosaic showing four doves.

"Let us pray for brotherhood and for all humanity," the pope said in Italian.

Lombardi said the pope "paused in meditation" inside the mosque and "certainly his thoughts turned to God."

(AP) Turkish police check the bags of people wanting to cross a restricted area near Istanbul's... Full Image

The pope has offered wide-ranging messages of reconciliation to Muslims since arriving in Turkey on Tuesday, including appeals for greater understanding and support for Turkey's steps to become the first Muslim nation in the European Union.

But Benedict also has set down his own demands.

After a deeply symbolic display of unity with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Christian Orthodox, the pope again repeated his calls for greater freedoms for religious minorities and lamented the divisions among Christians - including the nearly 1,000-year rift between Catholics and Orthodox.

What could the Holy Father possibly have been thinking? Why would he bow his head in silent prayer with an obvious non-believer.

Oh, I don't know. Perhaps a certain document called Nostra Aetate had something to do with it:

The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reverence those ways of conduct and of life, those precepts and teachings which, though differing in many aspects from the ones she holds and sets forth, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men. Indeed, she proclaims, and ever must proclaim Christ "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), in whom men may find the fullness of religious life, in whom God has reconciled all things to Himself.(4)

The Church, therefore, exhorts her sons, that through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions, carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, they recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these men.

Horror of horrors! The Catholic Church refuses to categorically deny that other's religious experiences and traditions contain some degree of truth! She may even call her members to prudently "promote the good things, spiritual and moral,...found among these men."

But, of course, sharing a moment of prayer with one of these couldn't possibly be a legitimate expression of such promotion. Everyone knows that Muslims are idolaters that refuse to recognize the One True God. Right.

Wrong. Any Fool, particularly a Catholic one, will face the obstacle of revelation as interpreted through the Magisterium, if they want to believe that. Again, Nostra Aetate:

The Church regards with esteem also the Moslems. They adore the one God, living and subsisting in Himself; merciful and all- powerful, the Creator of heaven and earth,(5) who has spoken to men; they take pains to submit wholeheartedly to even His inscrutable decrees, just as Abraham, with whom the faith of Islam takes pleasure in linking itself, submitted to God. Though they do not acknowledge Jesus as God, they revere Him as a prophet. They also honor Mary, His virgin Mother; at times they even call on her with devotion. In addition, they await the day of judgment when God will render their deserts to all those who have been raised up from the dead. Finally, they value the moral life and worship God especially through prayer, almsgiving and fasting.

Since in the course of centuries not a few quarrels and hostilities have arisen between Christians and Moslems, this sacred synod urges all to forget the past and to work sincerely for mutual understanding and to preserve as well as to promote together for the benefit of all mankind social justice and moral welfare, as well as peace and freedom.

So why would Pope Benedict silently pray while the chief Mufti of Istanbul offered a vocal prayer? He has sought to develop relationships between Catholics and both muslims and Orthodox Christians. Both of these aims have origins in both the pastoral teachings of the Church through the Second Vatican Council. Pope Benedict prays not to embrace a meaningless moral equivalence between Christianity and Islam. He prays in order fulfill the call of the Holy Spirit as he sees it: united all the brothers in spite of the scandalous divisions that exist between them. How can he hope to welcome muslims if he refuses to share in the significant spiritual experience of their tradition--prayer to God? Whether the mouth-foamers from both ends of our respective traditions recognize it or not, Christians and Muslims pray to God. Nostra Aetate attests to this. We defy this teaching of the Church at our peril.

Pope Benedict XVI said at the beginning of his Pontificate that he sought to listen to Christ and lead others to listen to him. He continues to exemplify this on his pilgrimage in Turkey. May we all do the same!

Colbert on Pope Benedict

Is this priceless comedy or what?



Hat tip to Gerald Augustinus and the Curt Jester.

What can one make of Mr. Colbert? Is he truly a believing Catholic and a genuine Fool? Or is he the most Foolable of pretenders out to ham up his ratings?

CVSTOS FIDEI believes he is:

Last nights Colbert Report on the Comedy Central had Stephen Colbert (the host of course) on his "The WØRD" segment come out defending the Pope in Turkey and putting Islam in their place because Jesus is the Son of God, not a prophet. The audience seemed a bit shock but they came around to his comedy and began applauding again, after Stephen Colbert recited the Nicene Creed of all things!

Stephen Colbert is a comedian that is the host of this show. It's basically a mock-news show of a clueless conservative playing to the crowds liberal sensibilities. I've been wary to say if he is orthodox in his Catholicism, but every little bit that I see of him brings me closer to the realization that he is at least an honest Catholic trying to practice our Catholic faith. Maybe even a practicing, dare I say, orthodox Catholic? One can only hope.

I'd like to share his hope. Mr. Colbert himself offers an interesting testimony:



and



He certainly jokes about Catholicism and Catholics like an inside man. Even if he's not, it doesn't change one thing: He is one funny comedian!

Update: Welcome, Happy Catholic readers!

Still Harping?

Archbishop Desmund Tutu isn't satisfied. According to the famed cleric of S. Africa, Pope Benedict XVI still has some "fence-mending" to do:

It seems to me that his Holiness might have made whatever point he sought to make less provocatively and given the heightened tensions already abroad -- what with controversies over cartoons, the wearing of veils, etc. -- all, especially high profile people, require the wisdom of a Solomon not to exacerbate already fraught situations.

It seems too from the Pope’s pointed apology not for the offending quotation but for the reaction it provoked, it does seem as if we will require some fence-mending.

Since the Pope quoted a critic of Muslims' excesses in a lecture meant to emphasis a dialog routed in reason, he hasn't practiced wisdom. Ah, profound!

Well, commenter Pete offers an appropriate response:

With respect, I wonder if you read the Regensburg speech?

Even a cursory reading shows the Pontiff chose his words quite carefully. Any reasonable reading of the speech also leads one to conclude that it was an earnest attempt to dialogue with Islam by beginning to unite faith and reason. That is the chasm that Benedcit XVI and John Paul II said must be bridge. (see Fides et Ratio)

Simply put, God, the Logos, (Reason) is Love. When one acts counter to Love by accepting or promoting violence one acts counter to God (and thus Reason). I believe that is the main point of Regensburg and I am not sure how the reasonable man can reasonably disagree.

As you know, Christianity is adamant in stating that we are called to image Christ through the love (charity) and service of neighbor. As you also know, man is made in the image and likeness of God. And this image reveals that man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself. (see Gaudium et Spes #24.)

I suspect Benedict XVI wants us to focus upon Western cultures need to re-discover the concept of service, in charity, to all. For when one serves others hundreds of times a day in the small and the big things in life one finds their true "Self" their "Personhood". And this true Self, this Person is Christ--for we are all called to be Alter Christus (other Christs). And that is why I am sure you will agree that Christianity is more akin to an anthroplogy than a religion.

I strongly suspect that the Holy Father would welcome a dialogue that begins to harmonize faith and reason. As you have noticed the Pontiff did not "apologize" for Regensburg for it would be improper to do so. Rather he stated something like he was sorry if his words caused anyone to be hurt. Why can't he "apologize"? Simply because to do so would be against reason. His faith prompts him, in charity, to be ever "reason"-able and thus to image Christ to every one he meets--in his thoughts, deeds and words. Love hurts. And if we need any proof of that--look at a crucifix.

Finally, post Regensburg the easy thing to do would be to "sugar-coat" the discussion, to "water-it-down". Rather, I suggest the Pontiff evidences true love (charity) by a seeking fullsome and open dialogue. For why would one want to explore issues/questions with friends who will agree with you. True dialogue and understanding comes from discussion with those friends who disagree with you.

Well said, in my humble opinion. Would that Archbishop Tutu had considered such a perspective before offering his well-meaning but misguided advice.

If we can't agree on reason (not Reasonableness) as the basis upon which we can agree on a world-view, we're all lost. The Pope said nothing more--and nothing less--than that. The world would be wise to acknowledge that.

Turkey in the EU?

Pope Benedict XVI has reversed his position on the entry of Turkey into the EU.

The Times of London has more:

The Pope arrived in Turkey yesterday and within minutes appeared to back the country’s bid to enter the EU. He appealed for Christian-Muslim reconciliation and called on all religious leaders to “utterly refuse to support any form of violence in the name of faith”.

His controversial and potentially hazardous visit to an overwhelmingly Muslim country — it was intended originally to help reconciliation between Catholics and Orthodox Christians — was “pastoral, not political”, he insisted.

The build-up has been marked by setbacks in Turkey’s bid for EU membership — which Benedict XVI as a cardinal once termed a grave error — and a row in the Muslim world over his remarks about Islam in a university address two months ago.

His attempt to launch the four-day trip in a spirit of dialogue immediately came up against political realities. Asked by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, about the country’s EU prospects moments after his arrival, Pope Benedict voiced his support. “He said, ‘We’re not political, but we wish for Turkey to join the EU’,” Mr Edogan told reporters after the meeting.

However, a papal spokesman later clarified the Pope’s remarks, saying that he had told the Turkish leader that the Vatican did not have the power or competence to intervene, but “viewed positively and encouraged” the process of Turkish entry into the EU “on the basis of common values and principles”.

Mr Erdogan had also made an about-turn by agreeing to greet Benedict XVI at Ankara airport and hold talks there. In a break with protocol he greeted the Pope, 79, at the steps of his aircraft, a mark of respect from a leader who had initially said that he was too busy to meet him.

The Pope in turn appeared to nod understandingly when Mr Erdogan explained that he had to attend the Nato summit in Riga. Mr Erdogan said: “The most important message the Pope gave was toward Islam, reiterating his view of Islam as peaceful and affectionate.”

Pope Benedict's reversal makes sense in the context of his mission to Turkey. He seeks to promote a dialog between Christians and Muslims, as well as promote the unity of Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians. He could hardly accomplish these goals if he continued to object to Turkey's petition for EU membership.

I hope that he won't allow that reversal to become a blind eye to Turkey's incultured discrimination against Christians in the secular nation. If Turkey truly wants to become an EU member, it must act like one. That means not zoning discos across the street from parish churches and the like. Dialog with Muslims must not come at the expense of Christians. Otherwise, it ain't dialog.

Considering the Holy See's support for reciprocity, I don't think that will be the case. The Holy Father's welcoming of Turkey into the EU may, in fact, help ease tensions against him, and against the West in general, which have flared up there lately. Time will tell.

Pope Benedict XVI in Turkey

The Church needs to breathe with two lungs.

The world's largest monotheistic faiths need to live in mutual respect and peace.

Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Turkey to further those goals.

The AP has the story:

Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Turkey Tuesday on his first visit to a Muslim country, where he will seek to ease anger over his perceived criticism of Islam and mend a split with the world's Orthodox Christians.

The pope's airplane landed in the Turkish capital of Ankara, amid a massive security operation designed to thwart any attempts to disrupt the pontiff's four-day trip at a time of heightened tension between the West and Islam.

Before departing for Ankara, the pontiff said in Rome that he was embarking on a "trip of dialogue, brotherhood and reconciliation at this difficult moment in history."

Turkish police monitored the highway leading to Ankara from the airport, where Turkish and Vatican flags waved in a light breeze. Snipers climbed atop buildings and hilltops. In wooded areas along the route, soldiers in camouflage fatigues set up observation points and sniffer dogs passed along bridges.

Benedict's journey is extraordinarily sensitive, a closely watched pilgrimage full of symbolism that could offer hope of religious reconciliation, or deepen what many say is a growing divide between the Christian and Islamic worlds.

The outcome depends partly on the words and gestures of Benedict, who triggered an outcry in September when he quoted a 14th century Christian emperor who characterized the Prophet Muhammad's teachings as "evil and inhuman."

The Vatican said the speech was an attempt to highlight the incompatibility of faith and violence, and Benedict later expressed regret for the violent Muslim backlash.

The original goal of the pope's trip to Turkey was to meet Bartholomew I, leader of the world's 300 million Orthodox Christians. The two major branches of Christianity represented by Bartholomew and Benedict split in 1054 over differences in opinion on the power of the papacy, and the two spiritual heads will meet in an attempt to breach the divide and reunite the churches.

Benedict leaves Ankara on Wednesday for Ephesus, where the Virgin Mary is thought to have spent her last years, and will then travel to Istanbul, a former Christian metropolis known as Constantinople until Ottoman Turks conquered it in 1453.

His visit has immense implications for all of us and for the world. We can all pray for his security and success on this pilgrimage. Jimmy Akin offers us a prayer that a reader forwarded to him:

SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE WITH HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI ON HIS PASTORAL VISIT TO TURKEY

NOV. 28 – DEC. 1, 2006

Heavenly Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name, we humbly ask that you sustain, inspire, and protect your servant, Pope Benedict XVI, as he goes on pilgrimage to Turkey – a land to which St. Paul brought the Gospel of your Son; a land where once the Mother of your Son, the Seat of Wisdom, dwelt; a land where faith in your Son’s true divinity was definitively professed. Bless our Holy Father, who comes as a messenger of truth and love to all people of faith and good will dwelling in this land so rich in history. In the power of the Holy Spirit, may this visit of the Holy Father bring about deeper ties of understanding, cooperation, and peace among Roman Catholics, the Orthodox, and those who profess Islam. May the prayers and events of these historic days greatly contribute both to greater accord among those who worship you, the living and true God, and also to peace in our world so often torn apart by war and sectarian violence. We also ask, O Heavenly Father, that you watch over and protect Pope Benedict and entrust him to the loving care of Mary, under the title of Our Lady of Fatima, a title cherished both by Catholics and Muslims. Through her prayers and maternal love, may Pope Benedict be kept safe from all harm as he prays, bears witness to the Gospel, and invites all peoples to a dialogue of faith, reason, and love. We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Prayer composed by Bishop William E. Lori,
Knights of Columbus Supreme Chaplain

So Say We All!

Pope Benedict XVI on Love and Truth's Invitation

Love and Truth does not impose. Love and Truth invites.

Don't bother grammar-checking me. I'm shamelessly ripping off Max Lucado to make his point.

God, Love and Truth himself, respects our free will. He offers. We choose to accept. Or not.

Pope Benedict reinforced this in his talk before his weekly praying of the Angelus:

"Answering the Roman governor's questions, Jesus affirms His kingship but says it is not of this world. He did not come to dominate peoples and lands, but to free mankind from the slavery of sin, and to reconcile him with God. And He added: 'For this ... I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth'."

"But what is this 'truth'," the Holy Father asked, "to which Christ has come to bear witness in the world?" And he answered: "His entire existence reveals that God is love. This is, then, the truth to which He bore full witness with the sacrifice of His life at Calvary. The Cross is the 'throne' from which he demonstrated the sublime regality of God-Love. Offering Himself in atonement for the sin of the world, He defeated the dominion of 'the ruler of this world' and definitively established the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom that will be fully realized at the end of time, after all the enemies - and in the last instance, death - will have been defeated. Then the Son will consign the Kingdom to the Father and, finally, God will 'be everything to everyone.'

"The road to reach this goal," the Pope added, "is long and no shortcuts are allowed. Indeed, it is necessary for each individual to freely accept the truth of God's love. He is Love and Truth, and neither love nor truth ever impose themselves; they knock at the door of the heart and the mind and, where they are allowed in, they bring peace and joy. This is the way God reigns, this is His process of salvation, a 'mystery' in the biblical sense of the word, in other words a plan that is revealed little by little over history."

Misguided members of the Church--present and past--have ignored God's invitational nature. They thought they could coerce people into Faith, when God himself has always stretched out a hand, not a fist. The more malicious of those misguided members have even abused the misplaced efforts of their brothers, pursuing their own ambitions through inappropriate coercion.

Nevertheless, the truth remains. God calls us. He yearns for us. When we're honest, we realize we yearn for him, too. Our encounter with the mystery of his profound reality reveals to us the meaning we've always sought. Our discovery of the singular exception that is Christ opens us to the full experience of this mystery. We hunger for ultimate Reality. What a joy to realize he comes looking for us!

We can accept him and live the lives we've always wanted. We can reject him and try to nourish our starving selves on the same transient illusions. Either way, we begin to live our eternity in the wake of that decision. Yet while we live, we can always change our minds. For better or worst!

Another Witness to Hope

We all need it. Our Faith and Love starve for it. We can't persevere through the legion of obstacles without it.

Hope.

Amy Welborn believes Pope Benedict XVI expresses it with his pastoral style and Augustinian sensibility. Behold:

By the way...what exactly is the opposite of "Augustinian pessimism?" Panglossian optimism? "Augustinian pessimism" has always seemed like simple realism to me.

But I have to say, when I read items like this, I don't see pessimism. I see optimism that eventually, when presented with the truth, people will eventually find their way to it. Don't you think that has marked almost every talk that has come from Benedict? A conviction that, first of all, God is real, human beings are made by God, in his image, and find their peace in Him. (yes, Augustinian, indeed.) All of the competing voices and temptations out there will eventually fail us, individually and collectively, and we'll eventually figure out that what God is offering us is not a prison sentence, but a key to unlock the prison in which we've locked ourselves.

When I listen to him, I hear a wise old man who has just about seen and heard it all - who, especially in his years at CDF, saw the best and the worst, and who, most importantly, also saw how people find their way out of the worst. Force-feeding and slamming down the books - any kind of sudden action out of the blue - will immediately put Newton's Third Law into motion. He has a deep sense of history, and of how human beings live in history, and and an ackowledgment that human beings are not perfect and never will be on this earth. That there have never been perfect times, and never will be. What we can do is far more than just limit the damage, but it is also true that falling into the trap of having faith in our own imagined perfection has its own set of deep dangers.

What I am trying to say, though, is that i find Benedict's process, such as I understand it, indicative, not of pessimism, but of an incredible optimism. (or - per Richard in the comments - hope.) Profound faith in God, in the truth, and in how all of this inevitably connects with the depths of the human heart - and if it is just explained enough to people with an open mind...we'll get it. Eventually, we will. Forcing or manipulating is not the way to go.

He recognizes that we fall. He also understands that God will help us get back up. We need to let him. We'll do that quicker if people aren't pounding fists on lecturns in our direction. Pope Benedict understands this. He demonstrates that patience that Hope instills.

We could learn from his example. We should.