I suppose that with his generally sound left-wing credentials, it shouldn't be a surprise that Cardinal Mahony has latched on to the cause of illegal immigrants, too. But I wonder if there isn't something else going on, too.
With his many liturgical abuses duly documented, his support for highly questionable speakers at his recent religious eduation conference, and his possible vulnerability to prosecution now that he has failed to keep records of priestly abuse out of the courts, the Cardinal has to know that he may soon be in the crosshairs for reassignment to some backwater, at best, for the rest of his career.
I wonder if he's thinking: I've paid my dues now to the forces that marshalled those hundreds of thousands of demonstrators in the streets of L.A. recently, in support of illegal immigrants. If Rome tries to move against me, maybe I can call in some favors and get a few hundred thousand of those same people demonstrating in the streets of Los Angeles in my support.
Now, I doubt that such a ploy would have any effect on Benedict, but I can certainly imagine it appealing to the very politically savvy Cardinal.
Just a thought.
In 1867, Matthew Arnold wrote "Dover Beach", a haunting poem evoking the "melancholy, long, withdrawing roar" of the Sea of Faith. As a boomer who finished Catholic elementary school in 1964 and then watched my Church falter, I've found the roar all too audible. So here I wait, listening for the whispers of that Sea's invincible return.
