I think there is an underlying philosophy in our society today, that dictates that there is one absolutely correct line of thinking - and that all those that who adhere to that line of thinking, are wonderful; and all those who think otherwise, are evil and must be suppressed.

The trouble is, nobody can agree on what that absolutely correct line of thinking should be, so we all go around chasing those people who think otherwise and are evil and must be suppressed. Is it really so horrible, that somebody says something we disagree with? Are we morally bound to condemn and attack and destroy who don't see things our way?

Must all of life be a matter of right and wrong, good and bad, attack and defeat?

The Catholic faith doesn't work for people who see things in absolute terms. It's far too messy, far too open to discussion. Take the stuff about pagan babies and all the fantastically perverse stories about the saints and the crazy nuns of the 1950s. If you take all that stuff seriously and literally, you can't help but see the Catholic Church as evil. If you take it all with a grain of salt, you can see it as rich and colorful and human and funny - warts and all. The Catholic Church is a rich and ancient culture and tradition. Nothing about it is perfect - but then, is anything perfect? Everything about the Catholic Church is in an organic state of slow but constant evolution - is that so bad?

-Joe-