The abuse crisis is no excuse for anti-Catholic bigotry

The Scottish composer James MacMillan has composed a congregational Mass for the Blessed John Henry Newman which is to be featured at the venues of  the Pope’s forthcoming visit to Great Britain. No surprise there.  But what’s novel I think,  is that MacMillan, unusually for a composer, is a bold controversialist and an unorthodox defender of British Catholicism who has started his own blog to comment on his own press interviews.  MacMillan first slammed sectarianism as “Scotland’s Shame” 11 years …

Read more…

The Catholic crisis is damaging inter-church relations. Does anybody care?

The Vatican may be terrible at PR but it may be more politically adept in a corner than its critics give it credit for. The refusal of the Pope to accept the resignations of two minor players who may be guilty by association has a certain train of logic to it. The Irish Times followed the train in both directions, one with a theologian saying it would be better if all Irish bishops quit (but where would that leave the …

Read more…

“verdict against Galileo was rational and just…”

Galileo Galilei didn’t invent the telescope.  But he was convicted of heresy by the Catholic Church.  I’ve mentioned his trial before.  And Pope Benedict XVI’s argument that the “verdict against Gaileo was rational and just, and revisionism can be legitimized solely for motives of political opportunism.” [Adds As tierney comments below, I should have noted that Benedict is quoting the philosopher P Feyerabend] Today Will Crawley noted the arguments of a Fr Ernan McMullin On today’s Sunday Sequence, Fr Ernan McMullin, …

Read more…