Getting Caught Up

To the Western World

    the old Conservative Catholic Church appears now to just be trying to get caught up with the progress and advancements in recognizing the full dignity of women- but not quite still. The influence of the Protestant Reformation on America, a predominantly protestant country and culture is evident- George Weigel argues for only bad. That is wrong obviously- it has brought enormous good in terms of  the way the world now views womenkind. We have brains equal in diameter to men's. We have abilities far beyond what any 17th century woman was allowed to dream.

When asked how the Catholic church reconciles biblical truth with catholic tradition and authorities extrabiblical like Canon law Weigel denies there is any reconciling that needs to be done because he claims they do not conflict. When confronted with the biblical truth of the existence of women deacons in scripture he denies that they were really deacons as we understand the term (men were only given certain jobs called 'deaconate' later so its a definition game apparently.)

    The big obvious and glaring way that biblical truth conflicts with catholic tradition is in its creation of a priesthood that demanded lifetime celibacy according to canon law when in the bible Jesus gave the keys to the Kingdom to a married man, Peter, the first Pope and there is strict biblical admonition that a Bishop should be the husband of one wife with his household in order. The wisdom of that cautioning is hard to ignore- as violation of biblical norms and truths creates perversions and deviancies and a world of harm and hurt.  Priests get 'spiritually wedded' to the wierdest things who are cool with the secret lives of priest-whores and anything around substitutes for real wives, including children apparently. I guess you have to be a woman to really get this- because the head in the sand 'duh-huh?" attitude of Weigel is mind-bogglingly head-scratchingly just plain ignorant on the subject.  God understood the psycho-emotional make up of men called to serve him because he created them. He laid down the rules so people wouldn't be compromised, tortured emotionally, or creating harm to others.
When those rules are broken it contributes to the brokenness of the world and is antithetical to Love which is God. God did not want a priesthood of only celibates or Jesus would not have picked Peter, he would have picked some aescetic single monkish disciple of the hair-shirtish John the Baptist - Peter, the bible makes a point of telling us had a mother in law and a household in order.  The Vatican has written out of existence Mrs. Peter Pope who was crucified upside down next to Peter. Her tomb is nowhere revered. Her remains not relics anywhere kissed, her statue nowhere found anywhere in Rome. Wives according to Rome didn't matter. According to the Jesus of Jerusalem, they do.

    The issue of how conservative catholics view women is intricately tied with their view of the supremacy of tradition and canon law over scripture.

'Sola Scriptura' gets pooh poohed by Weigel at the same time that he pleads everyone must be scripturally literate to combat the evils of the age. Some of the evils of the age, however, it must be
understood are rooted in those who don't appreciate how some catholic 'traditions' helped those evils flourish.