Dear
Friends,
Good morning. As the College of
Cardinals chooses the next pope, I called three well known Catholic priests for
their assessment of John Paul II’s legacy. Father John Scarcia is the pastor of
St. Philip Neri near Pennsburg with a congregation just under 5,000; Father
Frederick Riegler leads St. Isidore’s in Quakertown with well over 8,000; and
Father Daniel Gambet, the past President of De Sales University, weighed in on
the subject.
How will historians judge John Paul
II, I wondered? His charisma was spellbinding to millions. He took the world
stage and encouraged the faithful in eastern European countries to bring down
the iron curtain and leave communism behind. John Paul II spoke for the
powerless and the dispossessed. He even apologized to Jews and Muslims for some
of the church’s sins over the centuries.
But was he wrong in denying the
ordination of women or non-celibate men? Was he correct when he spoke against
the use of condoms as AIDS killed tens of millions in
Father Scarcia spoke glowingly of
John Paul II’s legacy. “He was known as the bridge builder,” Scarcia told me.
“He went to so many countries…was determined to see other cultures and make the
Lord’s presence known to everyone.” But Scarcia does not believe that
Father Gambet had a different take.
“John Paul’s outreach to Jews and Muslims was revolutionary,” he began. “I
think he became more focused in the second half of his papacy…after he survived
the assassination attempt. John Paul put a greater influence on orthodoxy,
particularly marriage and the family. He took a stand against falling, modern
morals and culture. I admired him because he wouldn’t lower his standards. He
challenged people to meet his own [standards].
“I shook hands with him before the
assassination attempt,” Gambet continued. “He was so robust. John Paul was the
essence of athleticism. He was big and strong…rather like a football line
backer. We’ll never know what he would have been, had he not been shot. He was
physically never the same after that.
“In the long run, we’ll see a
married clergy,” Gambet predicted. “Celibacy is a man made law and it’s only
been a tradition for a thousand years. But there’s never been a woman
ordained…that’s because Christ never appointed any woman, the Da Vinci Code not
withstanding,” Gambet chuckled, as he referred to the controversial best
seller.
Father Riegler emphasized John
Paul’s influence in
“Why did so many Jews and Muslims
come to John Paul’s funeral,” Riegler asked? “Because they, like John Paul,
believe that secularism is not good. Muslims oppose Western ways, or
secularism. Muslims think secularism will undermine Islam beliefs.
“John Paul rekindled the notion that
a world without religion is a world without soul,” Riegler added. “Christians
are allies of Jewish and Muslim traditions. John Paul was attempting to provide
an opening to the
In my opinion, it will be
fascinating to see how the next pope deals with American Catholics, the vast
majority of whom believe that priests should be able to marry…and that the
priesthood should not be denied to women. We’ll have to stay tuned.
Sincerely,
Charles Meredith