Author: Eric Johnson

Mark Shea posted a snide comment about this image of Iraqi Shiites demonstrating for speedier elections:

I had the following to say in the comments box, after seeing some of the less-than-pithy postings:

I hate to introduce something so vulgar as “facts” to this discussion, but here are a few:
1. Most Iraqis are Shiites.
2. Despite that fact, most Iraqis do not like Iranians, despite Iran being the only other majority Shia nation.
3. Shiites have no problems with “graven images.” Their brand of Islam is quasi-incarnational, in that they believe in the spiritual efficacy of natural objects, unlike, say, the Wahabbis, who are very anti-materialistic. Go into any Iraqi Shiite home and you will see at least one, and probably many, pictures of Hussein Ali, the founder of the Shia branch of Islam. You might even find, as I did in one family’s home, that they have a picture of Jesus as the Good Shepherd.
4. There are fundamentalists and then there are fundamentalists. The majority of Iraqi Shiites are salt-of-the-earth types who simply want to harvest their dates or run their auto shop. They have very conservative religious views but they are not interested in an Islamic revolution, much less in exporting an Islamic revolution.
5. In all of the opinion polls conducted since the war, Iraqis have overwhelmingly indicated their preference for a secular government rather than an Islamic one. That Iraq is an Islamic country, and their secular law will likely reflect their religious values, is to be expected and even encouraged. It might be nice if our laws consistenly reflected our values — perhaps that’s an idea they could export to the U.S. I believe that idea — the enshrinement of the majority’s preference — is part of what we call “democracy.”

I found I liked the Shiites when I was among them, and Catholics have more in common with them than other branches of Islam. If I had more time, I’d write a long essay about it.

I completely agree with your post below, John. I’ve met — and seen on the Web — far too many Catholics who proceed on two false assumptions:
1. The “traditions of men” prior to Vatican II are praiseworthy merely because they are old.
2. It is impossible to be too rigid or legalistic.
In the case of #1, an example: I’m not against folk masses because I happen to prefer Palestrina. I’m against them because I think they’re not conducive to repentance or adoration — and thus they do not lead to true joy. (I use the term “traditions of men” not as an insult, but to point out that they are secondary things that flow from the central truths of the Faith.)
As for #2, it’s common to think that because you see lots of people err in one direction that it is impossible to err in the other direction. While I would not join the chorus of people who think the Church in the 1950s was a cauldron of cruel pathologies, neither would I say that it was a paradise. Doubtless, in many, possibly most respects, it was superior to our state today; however, something made millions of Catholics abandon their faith in the ’60s, so if the Church were perfect before Vatican II, then why did so many people leave?
As for the word “restoration,” I rather like the term. Our task is not to “turn back the clock” to make things as they were. Our duty is to consecrate this time and place to Jesus Christ — and though that will assuredly mean reviving forgotten practices and strengthening neglected ones, it does not mean that all things must be replicated. They need to be re-ordered; restored.

In eight months, my wife and I will send our two older children to a Catholic school in the Arlington diocese, so we’re concerned about what happens within the system. The article cited by John below is disturbing, but more because of the behavior of the protestors than the proposed sex abuse curriculum.
I have no opinion on whether “Good Touch, Bad Touch” is appropriate for kids or contradicts Catholic values. Not having seen it, I refuse to base my opinion on heresay. I do have an opinion on the obnoxious behavior of those who disagree with the curriculum. If you disagree with someone, don’t yell things or pray the Rosary to “drown out…the diocesan director of child protection and safety.”
I wasn’t there, so I can’t confirm Julia Duin’s account — but she has a well-deserved reputation for fairness and she wouldn’t write something like that unless it was true. Anyone who was there and wants to correct me, I’ll gladly amend this post.
If you were there and you were one of the people shouting or praying loudly, let me tell you something as your brother in Christ. You don’t advance orthodoxy (or orthopraxy) by making asses of yourselves, and by implication the cause you represent. How can we say that living an authentically Catholic life will make us better people if the people living that life are acting like jerks?
If you’re so fond of quoting Church documents, you might want to take a look at the Catechism’s section on blasphemy, and reflect on the part about “misusing God’s name.” You think Jesus and Mary appreciate their names being used to silence an employee of the Church — even if that person is wrong?