Who You Gonna Believe...
Me, or your lyin' eyes?

Two stellar examples of alleged Catholics who ask us to defy not only the obvious, but common sense as well.

SISTER JOAN, NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH SAINT JOAN
Joan Chittister, a Benedictine sister, told her audience not to be discouraged that the number of women religious in the U.S. has dropped from 125,000 to 67,000 in thirty years, a reduction of almost half. "There is a temptation to equate numbers with effectiveness," she said. "Numbers are a capitalist answer to a Christian question."

She professes to be unworried about the increasing average age of women religious. "When did we get too old, too remote, too small to sign petitions, to sit through a peace rally, to include the innocent in Iraq and Lebanon and Israel in our liturgies and public programs?"

If you have followed Chittister over the years, you will know that such lines are emblematic of her approach to religion. I can't remember her ever talking about the need to teach Christian doctrinal truths. To her the faith is reduced to petitioning and rallying, which suggests why women's religious orders have been reduced in numbers. American women have learned that, if you want to sign petitions or attend rallies, you don't need to be a nun.

“Catholic” Kerry Attempts To Siphon Pro-Life Votes With Overtures And Reclaim Catholic Vote
Former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry gave a speech yesterday at Pepperdine University in California, calling for pro-life supporters and abortion proponents to achieve “common ground” between their irreconcilable positions over abortion. However, the dubiously “Catholic” Kerry also spliced many references to his “faith” and Catholic upbringing in his speech, in what critics contend is an attempt to weaken the pro-life movement and win back Catholic voters to the Democratic Party.