Papa Don’t Preach

By Joseph Catena

Many right-minded and traditional Catholics held our collective breath throughout the papacy of Pope Francis. The tenets of our faith and rigid belief that God will guide the Church allowed us to survive Francis’ woke reign.

When the white smoke billowed and Cardinal Robert Prevost, an American, transformed into Pope Leo XIV, Catholic curiosity was piqued. His Chicago White Sox fandom, work with the poor in Peru, and ability to speak several languages offered little insofar as which direction he would lead the Church. However, his past comments about environmentalism and immigration gave the right some unease.

There was also a flip side.

Leo has shown affection and respect for the Tridentine or Traditional Latin Mass, something Francis all but tried to snuff out. He has been open in his approach to loosening restrictions and allowing it to be celebrated. Multiple sources have confirmed that Leo has privately celebrated the ancient Mass on many occasions. This type of appreciation for the pre-Vatican II liturgy had not been seen by the faithful for more than a decade.

Would Leo’s tenure showcase the progressive ramrod of Francis or the traditional leanings of Pope Benedict XVI?

So far, it’s a mixed bag, trending slightly toward Francis. And that’s the trend that Catholics must pray to reroute.

Shortly after being elected pope, Leo met with Vice President J.D. Vance. The meeting was respectful and thoughtful, but there was no hiding the fact that the pontiff was not in agreement with the Trump-Vance immigration agenda. Since then, it has become more vocal.

In a recent statement from the Vatican, Leo drew some major lines on social issues and U.S. policy.

“Someone who says I’m against abortion but is in favor of the death penalty is not really pro-life,” he said. “And someone who says I’m against abortion but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”

As we dissect this verbal hand grenade, there are flaws. Being against abortion means favoring protection of the most vulnerable of God’s creatures; the unborn. Equating a serial killer or a gangbanger to a baby in the womb is a very poor parallel. Unborn babies are angels. Other than Original Sin, they are perfect beings who did no harm to anyone. Pedophiles, serial killers, gangbangers, and ax murderers are imperfect criminals with no regard for human life. Some might even call them scum of the earth (which is hard to argue against).

Capital punishment is a severe deterrent that can save lives. How many times do we see the aforementioned gems let free, perhaps on a technicality, and destroy more innocent people in their path? When Christ was being crucified on the cross, there were two criminals on either side of him facing the same fate. One of them reviled Christ, while the other repented and asked Jesus to remember him. God Almighty did not spare them. They served their punishment. Hopefully, the man who repented and saw the light at the very end was able to enter the Heavenly Kingdom.

Although Pope John Paul II was a staunch opponent of the death penalty, it was not completely ruled out. When he wrote his encyclical “Evangelium Vitae” in March 1995, he did state that execution is only appropriate “in cases of absolute necessity, in other words, when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society.” Long before his encyclical, the universal catechism of the Church said the right of the state to punish criminals with appropriate penalties “not excluding in cases of extreme gravity, the death penalty.”

One must immediately wonder if Hammas fits John Paul II’s description of “absolute necessity,” especially since their favorite pastimes consist of raping and beheading women and babies.

Turning back to Leo, how can he assert there is inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States? Has he seen the ilk that has been punished and deported? What exactly has been so inhumane with the treatment that gangbanger/wifebeater Kilmar Abrego Garcia has received? Did Laken Riley or Rachel Morin’s savage illegal alien killers get treated unfairly or inhumanely? Perhaps the pope may want to get familiarized with U.S. immigration laws and analyze the textbook law enforcement being applied by brave ICE agents throughout the country.

What was equally disturbing in a much different way was the sight of Leo blessing a large block of ice during a climate change event at the Vatican. Why is the Vatican hosting a climate change event? Enough already with climate change! It’s called weather and throughout the history of the world, it has deviated. Remember the ozone scare in the 1980s? Remember how radical environmental loonies told us to stop using cans of hairspray and deodorant because the gases were eating into the ozone, and the sun’s rays were becoming more potent? Then, we learned that the ozone repairs itself.

Immigration differences aside, laying hands on a block of ice is simply ludicrous. There is a difference in praying that the Lord keeps the planet safe, resilient and resourceful than making the ceremony into something that a bunch of hippies who worship dirt and flowers would do on Earth Day. Catholics do not need their Vicar of Christ becoming Francis-lite, especially on matters concerning the environment.

More Benedict, please!    

For those keeping score, Leo is 1 and 2. Catholics can only hope and pray that his reverence for the Traditional Latin Mass and his openness to having it celebrated freely is a breath of fresh air for many worshippers. It seems safe to say that whether it is the Novus Ordo or the Old Mass, Leo wants to see it done with dignity and veneration. It is also safe to assume that the hootenanny Catholic Masses featuring tambourines, guitars, liturgical dances and jazzy music are not something Leo will be promoting. God bless him for that.

Liturgy, doctrine and theology are his wheelhouse, as President Trump would say. Maybe Leo is the right man after all to right the Catholic ship that his predecessor had fecklessly steered into dangerous, choppy waters. For this reason, the flock should be grateful.

Conversely, making daft comments about U.S. policy and unfounded accusations about how law enforcement is treating criminals have no place in any homily or public commentary. This is where the pontiff must defer to The Donald. He must avoid this type of preaching at all costs.

But let’s give Leo a chance. Hopefully, multitudes of the faithful will pray hard enough for the pope, and he will be enlightened enough to back off the politics. Maybe he will even issue a mea culpa or three.