by Rose Madeline Mula

My hearing is no longer reliable.  As I sat at Mass one recent Saturday afternoon, I thought the officiating priest said something about “Fake News” and the current political climate.  Was he sympathizing with Donald Trump?  My first instinct was to walk out.  But since I hadn’t heard the context of his remarks, I wasn’t sure.  So I stayed, recalling another Mass, at another church, during another era of political contention, when another priest declaimed from the pulpit that it was our responsibility to vote for George Bush. I was furious!

 A confessional with a priest and a sinner, 1740; Cornelis van Alkemade. Wikimedia Commons

Of course Bush was pro-life, which apparently overrode any other issue in the eyes of the Catholic Church.  But not mine.  When I got home, I pulled out my computer, before even taking off my coat, and shot off a respectful (barely) email to the offending prelate.  I said I strongly objected to being told how to vote, and I did not know if I could even consider myself a Catholic anymore because I disagreed with the Church’s single-minded focus on pro-life, to the exclusion of a candidate’s position on any other issue. If Hitler had been a Catholic and was anti-abortion, I asked, would he have been forgiven for the holocaust?  And if I missed Mass one weekend for no good reason and died before I could confess this so-called mortal sin, would the Pearly Gates be slammed in my face and I be banished to spend eternity with Adolf? 

Furthermore, though I didn’t equate George Bush with Hitler, were we to ignore the fact, for one example, that under his governorship, Texas had executed a record number of convicted killers?  No problem, the priest responded, “The Church isn’t anti-death penalty.”  Wrong!  How could someone whose words I am supposed to live by be so woefully misinformed?  I sent him links to several irrefutable sites confirming the truth.  He apologized profusely so I resisted my impulse to abandon Catholicism, and I voted for Al Gore.

Flash forward to my current religion crisis.  Had this other priest expressed support for Donald Trump, whom I consider contemptible?  It was time for another email in which I asked him to clarify his — and the Church’s — position re the new tenant of the Oval Office.  I was not hopeful.  Trump, after all, is pro-life, even though he does nothing to help disadvantaged children once they leave the womb.  Thankfully (and surprisingly!)  the priest responded that both he and the Church, share my opinion of Trump and that being pro-life doesn’t give anyone free rein to commit abuses in other areas. However, They are prohibited from making strong statements to that effect because of the separation of Church and State (a precept that didn’t bother the Bush-loving priest I had encountered decades ago).

So I guess I’ll continue to go to Mass weekly and even abstain from meat on Fridays of Lent, though I don’t know why it’s now okay to gobble a Big Mac on other Fridays, which once was a sin.  And am I a heretic for believing the Church should allow priests to marry, change its policy on birth control, and abolish confession?  I mean is it logical that I be required to confess to someone who possibly had sexually abused children that I coveted George Clooney?  Also, am I wrong to hope the Church will soon “forgive” homosexuals for their sexual orientation which I believe is not a choice but a condition of birth, such as eye color?  Further, is it sinful for me to believe that women should be admitted to the priesthood?

When I expressed that thought recently, a girlfriend  (whose neck was encircled by a chain bearing a cross almost as large as the one on which Jesus was crucified) almost fainted in horror.  Will she be wearing wings in the Great Beyond while I’m sharing a fire pit with Adolf?

Given all this, am I really a Catholic — or just someone who attends weekly Mass through habit?  I ask God every day.  So far, no answer; but neither has the roof of my church threatened to cave in when I enter.

©2018 Rose Madeline Mula for SeniorWomen.com

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