That Spoon Just Wasn't Long Enough

There was a time when Roman Catholicism was the great defender not only of its own liberty but of that of others. There was a time when the prelates recognized that the liberty of the church to govern itself in light of its guiding principles was inseparable from the liberty of other corporate bodies and institutions to do the same.

No longer. Catholic leaders became so interested in "social justice" that they forgot to consult the history of their own Church's contributions to human liberty and neglected to consider the likely consequences of their pact with government: so argues conservative historian Paul A. Rahe.

Rahe isn't 100% correct in his analysis, I think, but he certainly sheds much light on how the American Church managed to lose the respect of government, a process that must be reversed. Recommended by Rush today, American Catholicism's Pact With the Devil is a thoughtful article, followed by a conversation between Rahe and his commenters that answers many questions.
 
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