ON THIS ASH WEDNESDAY, SOME SOBERING PROPHETIC THOUGHTS FROM THE LATE CARDINAL GEORGE OF CHICAGO

"Speaking a few years ago to a group of priests, entirely outside of the current political debate, I was trying to express in overly dramatic fashion what the complete secularization of our society could bring," writes the Cardinal. "I was responding to a question and I never wrote down what I said, but the words were captured on somebody’s smart phone and have now gone viral on Wikipedia and elsewhere in the electronic communications world. I am (correctly) quoted as saying that I expected to die in bed, my successor will die in prison and his successor will die a martyr in the public square. What is omitted from the reports is a final phrase I added about the bishop who follows a possibly martyred bishop: 'His successor will pick up the shards of a ruined society and slowly help rebuild civilization, as the church has done so often in human history.' What I said is not 'prophetic' but a way to force people to think outside of the usual categories that limit and sometimes poison both private and public discourse."

 

What Cardinal George said seems to be playing out in real time with Cardinal Pell and 1 Peter 5 seems to have made some salient points:

The Pell Fallout Continues, And it Has Implications for the Whole Church

Steve Skojec March 5, 2019

 

An excerpt:

 

 But now, after years of tireless efforts, Australia has a judgment against this hated figure who stood against the hedonistic impulses of the nation as a defender of Catholic orthodoxy. It is noteworthy, in public discussions of the case, that homosexual activists seem to be among those most gleeful over Pell’s conviction. That doesn’t appear to be a coincidence. Pell was notorious for not succumbing to their demands. He wouldn’t pretend that homosexuality was a force for societal good. He didn’t downplay the risks it posed to those engaged in the lifestyle. And so it’s no surprise that he was hated by them.