WHY ISN’T EVERY ADULT PRACTICING CATHOLIC OFFENDED?
It’s one thing for an adolescent to post these kinds of AI images! It’s quite another thing when the President of these United States does it and he himself is doing it, not his political lackeys!
While I have no doubt that Jesus Christ loves Donald Trump, as He loves all of us sinners, I suspect that Trump might have been thinking more of the caption that accompanies the original post (which he did not also share): "I was never a very religious man .. but doesn't it seem, with all these satanic, demonic, child sacrificing monsters being exposed ... that God might be playing his Trump card !"
While I certainly share the feeling of vindication, I am also thankful that more of us are now beginning to see the truth about Trump and his henchmen. It is time to circle the wagons because, as you suggest, things are likely only going to get worse.
Whatever Biden’s shortcomings as a Catholic president, I do not recall either him or those around him attacking the Pope or even those bishops and priests who barred him from communion in their jurisdictions as Trump and Hegseth have done (although perhaps one important difference is that Pope Francis was more supportive of him personally).
Correction – I have now read additional reports and seen their reproduction of the image shared on Truth Social, and it does indeed seem that Trump also included the caption from the original post on X.
I'm not offended. Annoyed, but not offended. Trump talks too much about too many topics that no one has even asked him about, but in this case, he has a point. I'll let this excerpt from Gene Gomulka's (a former priest who had to fear for his life) Substack do the talking:
"Based on my work as a sex abuse victims’ advocate and investigative reporter, I have to concur with the accusation and say that the American-born Pope is not only “weak on crime,” but one reason he was elected was to continue the legacy of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who covered up the crimes of hundreds of bishops and thousands of priests.
"Lisa Roers, who reported to civil authorities that she and another woman were sexually abused in Elgin, Nebraska, by Father Dennis Hanneman when they were around 10 years old, appealed to Pope Francis, requesting that her complaint be properly investigated and justice be served. Her open letter was never acknowledged or answered...Lisa Roers, who reported to civil authorities that she and another woman were sexually abused in Elgin, Nebraska, by Father Dennis Hanneman when they were around 10 years old, appealed to Pope Francis, requesting that her complaint be properly investigated and justice be served. Her open letter was never acknowledged or answered...The fact that neither the Omaha Archdiocese nor Pope Leo has responded to Lisa’s letter of November 11, 2025, would indicate that the Pope and Church officials continue to cover up the criminal sexual abuse that she and another victim suffered as documented in “The Prayer of the Prey...the Pope, after almost a year in office, has yet to laicize or excommunicate even one of over 160 bishops credibly accused of abusing minors and vulnerable adults. Many accused bishops, like Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony and others, have paid out millions of dollars in out-of-court settlements in order to avoid being included in the list of credibly accused prelates. Because many countries do not report and prosecute clerical sex offenders, the number of abusive prelates is probably ten times greater than the 160+ bishops identified by Bishop Accountability."
If I was Trump, I wouldn't have said anything. But he said it--and no one has given any evidence yet that he is wrong. I believe in respecting the pope, butg when it comes to evaluating the state of the Church, we Catholics need to grow some thicker skin. Our "leaders" created this shameful situation by protecting their own instead of exercising integrity and discipline within the ranks. Now the PR chickens are coming home to roost.
I found Pope Francis to be arrogant when he thought he was right (on non-infallible issue or issues not directly tied to doctrines, rather pastoral positions). Certainly with the sex abuse issues he failed miserably but then, and finally, started to rectified things but not adequately. Pope Leo isn’t Pope Francis and we do not have a track record for him on crime—but crime is not the job of a pope to police but to make sure policies of canon law are observed, but the investigation of crime should be a secular endeavor in which dioceses must cooperate. Thus President Trump and other MAGA operative, even in the Church, throw out unrelated things to undermine the pope and thus the Catholic Church, like walls around the Vatican, inadequate and scandalous handling of crimes of clergy, be they sexual or otherwise, and the Church taking money from the government to do a better job with that money in helping the poor—if it is up to the government to do it, we all know how money is wasted in beauracracy. But that is besides the point. What in the Name of God and all that is holy does that have to do with the Pope teaching about the just war theory of the Church and rooted in Saint Augustine. We have a president incapable of receiving any kind of criticism of his polices. What offends me about Trump is that he is dragging the country down a rabbit hole of mortal sins against charity. His name calling and complusive tweeting and narcisssims and pathological lying are perhaps psychiatric issues, but these are serious in the President of the USA—but our nation has become to immune to the mortal sins against charity that go beyond sex crimes to the slaughter of the unborn and called health care and the slaughter of innocent people is indescrimnate bombings of innocent civilian. I am a child of World War II. My mother as an Italian adult in Livorno, Italy experience the type of bombing of her city that we saw in Gaza. She was one of the fortunate civilians to live through it all, even though her apartment building took a direct hit killing every person in that building who had gone to the basement during the air raid—she and her family happened not to be home at the time! And my American father fought the war and saw how the innocent suffer and often needlessly.
The president says/does stupid things - so did all his recent predecessors; only he does it more openly. And the Pope is not responsible for policing the crime he (DJT) was referring to. The Pope is responsible for policing the crime Gomulka is speaking of - and has not done much that is visible to the laity. His pattern of promotions is troubling as is his public silence on some of the more despicable acts/statements made since his elevation to Chair of Peter. Perhaps he is working quietly/behind the scenes, but it leaves most of us wondering if the Lavender Mafia will ever be dismantled.
Instead of mean tweets, Why not discuss the depths of fake Catholic Joe Biden’s evil actions as disclosed here? I guess ignoring the 900 pound gorilla in the room is the Left’s way and it amply displays the Vatican’s and USCCB’s double standard!
I, too, am offended and deeply so by these images and the accompanying rhetoric; as stupid and ill-advised as they are, they in now way rise to the level of scandal given by previous Catholic Presidents.
I think Trump should have learned during his first term to stay off of social media. He is a clown, but a lot less dangerous clown than a president from the other party. I always vote for the person/party likely to do least harm to the values upon which the country was founded, with both parties a clear danger while the democrats currently now essentially a woke socialist party staying in the running only by promising free stuff to the least productive and most dangerous parts of the society, but either party would kill their own mother or sacrifice any principle for money and power, and the future left to be somebody else's problem. Morons, all.
Jerome - To be "credibly accused" does not mean a person is guilty of a crime or sin. Unless and until that crime/sin is proven, the person is presumed innocent. "A "credibly accused" priest is a member of the clergy against whom an allegation of sexual abuse or misconduct is deemed plausible and worthy of belief by a diocesan review board or bishop, based on available evidence. This determination means there is a significant possibility the incident occurred, warranting removal from ministry, but it is not a legal finding of guilt."
"Credibly accused" means the abuse COULD have taken place, not that it has.
There is no moral equivalence between the Parties. When the Republicans all of a sudden are for abortion on demand, mutilation of children, supporting illegal aliens on the public dime many of whom murder, rape, and kill, and jailing grandma's for protesting outside of the abortionatoriums wake me up. And clergy who vote for them are going to Hell whether they believe that or not.
That's exactly how I feel. With the last election between Kamala Harris and President Trump--what a choice. Pope Francis, entering into the fray of this distopia, suggested to American Catholics that that have to make a choice between the lesser of two evils, or something of that nature. The Democrat Party, is a mere shadow of what its greatness once was which favored some many of our Catholic teachings. Abortion and the other culture wars concerning sexual ideologies and a whole lot more has changed the Democratic Party into what I call, and happily do so, the Democrat Party. This is the equivalent to calling Republicans, MAGAs! I have no problem with that either and I am using that now too. But Trump and Vance have gone off the rails with their denigration of the pope and thus every faithful Catholic throughout this country and the world. I voted for the independent the last election and now I can't even remember his name. It was a wasted vote, but I think it helped to stay out of hell at least on that one count against me.
TJM has a point. In both his speech and his weaponization of the Justice Department and his fostering of a culture of hatred for white people, Joe Biden was far worse than Trump.
I get sick of Trump's vanity and excessive blather as much as anyone else, but we have to face the reality that, whatever awful things he might say, or at times, do WE WOULD STILL BE MUCH WORSE OFF IF KAMALA HARRIS HAD BEEN ELECTED PRESIDENT. Harris would have been Biden on steroids.
A friend gave me a great analogy that describes the conundrum we voters faced: Each political party is like a ship. One ship is filled with deranged crewmembers whose maps only lead to certain shipwreck. The other ship has slightly better maps, but their leader is an egotistical man of infinite vanity who stops the ship every time he gets upset about something.
Father Kavanaugh, you're a priest and I have no desire to mix it up with you or denigrate what you say, but we cannot ignore the fact that the level of "credible accusations" has risen logarithmically in the last couple of decades. Of course, some good priests and even bad ones are falsely accused. However, looking at the record, what percentage of these "credible accusations" have proven true? I don't know the answer, but I'd be willing to bet far more were true than false.
Thank you for mentioning the experiences of your parents. As you know (and as I have posted on this Blog), my mother experienced World War II as a young woman in Germany (she was born in 1923). For some of that time she studied Economics at the University of Cologne. Cologne was virtually flattened by Allied bombing, which killed my mother’s good friend and seriously injured my mother. Additionally, near the family home, an Allied fighter plane pilot used her for target practice when she was walking home across a field, and bullets from a plane were fired into her bedroom, lodging in her metal headboard. After the War, she was in the process of being kidnapped at Hamm railway station (God knows what for) when my father, who was in the British Army of Occupation after participating in the Normandy Invasion, arrived in the nick of time and, brandishing his pistol, chased off the kidnappers. Furthermore, my mother was fortunate to find her family after the War because by then the family home had been destroyed and the family displaced to different locations.
These are just a few of the many harrowing stories I grew up hearing from my parents. I am sad for their experiences but glad they shared them with me because it provided a vivid glimpse into the bestial horrors of war and helped form my strong convictions about the evils of war. Therefore, I am deeply dismayed when I hear war being spoken of so cavalierly by whomever. Thankfully, I never experienced war myself first-hand (the British were not drafted to serve in the Vietnam War). I can only imagine what our veterans who have experienced it must be thinking, especially when they hear the crazed pronouncements from Trump, who never served, or from Hegseth, who did but who appears to be a bloodthirsty fanatic (with a Crusader cross and the Crusader “Deus Vult” tattooed on his body).
I am not completely opposed to war, Sometimes, given our fallen nature, it is a necessary evil. The Church understands this. That is why we have the Just War doctrine. But the strong presumption is rightly against war and the burden on those who would wage it to show that the stringent conditions of that doctrine have been met—both in its aspect of ius ad bellum and its aspect of ius in bello.
Yes, let’s do talk about that. But before doing so, please read the following analysis that debunks the biased Justice Department report, discussed in the article you link, on enforcement of the FACE Act. In particular, the analysis refutes the charge of selective enforcement as a smokescreen to hide the Trump Administration’s own selective enforcement:
I have often wondered whether one reason Americans are so ready to wage war is because, unlike Britain and European nations, they have never experienced the devastation from bombing on the mainland. That is also perhaps why the despicable attack on 9/11 was such a shock.
Jerome - When early researchers looked for organism X in a one-mile stretch of a river on January 1st, their study concluded that there were 25 Xs per mile in that river.
Some time later, another group of researchers studied a 50 mile stretch of that same river on January 1st and concluded that there were 2.5 Xs per mile in that river.
Still later, another group searched the entire 2000 miles of the river on January 1st and concluded that there were 0.25 Xs per mile in that river.
The comprehensiveness of the research can make a huge difference in the results.
I would suggest that the logarithmic rise in the level of credible accusations may indicate a more thorough examination, and not, necessarily, an increase in the number of actual abuse incidents.
CARA reported in January of 2025 shows that there has been a substantial decline in credible allegations against clergy. The items notes that this is likely due to the Dallas Charter working as it was intended.
A 2024 study in Australia concludes: "Child sexual abuse has been widespread in religious organizations in Australia. A decline over time indicates progress has been made in preventing sexual abuse of children."
Any credible accusation should be examined closely. There are competent civil and ecclesiastical bodies set up to do this.
Like you I have no idea how many of the accusations have been shown to be true. I do know that not a few of those accused but fully exonerated have suffered greatly as a result of the process.
Yes, Britain is in a sorry state. Many point to years of Tory mismanagement, coupled with the extremely ill-advised decision to leave the European Union—Brexit or Regrexit as it is now known. Regarding Brexit, in a January 2026 poll 58% said it was the wrong decision, with only 30% supporting it. But that’s what you get for being manipulated by the lies of the likes of Boris Johnson and Trump ally Nigel Farage (or is he now an ex-ally trying to distance himself from Trump in an exercise of damage control?). Thankfully, Viktor Orban had a part of his anatomy handed to him on a platter in Hungary’s election at the weekend, Clearly, he has now become that dreadful thing in the Trump lexicon—a LOSER (as also, it would appear, are Trump and J.D. Vance who stumped for him).
I am not trying to goad you. I AM trying to make a very serious point. I have always agreed with Francis Fukuyama that liberal democracy cannot be improved upon in the sphere of political arrangements. Sooner or later, despite the inevitable, temporary backsliding that sometimes occurs, the people will reject authoritarians and tyrants, with their attacks on the rule of law, independence of the judiciary, and the media, as well as their disregard for the truth, and their high levels of corruption and grift. This is not to say liberal democracy cannot be improved upon internally. It can and must, especially by endeavoring to cultivate virtue and practical wisdom among the people and their leaders. But, in the long run, it is much preferable to illiberal democracies such as those of Orban or, dare I say, Trump.
In case your obliquely implying that I am not a REAL American because I was not born here but am a naturalized citizen (since 1993)—a view that is held by some in MAGA circles, including, so it would appear, in Alabama where my native-born wife and I moved in January and where the Secretary of State wants to bar naturalized citizens from holding any public office (good luck with that under the equal protection clause, by the way)—I have a suggestion: Why don’t we have anyone who wants to hold public office take the citizenship test for naturalization and only those who pass would be eligible? A “blood and soil” approach to defining Americans is fraught with peril, especially given historical precedents. I think you know where I am going with all this.
25 comments:
Houston, some of us told YOU and millions of others a long time ago that YOU had a problem - and that it would get worse.
I posted the following comment in an earlier thread, but it seems to fit better here:
I see that Trump is at it again, this time sharing an image of himself with Jesus embracing him:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2026/04/15/trump-posts-ai-photo-with-jesus-days-after-he-was-slammed-for-blasphemy/
While I have no doubt that Jesus Christ loves Donald Trump, as He loves all of us sinners, I suspect that Trump might have been thinking more of the caption that accompanies the original post (which he did not also share): "I was never a very religious man .. but doesn't it seem, with all these satanic, demonic, child sacrificing monsters being exposed ... that God might be playing his Trump card !"
Mark J.
Father Kavanaugh,
While I certainly share the feeling of vindication, I am also thankful that more of us are now beginning to see the truth about Trump and his henchmen. It is time to circle the wagons because, as you suggest, things are likely only going to get worse.
Whatever Biden’s shortcomings as a Catholic president, I do not recall either him or those around him attacking the Pope or even those bishops and priests who barred him from communion in their jurisdictions as Trump and Hegseth have done (although perhaps one important difference is that Pope Francis was more supportive of him personally).
Mark J.
Because we lived through Obama worship!
Amen Father Kavanaugh
Correction – I have now read additional reports and seen their reproduction of the image shared on Truth Social, and it does indeed seem that Trump also included the caption from the original post on X.
Mark J.
I'm not offended. Annoyed, but not offended. Trump talks too much about too many topics that no one has even asked him about, but in this case, he has a point. I'll let this excerpt from Gene Gomulka's (a former priest who had to fear for his life) Substack do the talking:
"Based on my work as a sex abuse victims’ advocate and investigative reporter, I have to concur with the accusation and say that the American-born Pope is not only “weak on crime,” but one reason he was elected was to continue the legacy of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who covered up the crimes of hundreds of bishops and thousands of priests.
"Lisa Roers, who reported to civil authorities that she and another woman were sexually abused in Elgin, Nebraska, by Father Dennis Hanneman when they were around 10 years old, appealed to Pope Francis, requesting that her complaint be properly investigated and justice be served. Her open letter was never acknowledged or answered...Lisa Roers, who reported to civil authorities that she and another woman were sexually abused in Elgin, Nebraska, by Father Dennis Hanneman when they were around 10 years old, appealed to Pope Francis, requesting that her complaint be properly investigated and justice be served. Her open letter was never acknowledged or answered...The fact that neither the Omaha Archdiocese nor Pope Leo has responded to Lisa’s letter of November 11, 2025, would indicate that the Pope and Church officials continue to cover up the criminal sexual abuse that she and another victim suffered as documented in “The Prayer of the Prey...the Pope, after almost a year in office, has yet to laicize or excommunicate even one of over 160 bishops credibly accused of abusing minors and vulnerable adults. Many accused bishops, like Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony and others, have paid out millions of dollars in out-of-court settlements in order to avoid being included in the list of credibly accused prelates. Because many countries do not report and prosecute clerical sex offenders, the number of abusive prelates is probably ten times greater than the 160+ bishops identified by Bishop Accountability."
If I was Trump, I wouldn't have said anything. But he said it--and no one has given any evidence yet that he is wrong. I believe in respecting the pope, butg when it comes to evaluating the state of the Church, we Catholics need to grow some thicker skin. Our "leaders" created this shameful situation by protecting their own instead of exercising integrity and discipline within the ranks. Now the PR chickens are coming home to roost.
I found Pope Francis to be arrogant when he thought he was right (on non-infallible issue or issues not directly tied to doctrines, rather pastoral positions). Certainly with the sex abuse issues he failed miserably but then, and finally, started to rectified things but not adequately. Pope Leo isn’t Pope Francis and we do not have a track record for him on crime—but crime is not the job of a pope to police but to make sure policies of canon law are observed, but the investigation of crime should be a secular endeavor in which dioceses must cooperate. Thus President Trump and other MAGA operative, even in the Church, throw out unrelated things to undermine the pope and thus the Catholic Church, like walls around the Vatican, inadequate and scandalous handling of crimes of clergy, be they sexual or otherwise, and the Church taking money from the government to do a better job with that money in helping the poor—if it is up to the government to do it, we all know how money is wasted in beauracracy. But that is besides the point. What in the Name of God and all that is holy does that have to do with the Pope teaching about the just war theory of the Church and rooted in Saint Augustine. We have a president incapable of receiving any kind of criticism of his polices. What offends me about Trump is that he is dragging the country down a rabbit hole of mortal sins against charity. His name calling and complusive tweeting and narcisssims and pathological lying are perhaps psychiatric issues, but these are serious in the President of the USA—but our nation has become to immune to the mortal sins against charity that go beyond sex crimes to the slaughter of the unborn and called health care and the slaughter of innocent people is indescrimnate bombings of innocent civilian. I am a child of World War II. My mother as an Italian adult in Livorno, Italy experience the type of bombing of her city that we saw in Gaza. She was one of the fortunate civilians to live through it all, even though her apartment building took a direct hit killing every person in that building who had gone to the basement during the air raid—she and her family happened not to be home at the time! And my American father fought the war and saw how the innocent suffer and often needlessly.
The president says/does stupid things - so did all his recent predecessors; only he does it more openly. And the Pope is not responsible for policing the crime he (DJT) was referring to. The Pope is responsible for policing the crime Gomulka is speaking of - and has not done much that is visible to the laity. His pattern of promotions is troubling as is his public silence on some of the more despicable acts/statements made since his elevation to Chair of Peter. Perhaps he is working quietly/behind the scenes, but it leaves most of us wondering if the Lavender Mafia will ever be dismantled.
Instead of mean tweets, Why not discuss the depths of fake Catholic Joe Biden’s evil actions as disclosed here? I guess ignoring the 900 pound gorilla in the room is the Left’s way and it amply displays the Vatican’s and USCCB’s double standard!
https://thefederalist.com/2026/04/14/biden-doj-cooked-up-prosecutions-against-pro-lifers-after-abortion-industry-asked-them-to/
I, too, am offended and deeply so by these images and the accompanying rhetoric; as stupid and ill-advised as they are, they in now way rise to the level of scandal given by previous Catholic Presidents.
I think Trump should have learned during his first term to stay off of social media. He is a clown, but a lot less dangerous clown than a president from the other party. I always vote for the person/party likely to do least harm to the values upon which the country was founded, with both parties a clear danger while the democrats currently now essentially a woke socialist party staying in the running only by promising free stuff to the least productive and most dangerous parts of the society, but either party would kill their own mother or sacrifice any principle for money and power, and the future left to be somebody else's problem. Morons, all.
Jerome - To be "credibly accused" does not mean a person is guilty of a crime or sin. Unless and until that crime/sin is proven, the person is presumed innocent. "A "credibly accused" priest is a member of the clergy against whom an allegation of sexual abuse or misconduct is deemed plausible and worthy of belief by a diocesan review board or bishop, based on available evidence. This determination means there is a significant possibility the incident occurred, warranting removal from ministry, but it is not a legal finding of guilt."
"Credibly accused" means the abuse COULD have taken place, not that it has.
It is gratuitously offensive.
There is no moral equivalence between the Parties. When the Republicans all of a sudden are for abortion on demand, mutilation of children, supporting illegal aliens on the public dime many of whom murder, rape, and kill, and jailing grandma's for protesting outside of the abortionatoriums wake me up. And clergy who vote for them are going to Hell whether they believe that or not.
That's exactly how I feel. With the last election between Kamala Harris and President Trump--what a choice. Pope Francis, entering into the fray of this distopia, suggested to American Catholics that that have to make a choice between the lesser of two evils, or something of that nature. The Democrat Party, is a mere shadow of what its greatness once was which favored some many of our Catholic teachings. Abortion and the other culture wars concerning sexual ideologies and a whole lot more has changed the Democratic Party into what I call, and happily do so, the Democrat Party. This is the equivalent to calling Republicans, MAGAs! I have no problem with that either and I am using that now too. But Trump and Vance have gone off the rails with their denigration of the pope and thus every faithful Catholic throughout this country and the world. I voted for the independent the last election and now I can't even remember his name. It was a wasted vote, but I think it helped to stay out of hell at least on that one count against me.
TJM has a point. In both his speech and his weaponization of the Justice Department and his fostering of a culture of hatred for white people, Joe Biden was far worse than Trump.
I get sick of Trump's vanity and excessive blather as much as anyone else, but we have to face the reality that, whatever awful things he might say, or at times, do WE WOULD STILL BE MUCH WORSE OFF IF KAMALA HARRIS HAD BEEN ELECTED PRESIDENT. Harris would have been Biden on steroids.
A friend gave me a great analogy that describes the conundrum we voters faced: Each political party is like a ship. One ship is filled with deranged crewmembers whose maps only lead to certain shipwreck. The other ship has slightly better maps, but their leader is an egotistical man of infinite vanity who stops the ship every time he gets upset about something.
Father Kavanaugh, you're a priest and I have no desire to mix it up with you or denigrate what you say, but we cannot ignore the fact that the level of "credible accusations" has risen logarithmically in the last couple of decades. Of course, some good priests and even bad ones are falsely accused. However, looking at the record, what percentage of these "credible accusations" have proven true? I don't know the answer, but I'd be willing to bet far more were true than false.
Father McDonald:
Thank you for mentioning the experiences of your parents. As you know (and as I have posted on this Blog), my mother experienced World War II as a young woman in Germany (she was born in 1923). For some of that time she studied Economics at the University of Cologne. Cologne was virtually flattened by Allied bombing, which killed my mother’s good friend and seriously injured my mother. Additionally, near the family home, an Allied fighter plane pilot used her for target practice when she was walking home across a field, and bullets from a plane were fired into her bedroom, lodging in her metal headboard. After the War, she was in the process of being kidnapped at Hamm railway station (God knows what for) when my father, who was in the British Army of Occupation after participating in the Normandy Invasion, arrived in the nick of time and, brandishing his pistol, chased off the kidnappers. Furthermore, my mother was fortunate to find her family after the War because by then the family home had been destroyed and the family displaced to different locations.
These are just a few of the many harrowing stories I grew up hearing from my parents. I am sad for their experiences but glad they shared them with me because it provided a vivid glimpse into the bestial horrors of war and helped form my strong convictions about the evils of war. Therefore, I am deeply dismayed when I hear war being spoken of so cavalierly by whomever. Thankfully, I never experienced war myself first-hand (the British were not drafted to serve in the Vietnam War). I can only imagine what our veterans who have experienced it must be thinking, especially when they hear the crazed pronouncements from Trump, who never served, or from Hegseth, who did but who appears to be a bloodthirsty fanatic (with a Crusader cross and the Crusader “Deus Vult” tattooed on his body).
I am not completely opposed to war, Sometimes, given our fallen nature, it is a necessary evil. The Church understands this. That is why we have the Just War doctrine. But the strong presumption is rightly against war and the burden on those who would wage it to show that the stringent conditions of that doctrine have been met—both in its aspect of ius ad bellum and its aspect of ius in bello.
Mark J.
TJM:
Yes, let’s do talk about that. But before doing so, please read the following analysis that debunks the biased Justice Department report, discussed in the article you link, on enforcement of the FACE Act. In particular, the analysis refutes the charge of selective enforcement as a smokescreen to hide the Trump Administration’s own selective enforcement:
https://www.justsecurity.org/136275/separating-fact-from-fiction-face-act-enforcement/#
Mark J.
I have often wondered whether one reason Americans are so ready to wage war is because, unlike Britain and European nations, they have never experienced the devastation from bombing on the mainland. That is also perhaps why the despicable attack on 9/11 was such a shock.
Mark J.
Mark of Merry Olde England should focus on the failure of his former homeland! Mississippi is ahead of them economically!!
https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/2026/04/16/sorry-britain-but-youre-just-another-europoor-country-now-n4951861
Jerome - When early researchers looked for organism X in a one-mile stretch of a river on January 1st, their study concluded that there were 25 Xs per mile in that river.
Some time later, another group of researchers studied a 50 mile stretch of that same river on January 1st and concluded that there were 2.5 Xs per mile in that river.
Still later, another group searched the entire 2000 miles of the river on January 1st and concluded that there were 0.25 Xs per mile in that river.
The comprehensiveness of the research can make a huge difference in the results.
I would suggest that the logarithmic rise in the level of credible accusations may indicate a more thorough examination, and not, necessarily, an increase in the number of actual abuse incidents.
CARA reported in January of 2025 shows that there has been a substantial decline in credible allegations against clergy. The items notes that this is likely due to the Dallas Charter working as it was intended.
A 2024 study in Australia concludes: "Child sexual abuse has been widespread in religious organizations in Australia. A decline over time indicates progress has been made in preventing sexual abuse of children."
Any credible accusation should be examined closely. There are competent civil and ecclesiastical bodies set up to do this.
Like you I have no idea how many of the accusations have been shown to be true. I do know that not a few of those accused but fully exonerated have suffered greatly as a result of the process.
TJM:
Yes, Britain is in a sorry state. Many point to years of Tory mismanagement, coupled with the extremely ill-advised decision to leave the European Union—Brexit or Regrexit as it is now known. Regarding Brexit, in a January 2026 poll 58% said it was the wrong decision, with only 30% supporting it. But that’s what you get for being manipulated by the lies of the likes of Boris Johnson and Trump ally Nigel Farage (or is he now an ex-ally trying to distance himself from Trump in an exercise of damage control?). Thankfully, Viktor Orban had a part of his anatomy handed to him on a platter in Hungary’s election at the weekend, Clearly, he has now become that dreadful thing in the Trump lexicon—a LOSER (as also, it would appear, are Trump and J.D. Vance who stumped for him).
I am not trying to goad you. I AM trying to make a very serious point. I have always agreed with Francis Fukuyama that liberal democracy cannot be improved upon in the sphere of political arrangements. Sooner or later, despite the inevitable, temporary backsliding that sometimes occurs, the people will reject authoritarians and tyrants, with their attacks on the rule of law, independence of the judiciary, and the media, as well as their disregard for the truth, and their high levels of corruption and grift. This is not to say liberal democracy cannot be improved upon internally. It can and must, especially by endeavoring to cultivate virtue and practical wisdom among the people and their leaders. But, in the long run, it is much preferable to illiberal democracies such as those of Orban or, dare I say, Trump.
Mark J.
TJM:
In case your obliquely implying that I am not a REAL American because I was not born here but am a naturalized citizen (since 1993)—a view that is held by some in MAGA circles, including, so it would appear, in Alabama where my native-born wife and I moved in January and where the Secretary of State wants to bar naturalized citizens from holding any public office (good luck with that under the equal protection clause, by the way)—I have a suggestion: Why don’t we have anyone who wants to hold public office take the citizenship test for naturalization and only those who pass would be eligible? A “blood and soil” approach to defining Americans is fraught with peril, especially given historical precedents. I think you know where I am going with all this.
Mark J.
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