Distinctly Catholic

As mentioned, this week at Q & A we will be looking at the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI to mark the publication of a new book, Pope Benedict XVI: Essays and Reflections on His Papacy, published by the USCCB.

Our first interviewee, Fr. Robert Imbelli, is a professor of theology at Boston College and he was good enough to send his thoughts on Pope Benedict's pastoral-theological approach.

The question: What is one of Pope Benedict's most significant contributions to the life of the Church?

Father Imbelli: Since he was a young student of theology, Pope Benedict found in John Henry Newman a theological and pastoral sensibility akin to his own. Newman’s concern to help believers “realize,” make more fully real for themselves, the meaning of their faith is very much Benedict’s own pressing desire.

NCR has already published the text of Archbishop J. Augustine DiNoia’s homily at yesterday’s Red Mass. I hope readers will consult it, especially preachers, because it is rare that we get such a specimen of fine preaching.

There were many fine passages. In speaking of the central dogma of our faith, the Trinity, the archbishop made clear, what is too often forgotten, that our Catholic faith makes a large claim: “Christ teaches and the Church proclaims that God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, desires to share the communion of trinitarian life with creaturely persons, that—in the famous formulation of St. Irenaeus—God who is without need of anyone gives communion with himself to those who need him.” It is easy to forget, when the Church is beset by self-induced scandals and in an age that treats religion as an artifact of an earlier and simpler time, that at the heart of our faith is an invitation to join the divine life.

The Catholic Key Blog attacks Senate Democrats, and especially Majority Leader Harry Reid, for the failure of the DREAM Act. They believe that Reid was wrong to attach the bill to a Defense Authorization bill that also included a provision regarding the repeal of "Don't Ask; Don't Tell." Of course, the actual vote last week - which every Senator voted against - would have permitted Senators to vote separately on the two provisions. Every Republican voted against bringing the bill to the floor. And that is Harry Reid's fault?

Say what you want about Rahm Emanuel's tenure as White House Chief of Staff, he was singularly effective. Although you would not know it from most of the ads being run by Democrats in Congress, the last two years have seen major legislative accomplishments, most notably health care reform, a goal that has long eluded previous Democratic administrations. The Stimulus Bill may not have saved or created as many jobs as hoped, but it stopped the free-fall the economy was in at the time. The financial overhaul lays the groundwork for a rebounding economy that will be less prone to the kinds of shenanigans that brought on the economic collapse of 2008. Emanuel played a central role in getting each of these tasks accomplished. People may not miss his brusque style, but the White House may well miss his ability to get things done.

Politico has an article up today about the SurveyUSA's polling in VA-5, which consistently show Democratic incumbent Tom Perriello trailing his challenger by twenty points or more. The Perriello camp has pushed back, releasing two internal polls that show the race as a dead heat. I am going to that district tomorrow and will have an update in next week's print edition of NCR. But, for now, let's just say that polls must always be examined with grains of salt at hand, because the different methodologies used by pollsters allow for such disparate results.