Offender Of the Faith

The brouhaha over Mel Gibson's arrest and drunken anti-Semitic comments got me thinking about the issue of religious bigotry recently. As a Catholic, Gibson probably feels alienated for his own faith in light of the disregard many have for the Church these days, and he apparently overreacted accordingly. This explains but does not excuse his hateful remarks against Jews, and it's worth mentioning that Gibson and has dad subscribe to a sub-sect of Catholicism that wishes the Second Vatican Council had never happened. It's big of Jewish leaders, though, to respond favorably to his desire to reach a rapprochement with Jews and his wish to set things right with them.

Gibson is and should be ashamed for suggesting that Jews are responsible for ever major war in recent history. (William Randolph Hearst, a Protestant, started the Spanish-American War.) But what about anti-Catholicism? The reforms of the Second Vatican Council haven't made the Church much more favorable in the eyes of outsiders. I find it interesting that the same people who applauded Sinead O'Connor for tearing up a picture of the Pope on American television are ready to bash Gibson for his anti-Semitism. In fact, when anti-Semitism rears its ugly head, it's quickly disposed of. But when anti-Catholicism rears its equally ugly head, it's allowed to fester. Catholic-bashing seems to be tolerated very much in these days, as evidenced, for example, by Madonna's ability to dress as a nun at a costume party while Pope John Paul II lay dying without anyone complaining. Except for William Donohue, leader of the anti-defamation Catholic League, who, being an obnoxious right-wing blowhard, was ignored. The Jews are lucky to have someone as articulate as Abraham Foxman defend Judaism from malignant comments. All we Catholics have is William Donohue.

This is really embarrassing . . .