Pious rhetoric could kill John Paul II cult

Published on 2 May 2011 at 09:44

Cover

“Blessed” — so runs the headline in today’s Gazeta Wyborcza after the beatification ceremony for pope John Paul II before a gathering of around a million believers in Rome on May 1. “The beatification showed that pope Wojtyła is still alive. So alive is the Church enlivened by his message” noted a Rzeczpospolitacolumnist adding that “the ceremony had a global character as John Paul II’s pontificate was global.” *Gazeta Wyborcza*’s chief religion commentator Jan Turnau, however, pleads with his fellow believers not to spoil the late pope’s image. “The pope bears testimony of the Church, but the Church bears testimony of the pope too: with your pseudo-pious rhetoric, if not actually with intellectual narrowmindedness and religious aggression, you make him bland and parochial. You close him in your sacristies, you take him away from people outside the Church boundaries”, observes Turnau and adds: “Let’s try to do just a little: have him treated by the ecclesiastical world like a rabbi — a sage worth listening to. One of the wise men of today. [...] Not an ethical instructor, but a counsellor.”

Tags

Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!

It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.

Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!

Are you a news organisation, a business, an association or a foundation? Check out our bespoke editorial and translation services.

Support independent European journalism

European democracy needs independent media. Join our community!

On the same topic