Sorry, I've read a ton of church history, and I just don't buy the claim that excommunication or interdict have always been extraordinary and rare. That's really just an anachronistic projection of present realities back onto the past, which really amounts to an abuse of history to justify the status quo. Rare excommunication? Tell that to the Gnostics and Marcionites and Montanists and Quartodecimans and Donatists and Arians and Monophysites and Eastern Orthodox and Albigensians and Waldenses and Protestants and . . . . No, the real reason excommunication and interdict have become so rare in recent times in because "the love of many has grown cold." There's a grave deficiency in charity in the Church today, which prevents us from confronting erring brothers in love and applying the remedies the Holy Spirit gave us for assisting recalcitrant heretics. That's why bishops spew such drivel to excuse their giving Communion to anybody who gets in line and sticks out his hand.
Jared L. Olar | 11.24.04 - 11:23 am | #

Isn't the Church just one fascinating dance of our falleness with perfection? I'm glad that the HS is in charge of this mess, as I tend to get lost in it. I know that *my* house needs a lot of work in the perfection dept., so I should have little time for the confusions of this bad Catholic.
John Hearn | 11.24.04 - 11:29 am | #

Actually, it seems to me that Carroll and his kind win many thousands of hearts and minds. I agree that ultimately he is sterile, but there's a lot of time and distance to wreak a lot of destruction before we get to "ultimately."

I agree heartily that excommunications should be rare, give profuse thanks that it's not up to me who's in or out, and will only add that the impulse to excommunicate is like unto the impulse not to let anyone forget that Hell is in fact generously populated, and even to share a few names.
John Heavrin | Homepage | 11.24.04 - 11:44 am | #

Do not get aggravated by Carroll or his ilk. If they're so completely bent out of shape over an election- whether U.S. President or Neighborhood Dog Catcher- they're extremely unhappy folks indeed. Placing all their treasure in things of this world- bad career move. We all have enough junk in our personal attics that need disposal. Use for purposes of boffo laffs. Then move forward in one's journey in this veil of tears.
Gerard E. | 11.24.04 - 1:14 pm | #

Does this tolerance extend to Robert Sungenis?
John J. Simmins | 11.24.04 - 2:03 pm | #

Testing?
...
John C | Homepage | 11.24.04 - 4:29 pm | #

Yay! Unbanned!

Gerald E:
It's vale (like valley) of tears.

Jared:
Right on! D---'d Albigensian stole my job at the Kraft Dinner factory and a mere two months later a Montanist ran off with my wife. Now two Monophysite loan sharks have taken the rest.

All:
You can donate at my Homepage.
John C | Homepage | 11.24.04 - 4:36 pm | #

John:

I've never said Sungenis is not Catholic. Sungenis is, however, quite ready to read various people out of the Church.
Mark Shea | 11.24.04 - 5:12 pm | #

I'm not keen on excommunicating anyone, but if I were Archbishop O'Malley, I would take every single opportunity to write in to the Globe whenever Mr. Carroll elects to misrepresent Church teaching or to criticize it - and gently correct and educate him. Given how predictable Carroll is this might not take much effort: several stock letters could be prepared and merely modified as the occasion requires.

Very quickly readers will be less scandalized and more apt to add the qualifier "dissenting" in front of "Catholic writer James Carroll."
Richard | 11.25.04 - 9:13 am | #