Or is Fr. Flanagan of Boys Town fame just another dissenter of yore who's currently being co-opted by troublemakers to promote some covert agenda of their own? For better or worse, I suppose, Spencer Tracy's portayal of him in the movies will eclipse the real man in the popular imagination: www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNqFqinW32Y

But isn't that necessarily part of the hagiographic scenario here? It seems to me that Catholicism has become in recent decades a religion of nothing more than sex regulation, bioethics and socio-political bandwagons to legislate same, a church whose whiny & incessant tsk tsks are actually eroding any sort of moral leadership it once enjoyed on the world stage. I mean, how long has it been since they've canonized a saint who had any real fire in his belly, whose moral vision never faltered and who called his fellow clergy out on the mat over child abuse?

By contrast, there's something intrinsically insipid about Mother Teresa, J-P II, Pius XII, Escrivá and even Newman, something that suggests they all sold out to the Establishment and then spent the rest of their lives trying to justify it to themselves. None of that really struck home with me until I found this piece yesterday on a new grassroots movement in Nebraska to get Fr. Flanagan canonized, and-- whew-- what a difference in character and the whole definition of sanctity he represents when lined up with the others.

Anyway, details here:

Hi Cherubino,

Yes, I think Fr. Flanagan is a good choice for canonization.  I don't compare the saints, or measure them up one against the other.

Our pup would probably approve.  2 1/2 years ago after forty years of being a household with cats for pets, I told my husband thatI wouldn't mind if he could got a dog.  We went to the local shelter and adopted a cute black and tan dog--larger than I wanted, but nice looking.  The shelter experience reminded him of Fr. Flanagan, Whitey Marsh, and Boystown.  The black and tan orphan dog didn't fit the name "Whitey" or "March" either, so he would up being named Rooney.

Every so often, just for fun, I'll call my husband "Tracey".

Mar 2, 2010 -- 6:19PM, tmore35 wrote:

Hi Cherubino,

 

Yes, I think Fr. Flanagan is a good choice for canonization.  I don't compare the saints, or measure them up one against the other.

 

Our pup would probably approve.  2 1/2 years ago after forty years of being a household with cats for pets, I told my husband thatI wouldn't mind if he could got a dog.  We went to the local shelter and adopted a cute black and tan dog--larger than I wanted, but nice looking.  The shelter experience reminded him of Fr. Flanagan, Whitey Marsh, and Boystown.  The black and tan orphan dog didn't fit the name "Whitey" or "March" either, so he would up being named Rooney.

Every so often, just for fun, I'll call my husband "Tracey".

Tmore:

We adopted a black and tan cat from a Doctor friend, with whom I used to (occasionally) drink a 'black and tan', him being Irish and all (and me English).  But it worked.

We named the cat (may she rest in peace) for our beloved time together--Guinness (and Harp).  Best cat we ever had.  35 pounds of Irish humor, grace beyond measure, and an occasional sip of 'me foam. 

Good luck with your adoption!

IMHO those deserving sainthood are, Fr Flanagan, Fr Damian, Fulton Sheen and JohnXXIII.

The notion of canonization of PiusXII nauseates me.