Ken Lulay (Photo courtesy of up.edu)
By Ken Lulay, Guest Commentary
If we follow the standard set by a recent Beacon article (Feb. 21, One UP priest's view...), then I am a narrow-minded, aging old man and my wife is a "drooler and fumbler." This article was neither thought-provoking nor witty. It was crass and hurtful, a fine example of poor civic discourse.
In the last years of his life, Pope John Paul poignantly preached one clear message: We have human dignity because we are sons and daughters of God Almighty. My wife in her infirmity is blessed with a heart to hear this message that others do not hear. There is no message more important and no duty of the Church more urgently needed than to preach this!
Because we knew and loved him as a father, Pope John Paul was able to preach this message loudly and clearly in a time of his life when even mumbling was a struggle. Yes, due to Parkinson's disease, he was a "drooler and fumbler" but we knew him as the man who in his youth witnessed his close friends hauled off to Nazi concentration camps, as a priest, bishop and cardinal in Poland throughout decades of hostile, atheistic Soviet domination, as the pope who supported Solidarity in Poland, leading to the withdraw and eventual collapse of the Soviet Union. We knew him as an avid skier and outdoorsman. But most of all, we knew him as the father who loved us. His numerous visits brought us the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We loved him for being human. Unfortunately, we have not had the opportunity to get to know Pope Benedict as well.
Why are we so quick to criticize such men whom we really don't know? Is our view of the world so clear that we can see that they are out-of-touch? Is our vantage point so high that we can judge them to have narrow, rigid vision? Is it because they are, in some sense, tax collectors and prostitutes... and we are not?
Pope Benedict is a flawed sinner who loves the Church. He is stepping down to allow someone more physically capable, but equally imperfect, to be the shepherd desperately needed today. That is what he has told us. He knows that it is not only possible but necessary for the Pope to lead today's youth to the good news of the Gospel. Pope John Paul did this superbly. Pope Benedict understands that he cannot.
I pray in this time of lent, this time of self-reflection, that the Holy Spirit guide this group of "aging, old men" in selecting the next Vicar of Christ. Regardless of what country he is from, I pray that the Pope will loudly, boldly and without fear, preach the message the world urgently needs to hear: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (Jn 3:16). I pray for a joyous Lent and a Glorious Easter!
Ken Lulay is an associate professor of mechanical engineering. He can be reached at lulay@up.edu.
