Community and the legacies of faith

[rug]

October 10, 2011 - 9:23AM
Opinion by Dick Gross

Issues of faith linger and still beat in this godless heart of mine. The fate of a charismatic Catholic priest and my empty tummy after the Yom Kippur fast concern me this week.

The most turbulent priest in the land stands on the threshold of vocational martyrdom. The days when troublesome clergy could be quickly killed upon the whim of king, courtier or cleric are behind us. Now these characters are spared the sword and merely sacked. In the absence of an execution, Father Bob Maguire is to be shuffled out of office by His Eminence Archbishop Denis Hart in February.

Father Bob is many things: Victorian of the Year 2011, relentless advocate for the marginalised, Collingwood supporter (not a good point) and doyen of the media.

For those outside his home state of Victoria, it is hard to understand the extent of the appeal of this man. He is the enemy of atheism for his world view is so attractive and his charisma so all embracing that we unbelievers look paltry beside him. Yet for reasons that are utterly beyond me, the Archbishop is determined to be rid of Bob. There are ostensible reasons for his looming departure – his age, ridiculous allegations about his managerial competence and other unsupportable assertions. None of these wash for there is a huge amount of money in the bank, standing room only at Sunday Mass and a love of the man throughout the community. Of course, the Church is overflowing with candidates for the priesthood

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/blogs/godless-gross/community-and-the-legacies-of-faith-20111007-1ld1u.html