And here's one of the good birdcage droppings, the kind that fertilize rather than stinkbomb productive conversations:
The real trouble is that those most affected by (narcissism) — which is actually a kind of mental disorder — are people who have a lot of power. Often bosses are narcissists. … Heads of the Church have often been narcissists, flattered and thrilled by their courtiers. The court is the leprosy of the papacy.
And in the same interview, the pope also states:
It also happens to me that when I meet a clericalist, I suddenly become anti-clerical. Clericalism should not have anything to do with Christianity.
Which is why--observations like the preceding are why--the Catholic and evangelical right have their knickers all a-twist right now, every time the pope opens his mouth. Francis is, as Rod Dreher informs us (even as Dreher applauds the preceding two observations), preaching the social gospel, after all.
And, my God!, we can't have that. Not from a pope. There is Truth, Weaponized Catechetical Truth, and Truth takes precedence over every other gospel value--though it's a word Jesus used far, far less than he used the word "love."
