Classy...The Media Doesn't Disappoint

Here is a direct quote from the second page of the NY Times Obit for the Pope:

Even as his own voice faded away, his views on the sanctity of all human life echoed unambiguously among Catholics and Christian evangelicals in the United States on issues from abortion to the end of life.

need some quote from supporter

John Paul II's admirers were as passionate as his detractors, for whom his long illness served as a symbol for what they said was a decrepit, tradition-bound papacy in need of rejuvenation and a bolder connection with modern life.

"Need some quote from supporter"? Nevermind how pathetic it is that this got past the editors of America's number one newspaper...but does it sound like the writer of this obit really cares for the Catholic viewpoint? Need some quote from supporter. Nice.

Shockingly (sarcasm dripping), what wasn't missing was this quote, found in the next paragraph:

"The situation in the Catholic church is serious," Hans Kung, the eminent Swiss theologian, who was barred by from teaching in Catholic schools because of his liberal views, wrote last week.

"The pope is gravely ill and deserves every compassion. But the Church has to live. ...
In my opinion, he is not the greatest pope but the most contradictory of the 20th century. A pope of many, great gifts, and of many bad decisions!"

Among liberal Catholics, he was criticized for his strong opposition to abortion, homosexuality and contraception, as well as the ordination of women and married men. Though he was never known as a strong administrator of the dense Vatican bureaucracy, he kept a centralizing hand on the selection of bishops around the world and enforced a rigid adherence to many basic church teachings among the clergy and Catholic theologians.

Strange how the NY Times was all cued up and ready to go with criticism of the pope, but had nothing ready from any one of the millions of traditional Catholic believers. Think there's no bias against religion in the MSM? Think again.

Another example was evident in a story in the Washington Post Thursday regarding the Pope's failing health. The article begins with three quotes from concerned Catholics:

Catholic #1:

Tears welled in Jim Bradshaw's eyes this week as he watched news broadcasts of an ailing Pope John Paul II giving up his attempt at a blessing after managing no more than an unrecognizable whisper.

[...]

"We know he is suffering," Bradshaw said yesterday while crying softly. "We are all praying for him . . . because we feel for him and identify with him and we see from him that it's so true that suffering is part of the human condition."

Catholic #2:

Frances Kissling, president of the 31-year-old Catholics for a Free Choice, said she spent most of those years fighting the pope's views on abortion and reproductive health.

"I disagree with him, but that's a different issue now," she said. "Personally, I find his ill health and his stamina in suffering to be inspirational. We all think about what it is to live in suffering."

Catholic #3:

Loni Ellis, 60, who works at a D.C. law firm and disagrees with the pope's "orthodox teachings" on social issues such as abortion, contraception and homosexuality, said John Paul is "about as spiritually perfect as a mortal can be. . . . He just might be the holiest man alive."

That's it. So my scorecard shows two liberals who don't care for the Pope's or Church's teachings and want to reverse Church orthodoxy to suit their wordview, and one Catholic who, at best, is very concerned for the Pope's health. But we don't know anything about Catholic #1's politics, so I guess we can catergorize him as neutral, but distraught. So...where is the quote from the supporter of the Pope and orthodox Catholic teaching? Don't we at least get a slot for "some quote from supporter"?

Probably the most ridiculous part of the WaPo article is its unintentionally hilarious (if not so sad) headline: "Dignity Inspires Area's Faithful."

I wonder how they came up with the headline without interviewing any Catholics who actually believe in what the Church stands for?

UPDATE: Want to know how they are going to elect a new pope? Let the Chicago Tribune clue you in:

The ceremonies begin with a lying in state of the pope's body in St. Peter's Basilica. They proceed to his funeral and conclude with a conclave in which more than 100 cardinals will elect the man who will become bishop of Rome, primate of Italy, patriarch of the West and pontiff of the Universal Church.

Some procedures have changed in recent years, but one thing has remained unchanged for centuries: The election of a pope is an exclusively male affair, mostly a matter of old men electing one of their number. Under reforms drawn up by Pope Paul VI in the 1970s, and later amended by John Paul II, the conclave will begin at least 15 days and not more than 20 after the pope's death.

Thanks for the commentary.