Saturday, June 1, 2013

Andrew Greeley and I...

...were both born to Irish Catholic families in Oak Park, Illinois, seventy years apart. But while Father Greeley went on to become a Catholic priest, of course, I drifted away from Mother Church and now consider myself "post-Catholic." (I have a lot more questions than answers.)

Greeley had a lengthy obit in the Times, which said, among other things (my emphasis):

The pugnacious style, sweeping generalizations and ad hominem attacks often found in his writing made him an alienating figure. “Andy Greeley shoots from the hip at practically everyone with whom he has some grievances,” Rabbi Marc H. Tanenbaum, a leading advocate of improving relations between Judaism and the Catholic Church, complained to The Times in 1976.

I guess Father Greeley and I had more in common than just our shared backgrounds (and fondness for bad hats).

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