Because in an extraordinary decree that was published this week, the Vatican gave notice that it will no longer tolerate a revival of the indulgences that once defiled the sanctity of the Catholic faith. And this, I imagine, will do far more to redeem the holy character of the Church than the “Vatican’s Ten Commandments for Drivers”, which the Pope – mocking God – handed down on Tuesday….
But what makes this decree so newsworthy (and instructive) is the fact that it was issued as a rebuke against a member of the richest and most powerful family in the Catholic Church, namely: The Kennedys (who Americans seem to think wield as much influence in the Church today as the Medicis wielded at the height of their power in the 15th Century).
Although it would be disingenuous of me not to concede that if this matter concerned a member of a generic family, it would not have captured my interest. . But I could not resist sharing the schadenfreude this story evoked in me and heralding the belated comeuppance of a Kennedy.
At any rate, in attempting to exorcise the most egregious of these revived indulgences, it appears the Holy See decided to make an example of Joe Kennedy – a former US Congressman and the eldest son of Robert F Kennedy – who was assassinated in 1968. (Of course, this makes Joe the nephew of the most famous Kennedy of all, JFK – who was also assassinated in 1963.)
Here, in short, is the cardinal sin he committed, which, alas, the Vatican could not indulge:
In 1991 Kennedy divorced Sheila Rauch. (Both of whom are pictured here looking like a perfectly-unhappy couple.) But he left her after 12 years of marriage, and after she had given birth to their twin sons, in order to marry one of his young political aides named Beth Kelly. Then in 1993, he added insult to his unfaithfulness by appealing to the Boston Archdiocese to have his marriage to Rauch annulled, which was granted summarily…“in secret”.
(NOTE: Because Catholicism prohibits divorces, the Church devised annulments, which allows Catholics to remarry in a Church ceremony and continue practicing their faith, as a cleansing rite; i.e., a more sanctimonious way of dissolving marriages. Moreover, Catholic Archdioceses all over America have been all too solicitous of blessing the breakdown of marriages amongst their donors, um…er, parishioners. In fact, American marriages account for 75% of annulments granted worldwide each year.)
Nevertheless, Joe Kennedy appealing to the Boston Archdiocese for an annulment is rather like Prince Charles appealing to the Duchy of Cornwall for an easement. Therefore, Rauch faced a proverbial David -v- Goliath fight when she launched her Lutheran challenge to the grant in this case. No doubt, however, her decision to chronicle her crusade in a 1997 book entitled Shattered Faith, which exposed some of the darkest secrets of the Catholic Church, prevailed upon the Vatican to reverse Kennedy’s annulment…in the interest of justice, religious faith and common sense.
After all, by granting the annulment, the Church was representing to the world (and to God) that Rauch’s marriage to Joe was “never consecrated” (which seems like a Freudian slip for “never consummated”) because one or both parties never formed the requisite intent to fulfill the vows (conjugal duties?) of marriage, or that at least one of them was non compos mentis at the time of their marriage. But being a Kennedy, Joe had to flaunt his presumed entitlement by requesting the annulment after he had already married his nubile aide….
Therefore, God bless the Vatican for taking this bold step to redress the fallacies inherent in the granting of so many annulments. Because – as TIME quotes a Rome-base canon lawyer lamenting:
[Americans] think it’s their right….It’s not a right.
But for now: Hail Mary full of Grace!
NOTE: On a few occasions the articles I published here have stirred so much interest amongst Caribbean readers that I’ve been asked to have it republish as my syndicated article, which is featured every Friday by Caribbean Net News. And, such was the case with my article on the controversy Salman Rushdie’s knighthood incited. Although I suspect Caribbean readers are more interested in the “NOTE” I appended at the end of this article on this week’s Conference on the Caribbean in Washington, DC.
So, click here to read why it has stirred so much interest….
Joe Kennedy annulment
Shimmy says
“There is no pope” (Gertrude Stein).