The Man in the Red Dress: My Unlikely Friendship with Cardinal Francis George

[cbayer]

http://religiondispatches.org/the-man-in-the-red-dress-my-unlikely-friendship-with-cardinal-george/

BY CATHLEEN FALSANI APRIL 23, 2015


Cardinal Francis George of Chicago. Portrait via the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago.

From my vantage point across the aisle and a few rows back, I studied Cardinal Francis George’s reaction when our Alitalia flight bound for Pope John Paul II’s funeral in Rome hit the kind of turbulence that makes most travelers grip the armrest and offer involuntary prayers.

Cardinal George held a copy of a broadsheet Italian newspaper in his hands, arms bent at a 45-degree angle as he casually read coverage of preparations for the conclave to elect John Paul II’s successor, in which he would vote for the first time.

When the 767 airliner jostled and dipped like a possessed carnival ride, Chicago’s cardinal didn’t budge—nary a flutter of newsprint. In fact, he seemed blissfully unaware of any tumult, real or imagined.

That is a man secure in his mortality, I thought as I craned my neck to look for the flight attendant refilling wine glasses.

more at link

[trotsky]

1. What a laugh.

When the 767 airliner jostled and dipped like a possessed carnival ride, Chicago’s cardinal didn’t budge—nary a flutter of newsprint. In fact, he seemed blissfully unaware of any tumult, real or imagined.

That is a man secure in his mortality..

Or it's just someone who has been on more than a few plane rides and knows (thanks to aircraft design and the science of flight) that turbulence is normal and easily handled by modern aircraft. Naw, can't be. Only deeply religious people can be that peaceful and perfect.

[AtheistCrusader]

2. Stopped for a layover in St. Louis once.

Crosswind was so bad, you could look out the left window, see the runway, then 3 seconds later, look out the right window, see the runway. Luggage was coming down, people were screaming, some part of the plane touched down, and then the engines roared and we went back up. People around me we suddenly more horrified at MY behavior, than the plane, because I'd pumped both fists into the air and yelled 'TOGA!' and started laughing. Kept them busy for the next five minutes glaring at me while everyone desperately waited for information from the crew, who were completely too fucking busy to stop and tell anyone what was happening or why.

I didn't bother explaining the acronym. They seemed to want to remain ignorant.

This article is just an extension of the old vicious 'no atheists in foxholes' meme. Bigoted and ignorant.

[trotsky]

4. Bigoted and ignorant, but OK because atheists just need to shut up and stop protesting. n/t

[AtheistCrusader]

3. "That is a man secure in his mortality" Oh boy, another 'no atheists in foxholes' meme.

Fuck that author.

[rug]

5. An informative and knowledgeable observaton.

Unlike the ping pong players in this thread.

[cbayer]

6. Glad you liked it. I did too.