George Wiegel on The Chicago Tribune, the fiasco at Notre Dame, and Bad Catholics

The entire article is a first-rate, blistering account of politics and media running amok and trampling the truth at every turn. But the last sentence of this paragraph is especially painful. What might have been?

The Tribune is going broke but nonetheless believes itself fit to instruct other institutions on the conduct of their internal affairs. Thus, in defending their disapprobation of the cardinal, the editors note that “Obama won a majority of the Catholic vote in November” and that “Joe Biden, who is Catholic, was honored to be Obama’s running mate.” Memo to editors: Ad primum —There are a lot of bad Catholics. Most of us are bad Catholics to one degree or another; that’s why we go to confession. That we sin, make mistakes, and fall short of the requirements of Christian discipleship in our personal and public lives does not mean that sin is no longer sin, that wrong is now right, or that discipleship is a matter of lifestyle choice or ethnic heritage. Ad secundum — Joe Biden, a career politician of minimal accomplishment, large ego, and vast ambition, would likely have accepted the second slot on a Democratic ticket headed by anyone this side of the asylum marked “Dennis Kucinich lives here.” Joe Biden is no more a model Catholic than Ted Kennedy — the one man in America who, as the late Henry Hyde frequently said, could have led a successful, culture-transforming pro-life movement positioned as the heir of the civil-rights movement championed by his martyred brothers.

Aaargh. Where are we going?