(Tim, w/thanks to David W.) Some years back, I was responsible for escorting Mother Theresa across several blocks in downtown St. Louis to the venue where she was about to address the Presbyterian Church (USA) on the subject of abortion. As we walked (or tried to walk), our way was obstructed by scores of desperate mothers and grandmothers pressing up against one another as if they were bodies trying to get on a Japanese commuter train, each holding out a picture of some loved one--a child or grandchild--that they wanted Mother Theresa to look at, touch, and bless. I felt like I'd been transported in time back to the medieval world...
This is one more part of the Roman Catholicism our evangelical brothers and sisters who have Poped would like us to overlook. But it's all of a fabric. After Pope Benedict kissed New York Jets quarterback Kellen Clemens' four week old daughter, Clemens said:
I don't really know if we fully understand just how special it was. That's a direct descendant of Peter, and there he is giving a blessing and a kiss to our child.
"Direct descendant of Peter?" The poorest and most obscure believer living in the world today is an adopted son of God.
