Pope Benedict XVI has chosen to welcome back into the fold a Bishop who is on record as denying the Holocaust. Bishop Richard Williamson of Great Britain (left) was excommunicated 20 years ago on grounds that his consecration and that of three other bishops had not been papally approved, according to an AP report. The rehabilitation of the bishops is part of an effort to re-establish relations with a religious order that had split from the Church in 1970 in protest of the reforms of Vatican II. As the NY Times points out, this sends warning signs that Benedict himself may pull back from those reforms, which included condemnation of anti-Semitism. Combined with the Vatican's pointed criticism of Obama for his executive order returning federal funding to international organizations that practice or advise abortion, it looks increasingly like this Pope and this White House are going to be at odds. Good thing, that — although the specter of a Vatican that offers even tacit approval of anti-Semitism at this particular historical juncture is anything but reassuring. In fact, it's pretty outrageous.
This article appears in Jan 21-27, 2009.