Monday, January 08, 2007

It's all one big plot!

Luckily the new cardinal of Poland resigned after two days. He has been a spy for the communist government and lied about it to the Pope. If, with these credentials, he would have been installed officially, then the Church would have been damaged severely. One wonders: why didn’t the Holy Father gather more information in advance for such a top position, knowing about the Polish situation? This, added to his speech in which he quoted a muslim-critical text from the Middle Ages, lets us worry about his speeches and decisions in the future. I read comments that he likes to work alone and is inclined not ask many advices. And, of course, after the resignation, adherers to bishop Wielgus got the opportunity to explain their griefs. Unfortunately, their arguments came down to the same kind of allegiances that you hear from so many protesting groups: “it is all one big plot”. Other examples of plot-planned events were: the “11th of September”, the foundation of Israel, the historical truth about the Holocaust, the expansion of the EU, etc. The plotters are always: the Jews, the Freemasons, the Capitalist, the Communist, the Americans, the Roman-Catholics, the Fundamentalist Muslims. (Scratch those not applicable to the case).
I find it remarkable how frequently these plot-theories pop up, often linking groups together that have little or nothing in common. They ignore completely facts and proofs and as such they are dangerous because they darken any discussion or negotiation. I think it stems from many peoples’ need to see the world as groups of “victims”, “perpetrators” and “helpers”, and not being able to take concrete facts and logical reasoning into consideration: it’s simply fear, and fear is a bad consultant. Of course people who think that way see themselves as victims or helpers (of other victims). They turn into “perpetrators” as soon as they find a leader against the perpetrators, just to deal with them definitively. Even then they don’t find themselves perpetrators, but helpers to remove the danger of an attack by the real perpetrators or plotters.
So I read (I hope it’s only partially true) that it’s a wide-spread belief in Egypt that the “11th of September” had been planned by Israel and America, just to have a reason to attack the Islamic world. In their minds there is no place for brother-Muslims who could do such a thing, despite facts and proofs (“all made up”).
I’m glad that bishop Wielgus withdrew his application and I hope the Pope will be more cautious in finding a successor for cardinal Glemp.

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