fbpx

By now, you have had the opportunity to meet five of our principal writers through their debut posts on this site. You will be hearing more from Paul Fahey, Pedro Gabriel, Brian Killian, Pete Vere, and myself in the weeks and months to come. We have a number of additional contributors waiting in the wings with their own unique perspectives and insights as well.

The feedback we’ve received has been very heartening: many of our readers have told us that they’ve been waiting for a site like this. There have been relatively few voices in the public forum that support and defend the Holy Father from an orthodox and faithful perspective. Much of the commentary on Pope Francis, and especially Amoris Laetitia, has been negative. Some of it has been angry, dismissive, and even offensive. Much of the negative commentary takes his words out of context or refuses to give him the benefit of the doubt.

That’s not to say that all the commentary has been negative. One of the goals of this site is to draw our readers’ attention to the excellent work of others on these topics. Our Resources page is a work in progress, but our goal is to provide a comprehensive directory of articles, blogs, and multimedia resources that explain and defend the work and teaching of the Holy Father.

We certainly picked an interesting time to launch this site. So far this week, two stories have dominated the Catholic news world.

First, there’s been a great deal of discussion over German Cardinal Reinhard Marx and what he did or did not say last week regarding the blessing of gay couples in the Church. Certainly, since Cdl. Marx is one of Francis’ most trusted advisers and allies, many are suggesting that his opinion is reflective of the pope’s, or at the very least says something about the type of company Pope Francis chooses to keep.

Secondly, and much more importantly in my opinion, is the unfolding story about the letter written by a Chilean victim of sexual abuse by a priest, which new evidence shows was presented to Pope Francis in 2015, despite his denial that he had ever seen any evidence that now-Bishop Juan Barros had witnessed or been complicit in the abuse.

Some of our readers have asked us if we plan to comment on either of these stories. I am certain that we will, in time. What we will not do is jump to rash conclusions before we have heard both sides of each of these stories. Our goal is to analyze each issue and clearly articulate the pope’s position, not to reflexively defend him before all the facts are available.

For example, I am currently working on a piece about the negotiations between China and the Vatican, which I hope to publish later this week. I am glad I waited, because a number of excellent analyses have been written recently, and I want to be sure I fairly and accurately represent all of the main issues surrounding a very complex topic.

Thank you for reading, and stay tuned for some excellent posts in the coming days.

[print_link]


Discuss this article!

Keep the conversation going in our SmartCatholics Group! You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter.


Liked this post? Take a second to support Where Peter Is on Patreon!
Become a patron at Patreon!

Mike Lewis is the founding managing editor of Where Peter Is. He and Jeannie Gaffigan co-host Field Hospital, a U.S. Catholic podcast.

Share via
Copy link