The fallout continues:

Wielgus misled Pope by failure to disclose communist-era links: reports

Ex-Warsaw Archbishop Stanislaw Wielgus in effect misled the pope by his failure to disclose the true nature of his links with the former Polish communist regime, Italian media reports say, as news breaks of the resignation of another high level church official in the late Pope John Paul II’s home diocese of Cracow.

And this is why the whole affair is so unseemly. If a man slated to be Archbishop places himself and his interests so far in front of the R.C. Church and the Pope then he really doesn’t deserve to be in a position of responsibility. This sort of thinking indicates:

• A lack of faith – confession and forgiveness are nice for the pew sitters, but mean nothing to him
• A lack of discipline – you can cry Pope, Pope, Pope all you want, but if you yourself don’t believe in the guy, why bother.
• A failure to abide – rules are great for everyone else. Like celibacy (especially in Poland) is a nice concept, but I’d rather have a woman, lover, and family without being tied down by marriage. Gee bishop, she’s becoming a real pain, can you transfer me to the other side of the diocese.

Cardinal Glemp touched on a piece of the truth in his homily, the part about forgiveness and not believing every last assertion made by the secret police, but ended up flubbing that one as well.

The Cardinal had a great teaching moment thrust in front of him. He could have talked about getting the truth out, how such lies hurt all, how honesty, repentance, and forgiveness is necessary and essential for a Catholic nation. How lustration, at least in the form being practiced by right-wing zealots, will destroy the country, how Poles should come together in truth, repentance, and forgiveness. All solid Catholic teaching. Instead he focused on one man as a good guy who should be given a break. It was R.C. duck and cover (and the Polish and International press are drawing parallels to the same duck and cover that was part of the sex abuse scandals in the U.S. and elsewhere)

A new chapter begins for Voice of the Faithful – VotF – Polska.

Next up: The Rector of Wawel Cathedral has resigned for the very same reason. See: Another Polish Priest Resigns Over Secret Service Charges

The prelate of Wawel Cathedral in Krakow, Janusz Bielanski, offered his resignation to Cardinal Stansilaw Dziwisz and it was accepted immediately, TVN 24 reported…

The body count has just begun. The R.C. Church in Poland needs to do what is right by Catholic/Christian standards, not what is right politically. The Church needs to exert leadership. Otherwise the damage will be deep and more permanent, a society split – something the Nazi Germans and Russian Communists couldn’t achieve.