Edward Gibbon had it right. In "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" he wrote: "The influence of the clergy, in an age of superstition, might be usefully employed to assert the rights of mankind; but so intimate is the connection between the throne and the altar, that the banner of the church has seldom been seen on the side of the people."

Just as everybody was told Benedict's Hitler Youth story, everybody is now being made aware that Francis has in the past been politically expedient in his dealings with various Argentinian governments.

Reality check: no-one cares any more.

The papacy has simply taken one more small step towards its inevitable irrelevancy.

One interesting sidelight though, is the current incumbent's leanings towards asceticism, which are nicely contrasted with our Australian Cardinal's penchant for spending his diocese's money on personal comforts.

I for one look forward to the newspaper pictures of Pell travelling to work on public transport.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/13/jorge-mario-bergoglio-pope-poverty

Why public transport?

What is good enough for the boss should be good enough for the staff.

As we are told in John 12:14 (KJV), "And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written,"

Though I accept in this age of social media we can eschew the earlier Numbers 22:28 (KJV) aspect, "And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass..."

(I wouldn't google any of those references without safesearch enabled)

Popes and cardinals leading by example would be both innovative and the Christian thing to do.

Ah. The Christian thing to do. What is the Christian thing to do? It would seem that what is done in the name of Christ or for the furtherance of a brand of Christianity is the Christian thing to do.

Thus the Crusades, the Inquisition, the witch hunts and many other activities done for Christ or Christianity are all Christian things to do.

Let the one who never sinned cast the first stone.

Don't be silly, WmTrevor.

>>As we are told in John 12:14 (KJV), "And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written,"<<

Where is a modern-day member of the clergy going to find a suitable young ass in Sydney?

You simply don't come across them these days.