How did we get to this strange passage? Even the Babylon Bee is making fun of the Pope now.
My guess is that it started with the Pope meeting with Obama adviser David Axlerod. Officially the narrative reverses that and claims that the Pope met with Axelrod after nameless Pentagon officials threatened his ambassador to the United States by invoking the Avignon Papacy, but that seems so much like an Obama-era Ben Rhodes sort of scam story that I assume it is an information operation. Probably, anyway; at least one Trump appointee at the Pentagon is enough of a history buff to have a Jerusalem Cross tattoo, a symbol of the Crusades because it was* the flag of the Kingdom of Jerusalem; and the same French king who kidnapped the Pope destroyed the Knights Templar, that most famous of Crusader orders. So maybe it happened like it's being reported in the press; but it's noteworthy that there are no names at all attributed to the threat, and nobody has stepped up to claim it. The Trump administration is not shy about making threats, after all.
The Pope had earlier condemned the war with Iran, but Popes do that sort of thing. Calling for peace is part of the job. Then this alleged meeting supposedly happened, an arcane historical reference was allegedly made by a Trump appointee, and the Vatican allegedly interpreted it as a threat. Then three Cardinals of Archdioceses that happen to also be Democratic Party strongholds -- including Chicago, where the Pope is from himself -- appeared on 60 Minutes, a show that has regularly featured media attempts to known down Republican or prop up Democratic Party figures.
The President having no lack of stomach for publicity fights decided to lash out at the Pope; the Pope, for reasons best known to himself, decided to go on a "Catholics are in Communion with Islam" tour and (people also note that he apparently opened a Muslim prayer room inside the Vatican last November); and then Trump decided to post an image of himself dressed in a costume traditionally associated with Jesus, or with Tarot Cards, while performing a 'laying on hands' healing like Aragorn or a Dungeons & Dragons Paladin. The President of Iran praised the Pope and condemned the President. All this led to a spirited debate about whether Trump or the Pope was actually the Antichrist and apparent Iranian agent Tucker Carlson decided to join in, as did Democratic funnyman John Stewart.
The last, at least, also fits in with a Team Obama information Operation. The general chaos fits in with a Team Trump Standard Operating Procedure.
Like a good Stoic, I recognize that I can't actually fix any of this or even much affect it; so I'm just trying to enjoy the wild ride. What else can you do?
* The flag is still flown in Jerusalem; I have one I brought back with me. The flag flown today is red-on-white, (argent, a Jerusalem Cross gules) rather than the gold-on-white (argent, a Jerusalem Cross or) that the Crusader Kingdom is said to have used. Those familiar with the laws of heraldry will recognize that the gold-on-white violates the Rule of Tincture. Gold/yellow and Silver/white are both 'metals,' and it's normally forbidden to place a metal on another metal. The red-and-white flag is flown by the Church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City; the Order of St. Francis, I believe, has the charge of that quarter.
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