Attila the Hun, Rick the Santorum, and That Dammed Mainstream

I have big news. You might want to sit down for this.

Are you ready?

I’m moderating my views.

About a month ago, I was over at a friend’s house for dinner. She was wearing a shirt with a quote on the back. “It is not enough that I win. Others must lose,” attributed to Attila the Hun. (And yes, these are the kind of friends I have.)

”It’s not exactly Christian,” she said. “But I think it’s funny.”

Her father was a Republican strategist in Washington, and his firm printed the shirts up as something of a gag. Though sympathetic to the view (especially in light of the current political climate), I did not relish the thought of being sympathetic toward one of history’s most brutal tyrants. So I supposed a kinder, gentler phrasing would be in order. “It is not enough that I win. Others must lose gracefully.”

(Even though I am moderating my views, it is still important to remember that my point of reference is Attila the Hun.)

Then again, perhaps I should challenge the assumption that Attila the Hun would have been on the right side of the political spectrum. Being a conqueror would make him a totalitarian, which would make him an advocate for a powerful government, which would obviously make him a Democrat.

Come to think of it, I would not be to the left of Attila the Hun at all. I would be to the right—to the far right. So I guess I am not moderating my views at all. Disregard that whole bit about my having big news. What I am actually doing is clarifying.

And the word most abundantly in need of clarification in our current political lexicon would be “mainstream.” When Ted Kennedy praises the efforts of the so-called “moderate” Gang of 14 for being “mainstream,” one has to wonder why the senator did not join them if their cause was so noble. Would he, therefore, by his own definition, be “out of the mainstream”?

Recently, Senator Kennedy broke the rules of Senate decorum to call out Rick Santorum for something he wrote for an online op-ed page three years ago. Santorum, who has never been shy about expressing the Catholic faith or unable to realize the wisdom behind it, wrote, “It is no surprise that Boston, a seat of academic, political and cultural liberalism in America, lies at the center of the storm.”

Santorum was, of course speaking of the pedophilia scandal within the Catholic Church. The fact that the comment would bring such outrage, feigned or genuine, was surprising to me because Santorum was absolutely right.

The dioceses across the country that are the most liberal in terms of theology (liberal meaning to stray from the clear teachings of the Church) receive fewer vocations, face greater financial struggles, see lower attendance at mass, and have the most incidences of priestly abuse. We can argue cause or effect another time, but the correlation is just a plain fact.

At party a couple of weeks ago, I struck up a conversation with someone with whom I would soon realize that I had little in common. Believe it or not, I expressed few of my own views. (I didn’t even refer him to my blog.) Rather, believing him to be of good character, I genuinely wanted to understand his points of view, particularly his impression of Santorum’s comments, being that he was from Boston.

“Santorum said that the people of Boston deserved it,” he said in outrage.

There was no doubt that my new friend felt as though that was what Santorum said. What he actually said, though, was a different question. So when I got home, I googled Santorum, looking for his piece in its original form. What I found was a rude awakening.

Many of the websites attacking Santorum were so vile and disgusting that I hesitate even make mention of them, not wanting to inspire the slightest curiosity. But consider that if the former Senator from Nebraska, the Honorable Bob Kerrey, can suggest that “Santorum” must be “Latin for a**hole,” you can imagine how low those without honor would be willing to go. And the way they came at me was like porn pop-ups when I opened the wrong email or entered the wrong URL.

Here’s a note for you hardcore liberals out there. No one will be won over to your way of thinking by such vulgarity and hatred. Furthermore, not everyone thinks pornography is such a wonderful thing.

A note to rational people of any stripe, if you care to read Santorum’s comments for yourself, let me save you the trouble. http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=30

What Rick Santorum has said varies none from what the Catholic Church has long been saying. How these people can be shocked by that is truly shocking to me. When liberals speak of views that are “outside the mainstream,” these are the views of which they are speaking.

Those who fear I’m going to proselytize (or those who want me to) can relax. My point is only to put the Catholic Church in the context of history. The Church is not only the foundation for all Christian faiths, but Her impact on philosophy, art, and morality is without parallel. In fact, the Catholic Church has been the sole guardian of all Western thought throughout certain periods of history. Again, not a sales pitch, just a little something to consider when trying to define the concept of “mainstream.”

It used to be that Americans had a shared vision, though we may have had different views on how to achieve it. I do not believe that is true any longer. I believe the Left has so radically redefined its concept of America that it bears little resemblance to what we have long held sacred.

So, unable to win at the ballot box, the Left now seeks to redefine the boundaries and rules for debate. (Come to think of it, wouldn’t an election be an excellent indicator of what is or is not “mainstream”?) Those who hold to traditional values are viewed with suspicion, and those values are thought to be discredited as stemming from religious beliefs. They are, therefore, considered to be unfit for the public square—let alone the Supreme Court.

If the chairman of the Democratic National Committee can openly say, “I hate Republicans and everything they stand for,” ought we not ask what they think of the Church? Make no mistake about it, that which most angers, animates, and confounds the Left are the very issues that put them at odds with the Holy Catholic Church. No one knows this better than the junior Senator from Pennsylvania.

If liberals are unwilling to heed the warning of Rick the Santorum, perhaps they could learn something from Attila the Hun. In the mid-fifth century, Attila was pillaging Northern Italy, on his way to Rome. After a personal confrontation with Pope Leo the Great, he saw a heavenly vision of Saints Peter and Paul carrying swords. (The scene is depicted above the tomb of Pope Saint Leo the Great in the Basilica of Saint Peter in Vatican City.) Even Attila the Hun had the sense to turn back.

Whether or not liberals will find the same sense is a question for which we are all awaiting the answer.