Terri's story had been in the news for a few weeks when it made the headlines of our newspaper. I took the opportunity to throw out the curriculum and spent the entire day discussing it with my students. Years later, they still occasionally tell me they remember that day in class. However, one little know-it-all snot nosed whiny who despised me (feeling is mutual to this day) decided that day to write his own little pro-death anti-Terri editorial in the school paper. I'm pleased to say, it wasn't well received and there was backlash.
Prayers for Terri, her family, and all the others who met the same fate.
I will tell you what really upset me.
I was at the vigil just a few days before Terri died (I live in Florida, but in a different part of the state). The BISHOP of her diocese had forbidden priests to assist her, so the only priests were those from out of state or outside the diocese, and they were thin on the ground. In fact, there were virtually no defenders of Terri.
There were more news media representatives than there were people trying to support Terri. One of them interviewed me and I swear she was embarrassed by the fact that they had set up huge tents along the side of what was expected to be a massive protest...and there were more of them than of us.
JPII bears a lot of responsibility for tolerating the worst of the worst among bishops. Lynch was known as Bishop Speedo because of his fondness for photographing young men in Speedos, including one of his administrators, who sued him for sexual harrassment and got an out of court settlement; in addition, he was actually moved to St Pete’s because he had gotten involved in a financial scandal in Miami. Sadly, BXVI has left him in place.
A fish rots from the head, and until these rotten bishops are gone, the Church in America will never be healed. But no Pope has the courage to remove them.