Fr. Dwight Longenecker, commenting on Fr. Corapi, offers much food for thought.  Although we do not know if the accusations against Fr. Corapi are true, we should be careful not to put Priests on pedestals. Yes they represent Christ, but they are human. Becoming another Christ is something that Priests have to grow into.

Fr. Longenecker has some sound advice for all of us.

Excerpt

What’s to learn from it? Simple lessons really. First of all, don’t believe what you see. Even the  best holy man has got a shadow side. The good ones admit it. Secondly, just because of this don’t drift into cynicism. You weren’t supposed to put your trust in those guys anyway. You were supposed to look through them to see Jesus. Thirdly, while you don’t believe what you see, still strive to think the best. Don’t idolize that priest, but don’t cast him away either. He’s a real man. He has faults and foibles and sins and secrets….just like you. Try to love him for that and not for how good you think he is at his job.  Most of all, look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

Putting your trust in a priest–not matter how wonderful he is–will always be a let down. Furthermore, it’s an immature thing to do. Too often instead of doing the hard work of becoming saints ourselves we idolize someone who has become a saint or who we think is a saint. That’s shallow and too easy. It’s like a religious form of those teenage girls who scream and cry and faint when they see their boy pop idol. They mistake their own immature high octane emotions for real love. Likewise, when religious people idolize their parish priest or some media star they often mistake their love and admiration for that person for real religious emotion and fervor.

Read the entire post here.