Letters

Readers responded to our stories on the new Pontiff with celebration— as well as disillusionment. Conservative Catholics rejoiced; progressives lamented that a reformist papacy would have to wait

TIME's cover stories on the election of Pope Benedict XVI and about his religious philosophy were excellent [May 2]. I believe he was chosen by the Holy Spirit. It's fine to talk of worldly politics, but in the end, the Pope, Christ's vicar on earth, is elected simply because it is the will of God. I have absolutely no doubt that Benedict is the right man for the job.
Bill Sullivan
Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S.

Thank you for your coverage of the election of our new Pope. We Catholics cannot explain in mere human terms the joy of having chosen a Pope. But as the whole world has seen, we certainly can express that joy. As free and responsible persons, we follow the Pope, the vicar of Christ on earth, not out of fear but out of love. We know by faith that when we listen to the Pope, we follow Christ.
(The Rev.) Michael Angelo Cardenas
Manila

You revealed the new Pope to be an uncompromising old man who will not respond to American Catholics' disenchantment with the church's antiquated edicts. Doctrinal disagreements in the past have caused groups to split from the Catholic Church and go their own way. When will a new generation of Catholics refuse to tolerate the frustration they feel about church dogma that they do not follow anyway? Can they find a new Martin Luther to break with the power-hungry old men in Rome? In a new church in synch with current values, vacant pulpits could be filled by married men and by women. The "cafeteria Catholics," who choose the church teachings they wish to follow and whom the Pope disdains, would return to their pews on Sundays. Enlightened views on contraception, stem-cell research, sexual discrimination and abortion could be accepted. The question is not if but when such a break will occur. The new Pope may be the catalyst for that sorely needed change.
Dick Decker
Seaside, California, U.S.

Rules Are Rules
Andrew Sullivan, in his viewpoint "The Vicar of Orthodoxy" [May 2], seems frustrated that the Catholic Church won't be swayed by those who want it to break with 2,000 years of consistent doctrine. The church, seen theologically as the spouse of Christ, has done what a good mother should do: teach us and guide us on the narrow path. She reminds us that the church family is not a democracy and that it is not her job to be our friend. She is our mother—consistent, a little old-fashioned—and she instructs us and gives us shelter on the road to heaven.
Catherine Baron
Morrisville, North Carolina, U.S.

The U.S. has become a moral wasteland in no small measure because we Catholics have done a bad job of forming our conscience and then living in accordance with it. Abortion, embryonic-stem-cell research, pornography and morally offensive "alternative" lifestyles would not have become so entrenched if we had given a hoot about living our faith.
Paul Buckley
Bennington, Vermont, U.S.

I have been frustrated with the church many times and considered leaving, but I am inspired by the gay parishioners at my church. They are fellow Catholics who have more reason to be angry than I do but whose faith is so important, who love their church so much, that they stay. The new Pope is not going to drive me out. Progressive Catholics need to stay in the church and work harder than ever for change.
Carol Eckert
Tempe, Arizona, U.S.

Anarchy in Nepal
Alex Perry's report on Nepal's civil war [April 25] didn't go into the misdeeds, turmoil, corruption and anarchy of the 14 years of our country's democratic rule. The political parties spread disenchantment across the nation. Our leaders were not resolute, and their fickleness cost thousands of Nepalese lives. The parties in power never gave a thought to the insurgency; they were keen only on gaining the position of Prime Minister. Such irresponsible leadership wrecked our country. So we cannot just go on blaming the King or the Maoists, because they are not the prime causes of the discord. The only way that the parliamentary processes can be revived is for party leaders to hand over leadership to the younger and more competent generation. Democracy cannot be synonymous with anarchy and whim.
Rishav Shrestha
Kathmandu

On the Waterfront
Chaim Estulin's article [May 2] alleges that for over a century Hong Kong has "misused its greatest asset," Victoria Harbour, and that little has been done by the government to protect it. This is not true. Land reclaimed from the harbor over the years has contributed greatly to Hong Kong's economic development and its status as an international financial center. Nonetheless, the government recognizes that Victoria Harbour is a special public asset, and it shares the public's aspirations to preserve it. In May 2004, the broadly representative Harbour-front Enhancement Committee was established to advise the government on planning, land use and development along the existing and planned harbor front. We will continue to listen to the public in determining how best to preserve the harbor for the benefit of the community and future generations.
Michael Suen
Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands
Hong Kong

Pressing Tony Blair
I was pleased that columnist Joe Klein mentioned BBC interviewer Jeremy Paxman in his article on Tony Blair's election campaign [May 2]. Paxman's pointed questioning of Blair about the Iraq war is exactly the kind of journalism that politicians hate: relentless pressure for direct answers. Over the years several interviewees have actually walked out of on-air sessions because of Paxman's rigorous approach—the kind of tough-style journalism that the U.S. media need to adopt. They are far too deferential to U.S. politicians and let them get away with scripted and misleading answers. What a joy it would be to see Paxman grill President George W. Bush and others in his Administration.
Nigel Pond
Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.

Bolton's Image Problem
Re your story on the controversy surrounding John Bolton, Bush's choice as American ambassador to the U.N. [May 2]: Does the U.S. really want a contender for worst boss to represent it to the rest of the world? A former colleague called him a "kiss-up, kickdown sort of guy." Too many of us know the type. All of us should feel the injustice every time that sort of person is rewarded. The U.S. has an image problem in much of the world. We're seen as out of control, arrogant and a bully. Yet the Administration wants a guy at the U.N. who is out of control, arrogant and a bully.
Steve Linsey
San Francisco

Protecting the Picked Upon
We can't blame excessive TV watching for the problem of bullying, as one study does [May 2]; it has been going on for a long while. The solution does not lie in teachers' or parents' being vigilant. Bullying is often done stealthily and out of sight of authority figures. Usually the only witnesses are children. And they are the ones who can stop the bullying. I'm not suggesting physical violence, just verbal intervention and a show of disapproval. I know that can work because I used to do it when I was a little girl. Nobody ever hurt me or any of the other kids who worked with me on my antibully patrol. Somehow my parents helped me know that I could and should do that. Parents should teach their children to be protective of those youngsters who can't defend themselves. Then maybe there would be fewer incidents in which kids take guns to school to wreak vengeance on their bullying tormentors.
Margaret Hill
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.

The first time I was bullied was on the playground when I was in the fourth grade. The last time occurred when I was in a ninth-grade classroom. The only difference: in the fourth grade I was a student, and in ninth grade I'm the teacher!
Katherine Mary Riniker Keil
Dubuque, Iowa, U.S.

Why are we surprised at schoolyard bullying? We live in a society in which bullies win: the macho cops, cowboys and action figures of movies and TV. George W. Bush bosses the world around. We describe overbearing behavior in adults as strong, decisive leadership; in children, we call it bullying. Those who seek the cause of bullying need look no further than the tough guys our society views as role models.
Madeleine Boucher
New York City

Man of Iron
Arnold Schwarzenegger seems to be experiencing a few problems as California's Governor [May 2]. It might cheer him to read an excerpt from Richard Schickel's Jan. 24, 1977, review of Pumping Iron, the documentary that helped make Schwarzenegger a household name:

"[Pumping Iron] is a very good film, beautifully shot and edited, intelligently structured and—to risk what will surely seem at first a highly inappropriate term—charming. Yes, charming ... The film's second, longer half deals with professional-level competition in the Mr. Olympia contest. The filmmakers have found an ideal protagonist ... 'the one and only' Arnold Schwarzenegger, 29, an Austrian-born U.S. citizen, six times winner of this title and anxious to retire on a seventh victory. A cool, shrewd and boyish charmer, HE EXUDES THE EASY CONFIDENCE OF A MAN WHO HAS ALWAYS KNOWN HE WILL BE A STAR OF SOME KIND (and who could, if this movie takes off, become a multimedia presence of some force) ... Arnold has a gift that cannot be acquired no matter how hard an athlete trains, no matter how many pep talks ... he absorbs. It is, of course, the gift of charisma, something capable of magically compelling his opponent's collapse and the judges' favorable votes."