Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, the Pope’s point man on culture, is considered by conservatives to be a dangerous progressive, which makes him a rarity in the Pope’s inner circle.
From BNET:
A consummate communicator, Archbishop Ravasi has written, always by longhand, 150 books as well as countless articles and is an accomplished television and radio performer. Usually, his subject is the Bible, but he has also commented both on current affairs and cultural issues for several Italian dailies. His range and clarity are exceptional. He links the Bible with figures such as the Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky, with Hindu holy books, with the controversial Jesuit paleontologist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, with the Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran, with the modern folk singer Fabrizio D’Andrea.
Archbishop Ravasi is behind the Pope’s call for a reengagement between artists and the Catholic Church. (New York Times story here.)
Five hundred years ago, when the Church was responsible for commissioning the greatest work in the Western World, top artists had few choices in patrons. Today, in a wider world, it might be hard to attract their contemporary equivalents.
Christopher Hitchens offers reasons why as well as a potential solution. This is Hitchens at his best. Raised Catholic, no, boiled in it like leaves of tea, I watched both videos alone and clapped when each was over, the sound echoing in my empty room.
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