Social Club or Church?

Here's a line from a 2003 interview with then Cardinal Ratzinger that shows it's probably not a good idea to hold your breath waiting for changes in the Catholic Church to make it more palatable. When asked the greatest danger facing the Church, Ratzinger said, "I see the great danger is that we would be only a social institution and not founded in the faith of the Lord." The difference obviously is that a social institution may change its nature to make it easier for members to belong. A social institution exists to give people what they want. A religious organization exists to give people what's good for their eternal souls, which isn't always what they want.

-tdr