Friday morning in Cleveland, and at last I have a bit of time to myself. I have given eight talks in different cities over the last nine days, and it was hectic. But I have an easy time here, with my talk not scheduled till tomorrow evening. My only duty today is to have lunch with two of the leaders of the US association of Catholic Priests, which should be interesting. Talking to the priests I have met in my round so far, the general feelings seems to be that the US association is too timid, not nearly assertive enough. Some of the more progressive priests seem to prefer Call to Action, as a group that are tackling issues in a more direct way. They tell me that the crisis in Church and ministry is urgent, and it is not a time to be mild and gentle in approach; most of all they tell me that trying to have dialogue with the bulk of American bishops is a total waste of time.
So I am looking forward to hearing what the two men from the Association will have to say on all that, and how they read it.
Apart from that, I have a relaxed day, and I welcome that.
