The Revealer wonders about something that pops up regularly around here:

Better questions for religion writers are: Does the mostly conservative St. Blog’s Parish present a bigger challenge to Church hierarchy than lay people’s democracy movement? How come progressive Catholics tend to meet in Church basements while conservative Catholics gather in the blogosphere? What will happen if — when — these lay-people movements converge?

I don’t have an answer to the question of why the “conservative/orthodox” perspective dominates in Catholic blogs. I have no idea. But I do think that the answer to the general question, in many parts of the country, when “progressive” Catholics meet in church basements – or halls – it’s because they have power.

DRE’s and diocesan staff who would bring in Joan Chittister or Richard McBrien in a heartbeat to speak to their people would fight to death against Scott Hahn or Patrick Madrid making a presentation. I’ve seen it again and again. I was at a gathering of diocesan youth ministers who practically (pardon me) came to group climax over the mention of the name of Joseph Girzone, but who immediately changed their tune at the mention of someone else…don’t remember who…but who they immediately labeled as a “Steubenville type” who must be avoided.

It’s changing, and the situation varies from diocese to diocese. But in many places, it’s still 1978.

I think one of things that has to be rememered too, is that Catholic blogs exploded in the wake of the January/February 2002 revelations about the clergy sex abuse scandal. People on all sides were shocked and appalled and there was absolutely nowhere else where venting and analysis could occur outside the paradigms of either the secular or Catholic press, both of which are very limiting in their own ways. But why most of the conversation, again, emanated from the conservative/orthodox viewpoint…I dunno.