Rob Kall over at OpEdNews.Com (link on the Left) has some interesting opinion pieces regarding Pope John Paul II. The comments of Prof. Matthew Fox point out some of the things which the media has not mentioned, or mentioned only in passing the past week, despite giving hours and hours of coverage to the Pontiff's dying days and funeral arrangements.

I have to admit to mixed feelings about the whole thing myself. There is no denying the charisma the man had, nor the hardships he had to overcome throughout his life. He also inspired a great many folks to think about things like Iraq, the death penalty, etc. which they might have not considered before. On the other hand, the media is all to willing to forget some of the other things the pontiff proclaimed and pushed ahead in the quarter of a century as the leader of the Catholic Church.

The essays over on OpEdNews remind us of the conservative and sometimes backwards leaning ideas that the late John Paul promoted. As with all things it never hurts to remember the flaws along with the good things as we mourn his passing. Like all of us, the Pope was a human being capable of mistakes.