…please try to stay away from divisive U.S. politics.
Dear Father Loya,
Thank you so, so much for continuing to make this wonderful podcast that has greatly enriched my spiritual life and taught me so much about Eastern Rite Catholicism/Christianity. I just finished listening to episodes 946 and 947. Ep. 946 about St. Michael and the Incorporeal Beings was tremendous! Ep. 947 was also good, and I learned more about how the iconostasis and the sanctuary in Eastern churches echoes the Holy of Holies from the Jewish Temple. However, you lost and kind of upset me when you waded (again) into divisive politics and started to equate the iconostasis with the U.S. southern border.
I think the analogy of separating a holy sanctuary with the current border crisis is a pretty big stretch. And though you said you were not promoting any particular political party, you were clearly advocating and defending, by name, a particular divisive political figure and his policies. You have shown similar explicit or implicit support before for particular politicians, in multiple previous episodes (including one focused on the southern border) and it has seemed equally inappropriate.
Personally, I’m pretty politically conservative, and I am a big supporter of strong border security and tight immigration policy. But I don’t think these political issues have much to do with Eastern Christian spirituality or heritage. I also don’t think it wise to be seemingly trying to turn off a large segment of listeners — who do not support certain U.S. political figures — from the beautiful message you have of uniting Eastern and Western Christianity.
Anyway, that’s just my two cents. Please continue your excellent podcasts on the beauty and truth of Eastern Catholicism. But please avoid divisive, non-religious political issues. Thank you.
—Longtime Listener
