I am sorry to hear that, Jim. I am a Catholic who, too, endured officious Catholic parish karens at the front door - and priest karens. We looked around and found Catholic parishes where priests were attempting to do end runs - God bless them. They were between a rock and hard place. If they disobeyed they risked forced retirement, possibly without pensions. Further, their flock would then be without the services of a good, solid priest. Two priests we know who did everything to do end runs ended up forcibly retired. Yet bishops in other dioceses were more lenient - and looked away. It all came down to the individual bishops. Such is life.

But if we are well and deeply taught our Catholic faith, we know our faith is not in people or things. There will always be karens, cowardly bishops, and trendy priests. No matter. Our faith is in Jesus - and in our Church we believe that our personal relationship with Jesus is so deep that we insist we receive him body, blood, soul and divinity on our tongues and into our bodies as food for our hungry souls. That is the teaching of the Holy Eucharist, backed by John 6. Further, we have the sacrament of Reconciliation.

These sacraments require a priest - be he saint or sinner. Consider that a skilled surgeon may be a despicable, miserable person, but in the operating room s/he has a gift and heals with a scalpel: A doctor of the body. Priests are doctors of the soul. Not perfect, but essential. We must look beyond the sinners and find the Christ in them - and each other. A tall order, but God gives us grace.