Archbishop Cordileone, Catholic Teachers, and the ‘Torre Test’ (from Nisi Dominus)

Many of you are familiar with the name George Steinbrenner, the long-time owner of the New York Yankees, arguably the most famous sports team in the world.  Steinbrenner was reputed to be an erratic and difficult man who could be very unpleasant to work for.  Nonetheless, Joe Torre successfully managed his baseball team for many years.  When asked how he was able to put up with his prickly and demanding employer, Torre replied (as best as I can recall), “You take the man’s money, you put up with his _____" (I have excised the scatological term used by Mr. Torre, but you get the idea).  It seems like a pretty straightforward proposition: you do what you’re hired to do, and if you can’t or won’t do the job, go somewhere else.

Former New York Yankees manager Joe Torre

     Simple, and yet there are those who just don’t get it, at least as it applies to Catholic schools.  For instance, there has been a lot of fire directed at San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone because of his insistence that teachers in the Catholic schools in his diocese agree to refrain from publicly opposing the teaching of the Catholic Church.  There was even a petition sent to the Pope signed by purported “prominent Catholics” asking that Archbishop Cordileone be removed . . . 

(Please read the entire post HERE at Nisi Dominus)