What a contrast there was on that fateful SCOTUS Thursday last week between the women and the male judges! The former talked about speeding up the process and about the price to be paid by allowing presidents vast immunity loopholes.
The male judges, drowning in Patriarchy and exuding disdain, arrogance and privilege, wrapped themselves in airy fairy rationalisms and self-aggrandizing visions about the future. They purposefully ignored the elephant in the room–the case at hand–which is that voters have a right to know the facts behind January 6 before they vote.
Saith Gorsuch, “I’m not concerned about this case, so much as future ones.”
Saith Kavanaugh, “I’m not focused on the here and now this case. I’m very concerned about the future.”
Saith Alito: “I’m going to talk about this in the abstract because what we decide is going to apply to all future presidents.”
Talk about living in one’s heads! Choosing abstractness and future hypotheses over reality. Fleeing the heart and lower chakras where one’s capacity for caring, empathy, compassion, moral outrage–and justice–reside!
Aquinas: “The proper objects of the heart are truth and justice.”
Patriarchy, thy name is Arrogance! Or Disdain; or Scorn on those in less than high places. American voters for instance.
Fascism was also in the room and for many reasons. Opus Dei operative and now billionaire Leonardo Leo got the six current right wing and far right-wing justices on the court (and hooked many up with extremist billionaires with cases before the court). Opus Dei is a secret religious organization founded by Spanish fascist priest Escriva.
Fascism seeks to destroy judicial systems in order to accomplish its goals. Historian Timothy Snyder applied that truth to last Thursday’s SCOTUS moment in Monday night’s “Last Word with Laurence O’Donnell” program.
Christofascism is at our doorstep—and closer than that. It is ensconced in the very unSupreme Court fashioned by Leo. Patriarchy and Fascism are all about control, the more the better.
Citing Rosemary Ruether, I often talk about patriarchy being built on dualism—the dualism of spirit vs. matter, for example. Another instance of its dualism is us vs. them–with disdain for the “them.”
And of course, men vs. women. Men feeling anointed to kill Roe v. Wade and thereby control women’s bodies. Misogyny is peak dualism. And disdain. And arrogance.
See “Opus Dei,” in Fox, The Pope’s War: Why Ratzinger’s Secret Crusade Has Imperiled the Church and How It Can Be Saved, pp. 106-124.
See “Arrogance” in Fox, Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society, pp. 185, 198f., 202-206, 218, 225, 232, 259-261, 307.
See Fox, The Tao of Thomas Aquinas: Fierce Wisdom for Hard Times, pp. 101-108.
Banner Image: “SCOTUS Is Illegitimate” Banner of a “second-class citizen” at a demonstration before the Supreme Court about the FDA’s expansion of the access to mifepristone. Photo by Stephen Melkisethian on Flickr.
Queries for Contemplation
Did you notice a distinct difference between women’s and men’s contributions on last Thursday’s arguments at the Supreme Court? How have you learned to resist Patriarchy and living in one’s head to escape reality and truth and justice? And to live from your heart?
Recommended Reading
The Pope’s War: Why Ratzinger’s Secret Crusade Has Imperiled the Church and How It Can Be Saved
The Pope’s War offers a provocative look at three decades of corruption in the Catholic Church, focusing on Josef Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI. The final section in the book focuses on birthing a truly catholic Christianity.
“This book should be read by everybody, not only for its ferocious courage, but also for its vision for what needs to be saved from the destructive forces that threaten authentic Christianity.” ~ Andrew Harvey, author of The Hope.
“In the gripping The Pope’s War, Matthew Fox takes an unwavering look at the layers of corruption in the Catholic Church, holding moral truth against power.” — Jason Berry, author of Vows of Silence: The Abuse of Power in the Papacy of John Paul II
Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh: Transforming Evil in Soul and Society
Visionary theologian and best-selling author Matthew Fox offers a new theology of evil that fundamentally changes the traditional perception of good and evil and points the way to a more enlightened treatment of ourselves, one another, and all of nature. In comparing the Eastern tradition of the 7 chakras to the Western tradition of the 7 capital sins, Fox allows us to think creatively about our capacity for personal and institutional evil and what we can do about them.
“A scholarly masterpiece embodying a better vision and depth of perception far beyond the grasp of any one single science. A breath-taking analysis.” — Diarmuid O’Murchu, author of Quantum Theology: Spiritual Implications of the New Physics
The Tao of Thomas Aquinas: Fierce Wisdom for Hard Times
A stunning spiritual handbook drawn from the substantive teachings of Aquinas’ mystical/prophetic genius, offering a sublime roadmap for spirituality and action.
Foreword by Ilia Delio.
“What a wonderful book! Only Matt Fox could bring to life the wisdom and brilliance of Aquinas with so much creativity. The Tao of Thomas Aquinas is a masterpiece.”
–Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the Spirit
4 thoughts on “SCOTUS & the Unleashing of Patriarchy, Christofascism & Misogyny”
Thank you Matthew!!!
You nailed it. I appreciate your courage and clarity.
Yes Matthew, the men of the un-Supreme Court living out of their heads, and not the wholistic realistic Feminine/Spiritual Values of the heart/Soul, is another example of a powerful social institution representing the historically unbalanced and destructive Patriarchal values of egocentricity, materialism, power, racism, misogyny, and ecocide which continues to cause so much human suffering, war, poverty, and so many social injustices/oppression on our humanity and on our Sacred Mother Earth, Her living creatures, and Her graceful essential abundance which makes All Life possible. If we are to continue surviving as a human species along with our sacred planet, we need to urgently continue evolving with the help of the Divine Feminine in our hearts/Souls, our daily sacred lives with one another, and with-in All ongoing co-Creation, including our spiritual awareness/consciousness of our intimate relationships with the spiritual realms and Beings in the Cosmos in Loving Diverse Oneness….
— D. Maureira
Amen!