It's relatively rare for me to agree with Gregg Easterbrook, which makes me suspect there are key things wrong with his point here, but superficially, at least, he does seem to have a point.
This is focusing on the "Catholic Church" part of your post, rather than the "ethical questions," I'm afraid, but you may beat me and whip me if my transgression warrants it. (You do want lines handed to you like that, right?)
