Linker on Benedict. Europe, Christianity, and Islam

I've been reading The New Republic for almost 25 years.  I guess I always figured it kept me honest, and kept me critical, reading the work of smart people whom I regard as reasonable but (on some things) wrong.  That said, I've long been disappointed by the fact that there is little that appears in the magazine about things Catholic that isn't snarling, smug, silly, or superficial.  This piece, by Damon "Theocons!" Linker, "Cross Purposes:  The Pope's Real Enemy," does nothing to unsettle this view.  Read it for yourself, and see what you think.