THE resignation of the pope feels like it should be a profound
event, and for some in America it certainly is. Those who see
Benedict XVI as a blessed successor of Saint Peter, as well as
those directly affected by the church's sexual-abuse scandal,
are likely to find deep relevance in the pope's decision. But
for most Americans, even most Catholics, the pope's resignation
is more likely to be viewed like a modern-day royal
abdication—an act of symbolic importance, with little actual
impact.  A disparate group of people call themselves Catholic in
America, but it appears that many of them long ago shed their
fealty to the Vatican and its domestic representatives. The
issue of birth control presents the most obvious example of this
banal heresy. If it was not clear before, America's bishops have
left no doubt about the church's opposition to most forms of
birth control. Yet surveys show that a large majority of
Catholic women use some form of contraception frowned upon by
the church, and over 80% of Catholics