Met logoAn anecdote sent by New York Times reader David G. Wilkins to the paper’s Metropolitan Diary column suggests that rising to a place of authority in the church may not be as difficult as one might think:

During a stopover in New York this year, a friend, Marco del Bufalo, who is an architect, decided to become a member of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. When filling out the enrollment form, he included “Arch.” to indicate his profession.

Apparently that and his home address in Rome created some confusion, for when his membership card arrived, it identified him as “Archbishop Marco del Bufalo.” He was delighted with his new status!

Holy Orders: a little-known perk of museum membership. In a related story, the Museum of Natural History is offering IMAX tickets, gift shop discounts and the title of Juris Doctor to every adult who signs up for a family membership.

Kerry Weber joined the staff of America in October 2009. Her writing and multimedia work have since earned several awards from the Catholic Press Association, and in 2013 she reported from Rwanda as a recipient of Catholic Relief Services' Egan Journalism Fellowship. Kerry is the author of Mercy in the City: How to Feed the Hungry, Give Drink to the Thirsty, Visit the Imprisoned, and Keep Your Day Job (Loyola Press) and Keeping the Faith: Prayers for College Students (Twenty-Third Publications). A graduate of Providence College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, she has previously worked as an editor for Catholic Digest, a local reporter, a diocesan television producer, and as a special-education teacher on the Navajo reservation in Arizona.