Mario Cuomo’s soul, I pray, will spend eternity in the presence of God. Cuomo’s dogma on Church and State, grounded in rickety reasoning and having borne foul fruit for decades, belongs in the ash heap of history.

Cuomo was a dedicated statesmen, a fine orator, and a proud Catholic. When he passed away January 1, he was praised mostly for two speeches he delivered in his second year as governor. Most famous was his populist sermon, filled with barbs for Ronald Reagan and red meat for the party’s left wing, delivered at the 1984 convention.