In the life of nearly every celebrity there’s a moment after the white hot fame cools and the spotlights are averted when a decision needs to be made. Does the celebrity begin a new life in obscurity or do they break out the white spangled jumpsuits and take the first flight out to Las Vegas to milk the last of their fame for every last embarassing moment of notoriety?

But recent years have shown that while Vegas still remains a tantalizing option, many former celebrities are establishing nice second careers as Catholic bashers. The prerequisites are minimal. You don’t actually need to know anything about the faith. Just dust off some old Pope insults, scream about priestly celibacy and homosexual rights and you’ll be a star again in no time.

Sinead O’ Connor’s singing career has long since past its expiration date but she’s cleverly found new life as one of the most sought after anti-Catholic “celebrities” on television. She’s been on CNN more than Wolf Blitzer this past month and MSNBC treated her like one of the greatest Catholic thinkers since Bishop Fulton Sheen. Sinead inexplicably accused Pope Benedict XVI of not believing in God which didn’t even raise an objection on MSNBC. And now for her willingness to rip her former faith, Sinead is sought out almost as much as she used to be for her beatiful singing voice.

Bill Maher, the former comedian who makes my television feel icky, has had quite the nice second career by bashing Catholics. He’s mocked the Blessed Virgin Mary, called the Pope a Nazi, and he’s been telling anyone who will listen that celibacy is the cause of the sex abuse scandal. For this he’s been rewarded with his own shows as well as more guest appearances on Larry King Live than psychic John Edwards. (And that’s saying something.)

Rosie O’Donnell, whose career followed the course of the Titanic (the ship not the movie) recently said on the radio that the Catholic Church reminds her of the Jonestown suicide cult. Now she’s being discussed as picking up the mantle of Oprah who’s allegedly leaving the airwaves sometime soon.

The media is so hungry for unthinking anti-Catholicism that it will offer airtime to any “celebrity” willing to say nasty things about the Church. Even Roseanne Barr recently figured it out recently and said, “I am starting to think that any parent who takes their kids to catholic churches from now on should lose custody.” Expect Roseanne to have her own sitcom by September.

This kind of trend will not go unnoticed. Expect more celebrities to take this route to their second stardom. I just can’t wait to hear what Lady Gaga thinks of the Church.