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June 18, 2005
Thought-provoking Prediction for American Catholics
Not sure how many of you receive Crisis magazine – it’s a bit controversial, but never fails to make you think. In the last issue a reader sent in a very interesting prediction concerning the future of the Catholic Church in America. My thoughts are below, but first read the letter:
Thank you for two great articles in the January 2005 issue: Russell Shaw’s “What the Election Revealed” and Patrick J. Reilly’s “Class Clowns: Catholic Colleges and the Political Left.”I suspect that eventually the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S. may be replaced by a national church that – like the Chinese model – will cut ties with the Vatican.
This would not be without precedent. Henry VIII outlawed the Church in England and confiscated all its properties. Following this, many Catholic clergy and laity were executed. At the end of the 18th century the Church was abolished during France’s Reign of Terror, again with executions of clergy and confiscation or destruction of Church property. The same thing happened in China and the Soviet Union in the last century, and in Germany the Church was marginalized, if not placed in a Babylonian captivity.
There are several indications that this development is under way here. First, many consider anti-Catholicism an acceptable, even laudable prejudice. And most prominently, American theologians have rejected the authority and teaching of the Magisterium en masse. Indeed, in some avant garde circles in the last 25 years, Polish jokes have come back into style. Doctrinal dissent is rampant, with many trying to capture the Church to use it as a tool in pursuit of their own agendas.
Catholic education and general knowledge of the Faith are at an all-time low, in spite of incredible advances in communications technology. We have an array of encyclicals, papal exhortations, and council documents that must rank among history’s greatest works, unsurpassed in philosophical, theological, and intellectual richness; we also have a monumental Catechism. Yet we never hear these items mentioned, let alone discussed, in parishes or dioceses. I wonder if they’re taught in schools.
There are increasingly aggressive legal and political actions under way to exclude God from public life and imprison Him inside the walls of churches. Catholic hospitals are under increasing pressure to provide abortions and other “culture of death” services to their employees. Catholic universities have become notorious for undermining Church doctrine. Fulton Sheen said that if he had a child, he would rather send him to a secular university where he’d have to fight for his Faith than to a Catholic university where it would be taken away from him. And as Shaw noted, many Catholics (including most colleges and some bishops) didn’t evangelize the culture; the culture evangelized them.
Our Faith is still based on the sacrifice of the Cross. The rising danger to the Church in this country is perhaps more evidence that God – in His infinite wisdom and for reasons we can’t grasp – chooses to challenge rather than pamper His servants.
- - Gordon Steel San Antonio
Let me say that I don’t agree with every point made, but there are some very valid ones here. The question must be asked, if Mr. Steel’s observations and conclusions are correct, then what should our response be?
In my opinion the answer is simple: start by building a Catholic culture within our homes. The reason we founded this blog was to provide assistance and our experience to those trying to do just this. Pope Benedict XVI just pointedly stated that the future of our world is tied to the family unit, the same family unit under attack in the US as well as the rest of the world. In order to change the world, we must start by raising truly Catholic children without neglecting any opportunities to evangelize. This is the way to restore culture in the U.S.
Any thoughts?
God bless,
Jay
Posted by jay at June 18, 2005 4:10 PM
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Comments
Jay,
Great point - couldn't agree with you more. One of the things I learned while I was in politics was that passing laws goes only so far - ultimately the only way to really change the world is by converting hearts, one at a time, starting with your family, your friends, your co-workers, your neighbors, and going from there. A critical part of that conversion involves education - knowing what our faith teaches, being able to tell true teachings from false ones, and having the ability to transmit that knowledge to others.
By sending children out in the world with a strong faith and the ability to think and observe the world critically (i.e. discriminatingly) we may not be able to guarantee their futures, but we give them the very best start we can. As first teachers, parents have both a great responsibility and a great priviledge to do God's work within their famililes.
Posted by: Mitchell Hadley at June 21, 2005 2:34 PM
Catholic education, starting at home; moral discipline, family togetherness, praying together and love for all our neighbors everywhere: these are pure bedrock for the Catholic church in America.
Posted by: A. Canales at July 31, 2005 7:39 PM
Perhaps if the Catholic Church returned to the shaping of the souls within its communities and re-focused on the health of the family and individual in the path of Jesus, it could grow again. Not only has the culture begun to interfere in the life of the Church, for many, the Church is simply a bludgeon to try to reshape society.
As the comments above point out, Catholic education and the Catholic lifestyle need to start at home, and with family and friends. By turning away from the community of believers to judge and influence secular society, the Catholic church is getting away from its true purpose.
Posted by: Matthew R. at March 21, 2006 6:43 PM
Matthew,
Are you kidding? The Catholic Church is one of the few Churches in the world growing a torrid pace - and it's one of fastest growing Christian churches in the US.
Also, your comments indicate an ignorance of what the Church is doing. Go read Pope Benedict's last encyclical letter, God is Love, and see if you feel the same.
By the way, for more on why you should consider the Catholic Church, go see Deo Omnis Gloria.
God bless,
Jay
Posted by: Jay at March 22, 2006 8:44 PM
Jay, thank you for posting the article by Gordon Steel. Indeed, there are many indications of corruption and anti-Catholicism in the United States, and in other parts of the world as well. When you responded to Mr. Steel's letter, you rightly noted in a respectful manner that although he stated many truths, there were certain points with which you did not completely agree. Likewise, when you invited your readers to comment by saying, "Any thoughts?" it was an indication that you were open to the thoughts, opinions and feelings of those who might respond. That is why I must constructively criticize the phrasing you used toward Matthew R. when you did not agree with everything he said. (for instance, "Are you kidding?" "..your comments indicate an ignorance") This reader was likely more insulted than inspired by this reply, and as Catholics, we should seek to teach by kind example, rather than the more convenient degradation. Simply to thank him for his opinion, and point him in what you feel is the right direction, would have been, in my humble opinion, a more fitting and fruitful approach. Please take no offense in my words, but see them as a recommendation motivated by helpful intentions from a fellow Catholic, who is quite admittedly as far from perfection and as in need of constant guidance as anyone. May God bless you.
Posted by: Christina J. at March 2, 2007 10:00 PM
