The Struggle to Apply Catholic Social Teaching
Three long posts this morning: All substantive and centered around a basic theme:
The struggle to apply Catholic teaching to practical moral dilemmas in the world.
The first: About a new blessed, Fr. Antonio Rosmini, whose written works were once held in suspicion because of his interest in democracy.
The second: on the new US Bishop's statement on voting in light of conversations I had three years ago with two of the foremost Catholic theological experts in the world on the subject of life issues.
The third: on the remarkable life of Peter Benenson, the founder of Amnesty International and convert to Catholicism, in light of Amnesty's recent decision to support abortion as a human right.
If you have time, try to read them all and comment. This is all very pertinent to a consideration of the complexity and critical importance of our mission as lay apostles to evangelize the cultures and structures of the human society.
As C. S. Lewis once pointed out somewhere, our motto is not "Be good, sweet maid, and let those who will be clever". It is "Be good, sweet maid, and remember that means being as clever as you can."
It is a struggle: personal, intellectual, spiritual, and often relational - to identify the good in the midst of a very complicated world and then to determine how best to pursue it and to do so while knowing that other Christians, who are just as faithful, can honestly and legitimately disagree with us. It is not for the faint of heart or the lazy of mind and spirit.
posted by Sherry W @ 7:15 AM
3 Comments
3 Comments:
To your last paragraph: AMEN!
God is so big we cannot even imagine. The Harry Potter debate is a prime example of good Christians disagreeing.
The virtue of Charity must rule! This is my prayer, especially for me...
Hi Susan:
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
It is always a temptation to look for a one size fits all "rule" when it comes to the application of the Church's teaching in the areas of our personal responsibility and call in the 21st century.
Often Catholic bloggers write with frustration about the working assumption of many pastoral leaders that lay people aren't smart enough or sophisticated enough to grapple with Church teaching or to learn chant or whatever.
The same applies in this absolutely critical area of application in the marketplace: fidelity to Church teaching here is not about eliminating the inevitable tension between the culture in which we live, the expectations of friends and family and the faith we are seeking to live. It is about using that tension to create something new that faithfully embodies and speaks of Christ and his love to this specific person or situation.
And there are a wide variety of ways in which we can faithfully do so.
Jesus said He makes all things new. Isn't it our duty to work with Him and "sanctify" our culture?
Your comments have really struck me today.
We cannot go live in our little "Catholic" sanctuary. This is not evangilization! We need to start with our Catholic schools, and instead of being critical and saying "Don't go there, it's Catholic in name only," we need to re-christianize them. (noting that christian = Catholic. There should be no difference!)
You say it much more eloquently than I! :) It's nice to read! Your comment about using the tension is very Chestertonian. :)
God's blessings to you and the Institute!
Susan Schudt
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