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PDF versionPope delivers strong plea to resist secularism
by John L Allen Jr on Apr. 18, 2010
By JOHN L. ALLEN JR.
Valletta, Malta
Pope Benedict XVI this morning delivered a strong appeal to Malta to resist secularizing currents during his homily at a large open-air Mass, staged in a public square called “the Granaries” because it was once used to protect Malta’s food supply.
In effect, Benedict urged Malta to make its cultural exchange with Europe a two-way street, evangelizing the secular world rather than being evangelized by it.
“Not everything that today’s world proposes is worthy of acceptance by the people of Malta,” Benedict insisted.
“Many voices try to persuade us to put aside our faith in God and his Church, and to choose for ourselves the values and beliefs by which to live,” the pope said. “They tell us we have no need of God or the Church.”
Instead, the pope urged the Maltese to hold onto this conviction: “At every moment of our lives we depend entirely on God, in whom we live and move and have our being.”
In the first place Benedict was making a spiritual point, but the argument also had clear cultural, social and even political resonance in terms of defending Christian principles.
Benedict summarized his appeal with a sound-bite to the Maltese, who were first evangelized by St. Paul following his famous shipwreck 1,950 years ago: “Preserve the faith and values transmitted to you by your father the Apostle Saint Paul.”
The pope urged the Maltese to be careful about the cultural ideas they import.
“Remember that the exchange of goods between these islands and the world outside is a two-way process,” he said. “What you receive, evaluate with care, and what you have that is of value, be sure to share with others.”
In a message that may carry special resonance in light of the sexual abuse crisis, the pope addressed a special word of solidarity to priests.
“The mission entrusted to priests is truly a service to joy, to God’s joy which longs to break into the world,” Benedict said.
While Benedict did not allude to the sexual abuse crisis in his homily this morning, Archbishop Paul Cremona of Malta did so, albeit indirectly, in his remarks welcoming the pope.
Cremona said Catholics cannot cling to the model of church to which they have been accustomed, saying that "the church must be humble enough to recognize the failures and sins of its members."
[John Allen is NCR senior correspondent. His e-mail address is jallen@ncronline.org.]
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I've learned a couple of new
I've learned a couple of new terms this week, for example, “moral panic” from a Vatican spin-man who compares the response to the clerical abuse scandal with 1930's Nazi regime attack on the church. Another was the “odium plebes”, that sort of, collective anger that emerges when the “sensus fidelium” is abused, ignored, dismissed, denigrated (thanks to Michael Sean Winters).
There's an old one that constantly re-emerges with almost every speech or homily I read coming from Benedict XVI - “straw-man”. That is the old scholastic rhetoric technique that sets up a person, concept or thesis in such a partial truth way that it is odious or indefensible, and then obliterating it with logic or “reductio ad absurdum”. For example, as Ratzinger, he defined “feminism” as identified with the man-hating radical extreme and then condemned it. This time it is his homily to the Maltese in condemning “secularism”. He preached: “Many voices try to persuade us to put aside our faith in God and his Church, and to choose for ourselves the values and beliefs by which to live,” the pope said. “They tell us we have no need of God or the Church.”.
The philosophy of ethics is based on “secular” reason; without a “secular” press and like attitude of catholics the “men” of God would have been successful in denying, hiding, obfuscating the world wide sexual abuse scandle. Without “secularism” the church would still contnrol the political system and still be able to have us imprisoned, and literally “dis-membered” as well as organizationally ex-communicated. Without “secularism” I would not be able to stand for the distinction between “God” and “Church” (as Benedict defines the latter).
It is not hard to understand
It is not hard to understand that the current problems in the RCC are not caused by a secularism that has been far ahead of the church in defining ethical standards of stopping slavery, witnessing the observations of science, refusing to accept misogyny, understanding the needs of sexual identification, understanding the needs of the poor, understanding the sexual needs of humanity. All of these and more have not been well understood by the authoritarian mindset of the Church. It is this very authoritarian mindset that uses mental reservations as a defense mechanism that excuses an onset of clerical lies. No, it is not secularism that we should fear so much, but rather the authoritarian clericalism that is so failing the church. The church continues to implode from the inside which is a result of a faulty leadership structure and an extremely weak leadership that attempts to protect its own power rather than to humbly serve the People of God. There is not the width and breadth of personality structure in these borderline personalities that we call our leaders to gracefully deal with their own misbehavior.
My we seek grace by being an open and truthful people. This is the responsibility of the People of God, not a faulty clericalism that wants to lead us back to the "Holy Roman Empire" of lords and obedient servants to power.
R. Dennis Porch, MD
"There is not the width and
"There is not the width and breadth of personality structure in these borderline personalities that we call our leaders to gracefully deal with their own misbehavior."
Yes Peter is a gruff impulsive character fiercely loyal but hardly diplomatic ,John is a pure gentle dreamy soul but couldn't administer to save himself, Matthew has a good head for figures but he is dreadfully unpopular and Judas has a foot in both camps he is a bit too friendly with the Sanheddrin for my liking.
Strange how the Church survived such an abysmal set of leaders!
The original 12 were called by Christ.It was not their strength that built the faith but the Holy Spirit who strengthened them.
The Church has the authority to teach Christ's Truth
Jesus was obedient to His Father. He established Peter as the head of His Church and promised to send the Holy Spirit to protect and strengthen His disciples.
When we admit our own need of God's mercy to help us resist sin we begin to grow strong in our faith.Peter and the disciples were very frightened after the Jesus was arrested so much so Peter denied even knowing Him. Yet through grace he gained the courage to die rather than deny Him later.
Excellent article and a
Excellent article and a wonderful read. You have lifted several legitimate factors. Good function, keep writing
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