Christianity: sunrise or sunset?

Sr. Rita Larivee, SSAHave you seen Christianity lately? Depending on where you look and whom you are talking to, the followers of Jesus are either watching the sunset of days gone by or anticipating the sunrise of a new day. Inside this week’s NCR you will find two stories about the future of Christianity. But whether you see a sunset or a sunrise will be up to you.

John Allen offers us some perspectives on the challenges facing the Christian churches of Europe as major cultural shifts reshape the European religious landscape (see story). There is no denying that the influence of Christian Europe as the cradle of Western civilization is fading. But to interpret this as the end of the tradition that produced the great schools of religious thought and such theological masters as Aquinas, Bonaventure, Catherine of Siena and Teresa of Avila may say more about our inability to read between the lines than about the demise of one of the greatest stories of all time.

Small numbers for any denomination have never reflected the size of their influence. The Society of Friends, numbering approximately 350,000 worldwide, has had a disproportionately large impact on the world’s understanding of nonviolence and egalitarian community. Similarly, the Baha’i faith, founded in Iran during the 1800s to emphasize the spiritual oneness of humanity and the underlying unity of the major world religions, has only 6 million members, but they can be found in nearly every country in the world.

My point is that Christianity -- Catholicism in particular -- despite its falling numbers in Europe, may in fact be entering a time of profound renewal. But only if we are willing to entertain new possibilities for a church that clearly needs reform and new formulations of old doctrines. In order for the seedlings of new theological thought to take root and grow into a church that reflects inclusivity and respect for the charisms of all its baptized members, the thick institutional brush and clerical undergrowth that now covers the land will need to be cleared. While no one quite knows the outcome of the changing face of Christianity in Europe, one thing is certain: Christianity must clarify its identity to itself and to the world.

The second story that reveals the state of Christianity I spoke of two weeks ago when I wrote that NCR was sending a reporter to Postville, Iowa. (See story) There a deeply flawed national immigration policy was met head-on by a Gospel response to the suffering of hundreds of people. An editorial in The New York Times for June 3 tells us, “Someday, the country will recognize the true cost of its war on illegal immigration. … The true cost is to the national identity: the sense of who we are and what we value. It will hit us once the enforcement fever breaks, when we look at what has been done and no longer recognize the country that did it. A nation of immigrants is holding another nation of immigrants in bondage, exploiting its labor while ignoring its suffering, condemning its lawlessness while sealing off a path to living lawfully.”

St. Bridget Church opened its doors in the spirit of love to struggling families being devastated by the letter of the law. Of course we need secure borders and the rule of law, but not at the cost of our national character. Why was there no outcry from a country that calls itself deeply Christian? St. Bridget Church was a sunrise against a stark horizon, a prophetic finger pointed at the question of whether American Christianity is approaching its own terrible sunset.

Have you seen Christianity lately? It’s time to clarify what we believe and what price we are willing to pay to act on it. Our very souls are in the balance.

Contact me at rlarivee@ncronline.org

National Catholic Reporter June 13, 2008