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| Bye-bye Papa B. |
As the token Catholic contributor
to this blog, I knew this post was coming eventually. Some of you probably did too. So, here we go. In the past few weeks there has been a lot of
buzz about the resignation of the Pope.
And not all of it has been pleasant…or really even rational. While I have not agreed with everything Benedict
did as Pope, I am still offended when people attack him in a blatant, nasty, and
uninformed manner. There are definitely
things about the Catholic Church that need to be worked on, and some things
that need to be reconsidered and changed.
That doesn’t mean the Church doesn’t have anything to offer to the world…and
that doesn’t mean that it’s not something worth fighting for.
I’ve been asked
plenty of times “Why are you Catholic?” Not
going to lie, I’m Catholic in large part because my parents raised me that
way. Honestly, that’s why a lot of
people are Catholic. They’re “culture
Catholic”…don’t always go to Church, but still want to be a part of the
group. But for me, it’s more
than a label I walk around having but don’t really do much with. I’m Catholic because I find something
beautiful in the tradition, the celebration, the structure, and the worldwide
community that I’m apart of just for being Catholic. I could go to any Catholic Church in the
world, and even if the Mass wasn’t in English, I would still be
able to understand what is happening for the most part.
There is a comfort in that kind of unification and connection.
I’ve also been
asked “Why do you stay Catholic?” As I
said, I recognize that there are some major issues within the Catholic Church. The sexual abuse, and the way that the
situations were sometimes handled, was really disgraceful. Many clergy, however, were very adamant about
new measures being adopted by the Church that would ensure the protection of
children against such abuse, and many of the faithful called out those who
tried to downplay or cover-up the situations.
On the more theological side of things, women’s ordination and general
leadership within the Church is another major issue, and one that strikes
especially close to home because I am a
woman who is Catholic and studying to do ministry (non-ordained) within the
Church. This is something that I think truly
does need to be reexamined because the theology and explanations defending
male-only priesthood is, in my opinion, kind of weak and unconvincing. Yet, I remain Catholic. Gay marriage is another issue the Church is currently
facing, and another thing that I am personally in favor of. Again, the theology and explanations behind
arguments against gay marriage seem lacking to me, and I can think of and have
heard various solid arguments in favor of it.
Yet, I remain Catholic.
You might be really
wondering why I stay in the Church at this point. Why I don’t just up and leave everything I have
known since my childhood to find something that better accommodates my
ideals. One reason is that I believe the
easiest way to change something is from the inside. Standing on the outside, yelling and pounding
your fists against the wall are not going to be effective. Being a part of the tradition, the culture,
and understanding the issues with an insider’s perspective will get you a lot
farther in your arguments. I also know some of the theology behind a
couple of these issues, from both sides of the arguments. I’m not just going around bashing the Church
because I don’t agree with everything it
says or does (show me a religion in which all of its believers agree with everything
it says…and is not a cult). I know why
the Church says some of what it says, and on my end I can make thoughtful
critiques of it because I give enough of a damn to actually learn about my faith and my Church. People who think they know the issues within the Church without bothering to actually try to learn
about about the theology and understand it are not doing themselves or their causes any
favors.
I believe the
Catholic Church is worth fighting for. I
believe, at its heart, that it is meant to bring good to this world, and I see
so much worth being a part of within it.
I try to keep in mind that women’s ordination and gay marriage are
currently very Western issues. The Church in Africa and Latin America, for
example, is more concerned with alleviating poverty and ending war. People are happy to bash Benedict for his stand
on Western issues, but did you also know that in one of the three encyclicals
he wrote that he spoke specifically about economic issues and declared that
working and exploiting purely for personal profit is immoral? This doesn’t mean
that the average Joe who puts in an honest day’s labor falls into this category…he’s
just trying to get by and provide for his family (if average Joe has a family),
or even that all rich people are bad, because maybe becoming obscenely wealthy
isn’t actually their goal and just happens to them. What this does mean is that Benedict
basically called out those mega-corporations who exploit and take-advantage of
people all over the world…whether through cheap labor or under-handed business
practices…just to make that much more money for the people at the top, and said
“Hey, assholes…you’re bad people. Knock
it off.” We’ve also got a pretty
impressive legacy of social justice powerhouses, like Mother Theresa and Dorothy Day.
Finally, Catholicism
is also a part of my identity…part of who I am at my core. I am not just a Catholic…I am
Catholic. Being Catholic, for a lot of
people, isn’t just about what religion they are. There is a culture and a history to being
Catholic that stretches farther back into the past than most institutions that
exist today (it’s older than even a few long-standing governments). Even if I stopped actively being Catholic…I
would never really stop being Catholic. It’s ingrained into me that deeply.
The Church is as
complex as the billions of people who identify themselves with it. For every bad aspect of it, there are dozens
of good things that are worth fighting to uphold. So, I remain Catholic and I continue to
educate myself about my faith and my Church so that I can make a difference in
it and the world. For those people who
do choose to leave, I don’t blame them…for some it really does seem like the
only option, and they just get tired of the struggle. For others, they just might not relate to the
Church in a way that spiritually benefits them and they are able to find that somewhere
else. But many people do remain within
the Church, and they are the Church…the
Body of Christ…who live out their faith in their everyday lives, trying to find
peace and grace in an often chaotic and broken world. It is these people, these common believers,
who are the real reason I stay in the Church….they are my community, and they
are worth the struggle.
A short list of
some common misconceptions about Catholicism that really, really annoy me:
1.
“Papal
Infallibility” does not mean
everything the Pope says is true or that a Pope is even sinless. The Church
is infallible, and the Pope is the spokesperson for the Church. There is a whole list of stuff that has to
take place before any Church teaching can be declared infallible by the Pope,
and this has actually only happened twice
in the history of the Church. Both
times, the teachings had to do with the Virgin Mary (her Conception and
Assumption).
2.
We
do not worship saints, so let it go already.
When we pray to saints, we are really asking them to pray on our behalf
to God. It always goes to God. It’s
like asking a friend to pray for you when you are about to face some kind of
challenge in your life…except in this instance a lot of these “friends” were
willing to sacrifice everything, even their own lives, to follow their faith. Saint side note: A lot of us won’t get too
pissed off if you critique the hierarchy, doctrine, tradition, or sacraments of
the Church…but don’t you dare go
after the Virgin Mary. You will regret
it.
Do not mess with the Virgin
3.
Going
along with the Mary theme, the Immaculate Conception does not refer to Jesus’ conception…but to Mary’s. We believe, in order to prepare her for her
role as Jesus’ mother, God allowed Mary to be conceived without original sin
(read Augustine and you’ll understand how this idea works). I could hardly get through the Family Guy Christmas episode this year
because they kept getting the Immaculate Conception wrong…you’re better than
that, Seth MacFarlane! (He actually might not be)
4.
The
Church doesn’t say sex is only for
baby-making (not anymore, anyway). That definitely
is still a big part of it (hence the no-no on contraceptives), but there is
also an emphasis on the relational and spiritual intimacy between the
couple. So, unlike in the Middle Ages,
it’s okay if you enjoy having sex. It’s
also okay (now verses then) for couples to have sex even if they can’t have
babies (see…progress!).
In summary...
See ya!
Erin B.
There’s been a
lot of buzz about Pope Francis’ first extensive interview since his election,
which was released to the public last week.
As the resident Catholic of Her/Story, I figured I should spend some
time reflecting on what the Pope had to say in what proved to be a wave-causing
piece. Before I dive into the article,
however, I want to share my initial thoughts about our new Pope. I’m not gonna lie…I was hesitant when he was
first elected to fully embrace him as my spiritual leader. I knew very little about him (he was no even
a blip on my Papal radar…I was pulling for Cardinal O’Malley myself). Immediately after he was elected, I heard
mixed responses from my fellow Catholic-people.
Most of what I knew and heard was good and encouraging: he’s from
Argentina and is the first Pope from this side of the Atlantic Ocean, he was a
member of the Jesuit order, and while serving as Bishop in Argentina he passed
over many of the “perks” of the job to live a simpler, more humble life. So that was good. Not so great were rumors that he was
ultraconservative, and that he was negatively involved with past political
conflicts in Argentina. Again, though, I
knew very little, so I decided to withhold my ultimate opinion until I saw what
he did with the position.
He is turning out to be a bit of a
rebel-rouser, which I greatly enjoy, and he hit the ground running when it came
to implementing some changes to how things are done, especially by the Papal
Office itself. Pope Francis continues to
maintain his modest and humble lifestyle, not living in the papal apartments,
but in the less elegant guest house.
During Holy Thursday last year, he washed the feet of juvenile
inmates…including the feet of a couple of girls, which had never been done
before by a Pope. I won’t get into all
of the reasoning behind not washing female feet…just know that this was a
significant moment in the history of the Vatican. He began to rework the Curia to de-centralize
power, and then there was his now widely known comment in regards to gays and
lesbians: “Who am I to judge?”
And
now, with his big interview, he has given me more reason to be optimistic. He called the Church out for negatively obsessing
over gay marriage, abortion, and contraception.
That is not to say that he approves of any of the above (one step at a
time, people), but he acknowledges that “The church sometimes has locked itself
up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the
first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you.” He has been criticized by the more
conservative side of the Church for not speaking out about these issues
yet. But the Pope wants to turn the
Church away the path that it seems to have found itself barreling down, which
makes it appear rigid, uncompromising, inhospitable, and exclusive. Instead, he wants the Church to put its focus
back towards Jesus, and work on healing “wounds” and warming “the hearts of the
faithful.” Whereas Pope Benedict sought
to protect the church by solidifying the core of ardent believers, Pope Francis
seems to want the Church to be a welcoming community that all believers can
feel at home in. True, there is still a
long way to go for the Church to be considered completely inclusive, and I don’t
think even under this Pope we will see same-sex marriage accepted, or the
ordination of women into the priesthood (although he does say that the role of
women needs to be seriously considered, and a stronger theology of women
developed). I truly hate using political
terms when discussing Church matters, but I wouldn’t put Pope Francis as a
liberal, or a conservative for that matter (his passion for the poor and social
justice would not fit the mold).
Instead, he is in the middle, trying to balance traditional doctrine and
modern ideals that seem to have only clashed in the past several years. I remain cautiously optimistic, however, in
what Pope Francis could do for the Catholic Church. If nothing else, he is setting the stage for
a future we might not have thought as possible before.
