Apologetics fail

A recent article (click here for details)  by Cindy Wooden of the Catholic News Services announced that the Catholic Church wants to re-introduce the theology of Apologetics. Its intent is to try and show that the Catholic faith is reasonable, and can be defended against the arguments of those who attack it.    

It should be obvious to readers that this attempt by the Vatican to re-introduce the ‘art’ of apologetics is a simple devise to ward off the fear of becoming irrelevant.  The opening paragraph should already alert most enlightened and informed Catholics that Jesus warned us not to  ‘pour old wine into new wineskins’.   This fear is echoed again and again when the author tries to defend the current problems experienced Church by pointing the finger at others, be they atheist, agnostics.  Does scripture not remind us that before judging others we need to take the log out of our own eye before we examine the speck out our brother’s eye?”  Note the long list apologist hope to defend:  sexual abuse, abortion, AIDS, same-sex marriage and women in the Church.  What is needed here is healing not some pamphlet defending it.

Note that the author makes repeated claims that the Church needs to TRAIN its members in its official teachings.  It is hoped/planned to disseminate appropriate apologetic material ASAP into the hands of Catholics.  At no time does the article suggest that People of God should have any input into this project, however valuable and inspirational that could be.  Has the Church forgotten that faith is a matter of the heart, the place where God resides?  What is really needed is for the Church to direct people to God – not become the destination.  The Church must return to pure humility as Christ teaches us abundantly. The heart is the place where ALL people who have placed their trust in God will find their answers.  Anything other than that merely results in the continued spread of co-dependency it produces.

This defensive article reminds me of a mechanic who when coming upon a car accident sends the driver to the garage instead of the automobile. 

A great Catholic teacher of mine posted this reflection yesterday which explains the problem with ‘apologetics’ in much better terms.

“Today the unnecessary suffering on this earth is great for people who could have “known better” and should have been taught better by their religions. In the West, religion became preoccupied with telling people what to know more than how to know, telling people what to see more than how to see. We ended up seeing Holy Things faintly, trying to understand Great Things with a whittled-down mind, and trying to love God with our own small and divided heart. It has been like trying to view the galaxies with a five-dollar pair of binoculars.

Contemplation, my word for this larger seeing, keeps the whole field open; it remains vulnerable before the moment, the event, or the person—before it divides and tries to conquer or control it. Contemplatives refuse to create false dichotomies, dividing the field for the sake of the quick comfort of their ego. I call contemplation “full-access knowing”—not irrational, but pre-rational, non-rational, rational and trans-rational all at once. Contemplation is an exercise in keeping your heart and mind spaces open long enough for the mind to see other hidden material. It is content with the naked now and waits for futures given by God and grace”. . .  Fr. Richard Rohr

In conclusion I appeal to all Catholics to return to the much greater faith inspiring program called ‘RENEW’, which allowed lay people (unsupervised by members of the clergy) to gather in their respective homes and discuss and enter more deeply into their questions of faith.  RENEW was officially cancelled by conservative elements of the church when they realized that Catholics were perfectly capable of dealing with the complex questions of the faith.        

Adult Faith Development

The following essay on Adult Faith Development appears on Fr. Diarmuid O’Murchu's website http://www.diarmuid13.com/ and is reproduced here with his kind permission. He is a member of the Sacred Heart Missionary Order, and a graduate of Trinity College, Dublin Ireland. O'Murchu is a practicing social psychologist whose working life is dedicated to social ministry, predominantly in London, UK. A prolific author and much sought after retreat master and speaker in many countries including Australia and Canada. Among his many books are my favourites: 'Quantum Theology - Spiritual Implication of the New Physics'(2004), 'Religion in Exile - A Spiritual Homecoming' (2000), and 'Cathing up with Jesus - A Gospel Story for Our Time' (2005).

ADULT FAITH DEVELOPMENT

All religions and churches emphasise that humans are:

• weak and sinful while God is strong and holy

• totally dependent on the all-providing God,

• servants of God to whom we owe absolute allegiance,

• children of a Father God and a Mother Church,

• called to be humble and obedient to the parent-like divine power.


The metaphor of the child is extensively used in conventional spirituality. Phrases like “childlike trust,” “loyalty,” “obedience,” “under authority” all denote a sense of dependency that is not congruent with adult maturity. The tendency to structure religion in patriarchal-type institutions, with a strong focus on those who govern from on high, breeds co-dependency rather than mutual interdependence. Such metaphors and systems militate against the emergence of wholesome, adult people.

Much more serious and less obvious to the naïve observer, is the tendency of religions to alienate people from the planetary and cosmic web of life. The dualism of the sacred v. the secular truncates nature’s invitation to live in a convivial, cooperative relationship with the earth and its living systems. Properly understood, earth-life systems function best when humans treat other life-forms with a sense of adult care and responsibility. But this experience of being human, in an integrated planetary and cosmic way, is largely unknown to people of our time

THE CONTEXT

Adult Faith Development wishes to reclaim our integral place in creation:

• There is a cosmic dimension to our lives, elegantly illustrated in the fact that
stardust is essential to our existence and all sources of nourishment ultimately belong to sunlight.

• There is a planetary/earthly dimension: our very existence is dependent on the healthy functioning of the earth’s bio-systems.

• There is an organic dimension, highlighted in the bacterial foundations of all life, thriving primarily on cooperation, not via competition.

• Our own human existence belongs to an amazing creative story of some 7,000,000 years, often dismissed by academics as primitive and barbaric.

Contextually, we are an integral part of a greater whole that confers on us our integrity and dignity, forever calling us to mutual engagement with the evolving life-forces of cosmic and planetary life. Because of our disconnection from the larger context, we end up condemning ourselves to a contrived, minimalistic, childish participation in the great enterprise of universal life.

AT HOME IN CREATION

Creation is our true, authentic home, the houshold of all life, including those who have gone before us. The afterlife does not exist outside creation, but within it, a realm in which our departed loved ones inhabit a different level of being = within the one cosmos.

Religion’s negative regard for the created order is responsible for much of the meaningless suffering in the contemporary world. Because this suffering is often so overwhelming, many people throw themselves at the mercy of God. Although an understandable response, and often the basis of survival against heavy odds, this is an abdication of our call to be co-creators with God in enhancing the growth and development of God’s creation.

RECLAIMING ADULT FAITH

Faith in our time requires us to grow up and learn to relate with God in a new way. As co-creators with our creative God, we are invited and challenged to relate as adults to an adult God, modelled for Christians in the adult life-example of Jesus. This requires that we replace:

• The patriarchal sky-God with the divine life-force we encounter in the miracle of God’s creation.

• Hierarchical top-down dependency with a sense of mutual equality and interdependence.

• Power-over with power-with (empowerment).

• Parental-type, controlling relationships with those based on mutuality (as modelled in the Trinity).

• A product mentality in which everything is essentially predetermined with a process outlook that respects the divinely inspired evolutionary nature of life.

• Faith communities where the focus tends to be on control and top-down governance (priest, imam, rabbi), to one centred on people and programmed for mutual empowerment.

PRINCIPLES OF ADULT FAITH DEVELOPMENT:

In contemporary cultures – secular and religious – calling forth the adult is either construed as a non-issue because, allegedly, adulthood is already fostered and protected, or it is subverted as dangerous propaganda. For the religions, in particular, it is quite a new concept with consequences that are likely to be perceived as threatening and dangerous for the status quo. In promoting a culture of adult faith the following principles are crucial:

1. Faith is a process of life-long learning, not some magical, divine product bestowed by church or religion.

2. Grace builds on nature (St. Anselm; St. Thomas Aquinas); consequently, appropriation of faith at different life-stages needs informed attention (see the pioneering work of James Fowler).

3. Adults learn by doing in a dynamic, interactive and co-operative endeavour in which educator and learner are equal partners.

4. In adult learning, everybody is endowed with wisdom and all are beneficiaries of divine revelation. Both educator and learner have joint responsibility for the awakening and appropriation of faith.

5. Story-telling is a central strategy in articulating a meaningful faith. Discernment skills arise from this context.

6. Adult faith matures when life experience is honoured, and the ensuing challenges are explored through mature adult conversations (stories).

7. Adult faith tends not to be incapacitated by perfectionism. It is much more at home in soulful realism in which paradox is honoured , vulnerability is protected, questions are respected and dogmatism gives way to trust and dialogue.

8. Adults commit to faith-based structures in which power is shared equally and justly at the service of empowerment.

9. Adults desire transparency through open dialogue, pursuing truth that is always in the process of being realised.

10. Adults seek to change co-dependent metaphors, images and language into more imaginative and intuitive constructs that challenge people to act as adults, faithful to an adult God, modelled on the adult life-example of Jesus.

Thank you Fr. O'Murchu for reminding us of our responsibilities as adult learners.

On the Question of Apologetics

My initial interest in the Catholic tradition was sparked by the enthusiasm and openness of Vatican II. One of the key phrases uttered by our pastor at one of the initial RCIA sessions was “the Catholic Church does not hold the corner on the faith market”. The simplicity and truth of this statement will remain with me forever. It eased the transition from one religious tradition to another. It did not diminish or exclude my Protestant background and more importantly my paternal/maternal families.

What a disappointment it has been to see this Church once again make exclusive claims such as “there is no salvation outside the Catholic Church” (Catechism of the Catholic Church (1994 --paragraph 846) followed by the Compendium of the Catechism (2005 --article 171). As such the Church has signaled a desire to completely reverse the pastoral views introduced by Vatican II. Similarly the Congration for Doctrine Faith’s 2000 document Dominus Iesus claims that followers of religions other than Christianity are “in gravely deficient situation” with regard to salvation of their souls. While more recently the new Roman Missal awaiting approval by our Canadian Bishops pushes the question of salvation back even further. If accepted, Canadian Catholics will be instructed to respond that Jesus came to save "many" instead of the current "all." To quote Sr. Joan Chittister " The theological implications of these changes speaks volumes. Who is it that Jesus did not come to save?"

Catholic apologist Dr. Scott Hahn has stated that God’s revelation came to a close with the death of the last Apostle . This might suggest to some that Jesus died on the cross and did not rise. (Might this be a reason why Catholics have identified with the crucified Christ for so long?) Halleluiah, Christ has risen and is alive! Creation is ongoing and we are his co-creators. God’s gift of faith is a dynamic. It is communion with God through which he reveals himself to us daily. We only have to listen with the ear of our heart! God is alive and well and resides in the heart of each human being (aka the divine indwelling). Whether or not we chose to listen – is His gift of freedom. What an incredible gift considering that so often we choose to do things our own selfish way – and yet he continues to love us.
On the matter of Papal Primacy and Succession I find myself asking these questions. Was Jesus (and his apostles) not born, and raised as a Jew? Did he not die as a Jew? Did he give up his own Jewish tradition in favour of an institutional substitute bearing his name? To suggest that he told Peter to build a church complete with a hierarchical structure and all its trappings profoundly contradicts Jesus’ temptation in the desert where he rejected such earthly kingdoms of the world. More importantly, Jesus came to save ALL and is unlikely to have demanded that membership to a particular religion was necessary to experience his promise of salvation or live out a life based on his kingdom values.
The word ‘church’ is not found in the original Greek version of the Bible. The original Greek term Ekklesia meant assembly or community and is much more compatible with Jesus’ intent to establish God’s Kingdom here on earth. A kingdom based on compassion, understanding, equality, etc., as illustrated through his many parables which many of his disciples did not understand. For me Jesus came to teach us a way to live communally in peace and harmony, to bring healing and forgiveness.
Leadership in any community is essential. Leadership guided by the Holy Spirit would be ideal. God chooses his people not because of their strengths but because of their weaknesses and their desire to trust in the Spirit. Apostolic Succession as interpreted by our Catholic Church suggests that the power is the exclusive right of the hierarchy. Apostolic succession or the carrying forth of the Good News is the happy duty of every individual created by God.
Papal Infallibility is a difficult topic and misunderstood by many Catholics. However, Jesus never made claims or suggestions in this direction from any readings I have been able to find in the Bible. In fact, he always deferred directly to God the Father. The Church too must always be the finger pointing to God and never act as the ‘destination’. Jesus said, “What I teach is not my own teaching, but it comes from God who sent me”. Dogma and Doctrine can be helpful tools to help us grasp and understand life’s difficult questions. But ultimately they must lead us to our hearts to bring about transformation and our experience of God’s salvation. Rigid observance or following of Church teachings without consulting our inner experience of God may result in an unhealthy co-dependency for both parties. Who do you trust God or the Church?
Finally, some Catholic apologist havesuggested that God will hasten the end of any Judas type that might occupy the Chair. Does this statement not completely dismiss those Popes in history who enjoyed a generous term on the Chair at the expense of many lives and much cruelty? If God did not stop these individuals it is easier to understand why would he not have intervened in the case of Hitler, Stalin and many other notorious individuals before they unleashed so much pain and suffering onto the world? Incidentally, this same idea was regretfully expressed by a Roman Catholic Apologetic in our parish several years ago.
In conclusion, I recognize that my views on these theological points may differ significantly from those expressed by an expert. And perhaps more alarmingly (to some) may be in direct opposition to official Church teaching. However, I have come to love the God who moves beyond static doctrine and dogma. It is a God who loves all humankind unconditionally, and invites us with all our questions rather than blindly accept prepared answers. Here again I see the Church’s role to guide, not force, and help each other to discover the God within. We are all unique and Holy individuals capable of many unholy actions. The bigger question is should we look at others through their sinful nature (false self) or look for the God within (true self) however deep it may be hidden?

There was a man who invented the art of making fire. He took his tools and went to a tribe in the north, where it was very cold, bitterly cold. He taught the people there to make fire. The people were very interested. He showed them the uses to which they could put fire—they could cook, could keep them­selves warm, etc. They were so grateful that they had learned the art of making fire. But before they could express their gratitude to the man, he disappeared. He wasn't con that this man was drawing crowds and they were losing their popularity. So they decided to do away with him. They poisoned him, crucified him, put it any way you like. But they were afraid now that the people might turn against them, so they were very wise, even wily. Do you know what they did? They had a portrait of the man made and mounted it on the main altar of the temple. The instru­ments for making fire were placed in front of the portrait, and the people were taught to revere the portrait and to pay reverence to the instruments of fire, which they dutifully did for centuries. The veneration and the worship went on, but there was no fire.

Where's the fire? Where's the love? Where's the drug uprooted from your system? Where's the freedom? This is what spirituality is all about. Tragically, we tend to lose sight of this, don't we? This is what Jesus Christ is all about. But we overemphasized the "Lord, Lord," didn't we? Where's the fire? And if worship isn't leading to the fire, if adoration isn't leading to love, if the liturgy isn't leading to a clearer perception of reality, if God isn't leading to life, of what use is religion except to create more division, more fanaticism, more antagonism?

Anthony de Mello, Awareness, ‘The Land of Love, p. 174-175, Image Books, Toronto, 1992