Recently, the Pew Forum published a survey on the level of religious knowledge across faith and denomination lines, and Archbishop Chaput of Denver delivered an address concerning what it means to be Catholic in the "Late Republic." Father Steve Grunow analyzes both articles here.
The juxtaposition of two articles struck me as significant. Archbishop Chaput of Denver recently delivered an address to the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars entitled,
“Life in the Late Republic: The Catholic Role in America After Virtue." The Archbishop’s remarks are for the most part concerning John Courtney Murray SJ. Quotes abstracted from a text written by Father Murray in 1940 leave quite an impression and give pause for much reflection. However, what struck me most about the speech was this gem from the Archbishop himself: “The people of Israel forgot their God because they weren’t taught. And if American Catholics no longer know their faith, or its obligations of discipleship, or its call to mission- then we leaders, parents and teachers have no one to blame but ourselves.” Also this: “The role of Catholics is exactly the opposite of what we’ve been doing for a half century or more- compromising too cheaply, assimilating, fitting in, fleeing from who we really are as believers; and in the process, being bleached out and digested by the culture we were sent to make holy"...
Catholic News Agency recently featured an article recounting Archbishop Charles J. Chaput's lecture at University of St. Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Illinois. In the lecture, Archbishop Chaput spoke of our own Father Barron and his take on the Liturgy. Read the article below, or click here for the entire text.
Christian witness is intended to prepare for and to live the “cosmic liturgy” in which all mankind adores God, Archbishop Charles J. Chaput declared in a lecture on Thursday evening. Noting the cultural obstacles to liturgical understanding, he said the renewed liturgy should create Christians who would die rather than not celebrate Mass...