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BISHOPS’DOCTRINECOMMITTEE THETHEOLOGICALENTERPRISEINLIGHTOFTHENEWEVANGELIZATION March24,2017 “TheSociologyofCatholicTheologyasanEcclesialVocation” WilliamL.Portier CollegeTheologySociety Backinthe1890s,beforethe1924restrictionsonimmigrantsfromItaly,mygreat-grandfather, BigTonyTestino,cametotheUnitedStatesfromGenoa.HelivedinItalianHarlem.Eventuallyhe movedacrosstherivertoTenafly,NewJersey,whereheworkedontheEireRailroad.Hisgrandson,my father,hadtodropoutofhighschoolduringtheGreatDepression.Mymotherdidgraduatefromhigh schoolandworkedmostofherlifeasabookkeeper.WithhelpfromtheGIBill,mydadgotacivil servicejobintheU.S.PostOffice.Thatmakesmeafirst-generationcollegestudent,theonlycollege graduateinmyfamily.In1995BigTony’sgreat-greatgranddaughtergraduatedfromYale.That’sthe storyofEuropeanAmericanCatholicsintheUnitedStates. Ionlywenttocollegebecause,in1959,whenIwasfourteen,Ienteredaminorseminary. Elevenyearslater,whenIleftbeforemakingfinalreligiousvows,alothadchanged.Nowitwas theologicallyandsociologicallyplausibleformetostudytheologyasalaypersonandbelievethatI mightevenfindajob.WhenIgotmyfirstacademicjobatMountSaintMary’sinEmmitsburgin1979,I wastheonlylaytheologian.Mycolleagueswerefivediocesanpriests.Bythe90sIwasdepartment chair.Allmyformercolleagueshadretiredordied.Laypeoplereplacedthem.Ifoundmyselfinthe strangepositionofhopingtofindatleastonepriestforthetheologydepartment. MystoryoffersamorevividpicturethandemographicscouldofthesociologyofCatholic theologyasanecclesialvocation.Italsoillustratesthehistoryinwhich“evangelization”and “evangelical”becameCatholicwords.ItillustratesthegradualdemographicshiftfromtheEuropean AmericanimmigrantCatholicsubculture,inthelaststagesofwhichIgrewup,toavoluntaryreligious cultureinwhichwediscussreligiousaffiliationanddisaffiliationandhowtoteachandministeramidthe so-called“riseofthenones.”Iusedthemodifier“EuropeanAmerican”becauseweallknowthatthis subculturemarginalizedmanypeople.Itisgood,therefore,toseeourcolleaguesfromACTHUSandthe BlackCatholicTheologicalSymposiumheretoday. Avoluntaryratherthananinheritedreligiousculturemeansthatyoujustdon’tknowwhether yourkidsaregoingtogrowuptobeCatholics.Thisiswhywetalkaboutevangelization.In1967,whenI wasaseniorincollege,agroupofscholarsatCatholicUniversityproducedthefirsteditionoftheNew CatholicEncyclopedia.Andthoughweweregettingrestless,grandchildrenofEuropeanimmigrantsstill 1 filledconvents,rectories,andseminaries.YouwillcombthefifteenvolumesoftheNCEinvainforan entryon“evangelization.”Wehadhomeandforeignmissionariesandevangelicalcounsels,butno evangelization.NordoIrecallanytalkof“Catholicidentity”orthe“Catholicintellectualtradition.”We didn’thave“missionoffices.”Thosephrasesarebornofasenseofsomethingoncetakenforgranted nowclearlycomingintoviewasitbeginstopassaway. Withinadecade,PopePaulVI’sapostolicexhortationEvangeliiNuntiandi(1975)introduced Catholicstothetermevangelization.Beforelong,PopeJohnPaulIIbeganspeakingofthe“new evangelization.”AsItriedtomakesenseofmystudentsinthe80sandthe90s,Irememberdiscovering EvangeliiNuntiandi.Itplayedacentralroleinmyeffortstothinkabout“evangelicalCatholics.”Butat thetime,IhadnoideaofitsLatinAmericanprovenance. PopeFrancisconsistentlyreferstoEvangeliiNuntiandias“themostimportantpastoral documentwrittenafterVaticanII.”HisownEvangeliiGaudiumcitesthedocumenttowhichitstitle alludesatleastthirteentimesbymycount.HerecommendsEvangeliiGaudiumas“theapostolic frameworkoftheChurchtoday”andlocatesitstwinfoundationsinthe2007Aparecidadocumentand EvangeliiNuntiandi. Ifyouwanttoknowwhatthe“newevangelization”isallabout,readEvangeliiNunitandi.The churchexiststopreachtheGospel.JesusChristandsalvationinhimaretheGospel’scontent.But evangelizationcan’tbelimitedtoexplicitpreaching,eitherfrompulpitsorstreetcorners.It’sprimarily aboutwitness.TheChurch’smainjobistoshowpeoplewhatJesusChristandsalvationinhimlooklike. Ifyougetthatfar,you’llprobablyhavetotalkaboutJesusChrist“asthemeaningoflife,thecosmos, andhistory.”Butfirst,inbothlifeandintheclassroom,yougofortheheart.AsBlessedJohnHenry Newmanputit:“Theheartiscommonlyreached,notthroughthereason,butthroughimagination,by meansofimpressions,bythetestimonyoffactsandevents,byhistory,bydescription.Persons influenceus,voicesmeltus,lookssubdueus,deedsinflameus”(Grammar,92-3).“IntheChurch,”Paul VIwrotein1975,“thewitnessgivenbyatrulyChristianlife…mustberegardedasthebasicmeansof evangelization.”Hecontinued:“peoplelistenmorewillinglytowitnessesthantoteachers,or,ifthey listentoteachers,itisbecausetheyarewitnesses”(EN,40). Theconclusionisinescapablysimpleinthoughtandagonizinglycomplexinexecution.Tocarry outtheirmission,Catholiccollegesanduniversitiesneedfacultywhoarebothteachersandwitnesses. InapairofrecentCommonwealarticlesonwhatmakesCatholicuniversitiesCatholic,bothJohnGarvey andMarkRocheconvergefromdifferentanglesontheconclusionthatitisthefacultythatmakethe universityCatholic.Onapoliticalandreligiouslandscapeofvoluntarismandpluralism,absentastrong Catholicculture,personalwitnessisindispensableinconvincingbothcolleaguesandstudentsofsuch seeminglyidiosyncraticintellectualgoodsas:thesearchforanintegrationofknowledge,adialogue betweenfaithandreason,anethicalconcern,andatheologicalperspective(ECE,15).Arecentpoll relatingthecollegeexperienceto“lifepreparedness,”identifiesthe“BigSix”collegeexperiences.Byfar themostsignificantoftheBigSixisthisone:“Ihadatleastoneprofessorwhomademeexcitedabout learning.”Knowledgeableandpassionateteachersaregoingtoturnstudentsontosomething.Catholic 2 universitiesneedanabundanceofprofessorswhocanturnstudentsontoJesusasheismediated throughtheCatholicintellectualtradition. Thequestionforthesecondsessionasks,“HowdoesthelifeoftheCatholicuniversityrelateto thewidercommunity,bothchurchandcivilcommunity,intermsofevangelization?”Primarilythrough thefaculty,Iwouldsay.Universitiesgivecorporatewitnessinthecivilcommunityandthechurchin manyways:byservingasagatewaythroughwhichtheircommunitycanaccesstherichesofthe Catholicintellectualtradition,throughtheirpoliciesforhiringfacultyandrecruitingstudents,through theirtreatmentoftheiremployees,especiallythestaffandcontingentfaculty,throughtheirrelations withthelocalcommunity,andeventhroughcollegesports. Butfacultyiskey.Myownuniversity,forexample,largelythroughtheenergyandcommitment ofourlong-servingformerpresident,BrotherRaymondL.Fitz,SM,hasdeepconnectionswiththecityof Daytonandthecommunitiesthatphysicallysurroundtheuniversity.AstheFerreeProfessorofSocial Justice,BrotherRayheadstheFitzCenterforLeadershipinCommunityandspearheadseffortsinchild welfare,educationbothpublicandparochial,andneighborhooddevelopment.BrotherRay’slifeand work,incompanywiththefacultyandstudentswhoworkwithhim,offerablueprintforhowaCatholic universityevangelizesinthecivilcommunity. Whatabouttheevangelizingactivityoffacultyinthechurch?Theshiftfromtheinherited immigrantsubculturefromwhichouruniversitiesgrewtothevoluntaryreligiouscultureinwhichthey mustnowredefinethemselvesoffersasociologicallensthroughwhichtolookatthisquestion.Forthe sakeoftimeandthisaudience,I’lllimitmyselftotheologyfaculty.ManyyoungtheologiansIknowfeel professionallycutofffromthechurch.Oneofmycolleaguesispresentlyusingheryear-longsabbatical totrytofigureoutwhat,ifanything,theacademictheologyshepracticesattheuniversityhastodo withthelifeofthechurch.Shereallywantsittohavesomethingtodowiththechurch.Idon’tthink sheisalone. Thiswasnotalwaysso.Recallmyopeningnarrative.Fivepriestsandonlyonelaypersonmade upmydepartmentin1979.By1994alllaypeople,nopriests.Backthenmanyofthoselaypeoplehada differentsociologicalprofilefromthatoftoday’slaytheologians.WhenIbegangraduatestudy,there weresurelyyounglaypeoplewhostudiedtheologyinspiredbytheCouncilanditsadmonition“towork hardtoacquireadeeperknowledgeofrevealedtruth”(LG,35),buttheytendedtobeoutnumberedby formerseminariansandreligious. Inthatsetting,nearlyfortyyearsago,DavidTracyofferedasociologicalportraitofwhathe calledthetheologian’sthreepublics:society,academy,andchurch.Tracypromisedacademic legitimacytoagenerationrecentlyremovedfromaninheritedsubculture,oftensuspiciousofits strictures,seekingdistancefromthemwithasometimestoxicmixtureofdedicationanddisaffection.A priestoftheDioceseofBridgeport,Tracy’s1969migrationfromCatholicUniversitytotheUniversityof Chicagoperformedtheacademiclegitimacyhepromised.Backthen,however,theacademyseemedto overshadowthechurchastheCatholictheologian’sprimarypublic.Contemporarylaytheologiansfind 3 themselvesinarathermorecomplexsociallocation,oneinwhichtheirloyaltiestobothchurchand academyoftenrenderthemsuspectinboth. Apartfromanecclesialunderstandingoftheirvocation,whywouldyounglayCatholics,who couldhavegottenanMBAoralawdegree,pursuetheology?Universitiesarethemostlikelyplace wheresuchpeoplemightfindalike-mindedcommunity,necessaryresources,andevengetpaidtothink andteachaboutJesusas“themeaningofthecosmos,life,andhistory.”Apartfromtheirlocalparishes andpossiblyamandatum,suchdevelopmentsasgradualprofessionalization,accreditation,and eventualseparateincorporation,maketheconnectionofCatholicuniversitytheologianstothechurch sociologically,religiously,andlegallyvoluntary.Youngtheologianssuchasmycolleagueonsabbatical findthemselveswithnoformalconnectionastheologianstothelocalchurchwithoutwhichtheir ecclesialunderstandingoftheirvocationmakesnosense.Onavoluntarylandscape,thisisaconnection thatcriesouttobenegotiated. Iftheyhappen,suchnegotiationswillbefraught.Thehistoryofthepastfortyyearshasbred suspiciononallsides.Ourchurchhastremendousfaultlines.Inmanyways,theyreflectourpolitical divisions.Howshouldwerespondpoliticallyandpastorallytopublicpoliciesclearlyatoddswiththe church’scommitmentstohumanlifeanddignity?Whatabouttheroleofwomeninthechurch?What aboutthefactthatmanyCatholicswhoarepeopleofcolorexperiencethechurch’sinstitutionsaswhat sociologistElijahAndersonhascalled“whitespaces”?Nevertheless,inspiteofourdivisions,itstrikes methat,inthegenerationalcohortsoftheologianscurrentlycomingupinCatholicuniversities,our bishops,asthepastorsandteachersofourlocalchurches,haveatremendousresourceattheirdisposal forthenewevangelization.TheseareteacherswhospendalotoftimethinkingaboutJesusas“the meaningoflife,thecosmos,andhistory.”Theyareteacherswhoarelikelytobewitnesses. Bishopsandtheologianswhoarepartofthesamelocalchurchneedtogettoknowone another.Theyneedtorecognizeeachother’sfaces,knoweachother’snames.Inavoluntaryreligious culture,nothingformalreallyrequiresthis.Meetingssuchastoday’sareagoodstart,butarethey enough?Thisissomethingforboththeologiansandbishopstothinkabout. 4 5