The Real Problem and the Real Blessings of Catholicism

The Real Problem and the Real Blessings of Catholicism

Issues of authority are not only issues facing Protestants who look at the Catholic Church as an institution consisting of dogmatic over-certainty. Catholics in the modern world can have the same problems with authority and can be described as one man said to me today as 'leftist fascist.' G.K. Chesterton can tell the story for us quite well. The normal line may be heard as follows: all sorts of things can be believed against the Church's teaching based upon modern man's mind and his new ability not to be 'constrained' as Jesus was by his own culture. But, Chesterton reminds us that The modern mind will accept nothing on authority, but will accept anything on no authority. Say that the Bible or the Pope says so and it will be dismissed without further examination. But preface your remark with “I think I heard somewhere,” or, try but fail to remember the name of some professor who might have said “such-and-such,” and it will be immediately accepted as an unshakable fact. Simply add your 'Catholic' issue to the above quotation and there you will find the truthfulness of Chesterton's words. This is because there is an overly cautious attitude towards anyone who would ever embrace Catholicism as absolutely true. But, says Chesterton, Truth is stranger than fiction because we create fiction to suit our fancy. The truth of the matter is that we do not question Catholic truth because we are showing the world our true humility, rather we are actually exposing our pridefulness. Chesterton continues to tell the story saying, To the humble man, and to the humble man alone, the sun is really a sun; to the humble man, and to the humble man alone, the sea is really a sea. And so, when I am given strange looks for upholding Catholic authority and Church teaching, I become quite proud of my faith. Chesterton finally reminds us why Catholicism is the antiquated religion of Jesus and he encourages us to have a proud humility of our faith. So far as a man may be proud of a religion rooted in humility, I am very proud of my religion; I am especially proud of those parts of it that are most commonly called superstition. I am proud of being fettered by antiquated dogmas and enslaved by dead creeds (as my journalistic friends repeat with so much pertinacity), for I know very well that it is the heretical creeds that are dead, and that it is only the reasonable dogma that lives long enough to be called antiquated. And so, when it comes to the rebellious rejection of matters of the faith, Impartiality is a pompous name for indifference, which is an elegant name for ignorance. So, being a traditional Catholic is not being a bigot as some would imagine because, It is not bigotry to be certain we are right; but it is bigotry to be unable to imagine how we might possibly have gone wrong. Where the real difference lies is the heart of the problem that began with the first sin and how subsequently others cause differing opinions about what is excusable. But we might do well to ponder that Men do not differ much about what things they will call evils; they differ enormously about what evils they will call excusable. And so the real problem always come back to the issue of authority.

From, de cura animarum, of Jeffrey Steel