This thread is depressing. Common’ folks, let’s look at this from a different perspective. I once said to the brothers that it’s very easy to see greener pastures at a distance. It’s my version of the “Grass is greener on the other side.” When I said this I truly believed it and I believe it today.
I’d like to stop and share with you a little about the life of the Church when our Franciscan family was born. I always use Franciscans as my reference point, because one should always write and speak from a vantage point that is well known, not one that is unfamiliar.
The Rule of St. Francis was first approved in 1209. No one knows for sure when the fraternity was actually born, probably not more than two years before, give or take a month. If we look at that period in history, it was not that different from our own. In fact, it was the fact that it was such a contentious period in history that paved the way for great things to happen in the world and the Church.
It was a time when kingdoms war in constant war. The secular clergy was in a state of crisis. Diocesan priests were poorly education and very poorly governed. There were many saintly men among them. There were also some who lived with women. Some who lived with men and others who did their thing with young boys. There were some who were very involved in the politics of the time, not because they were interested in the welfare of the people; but they were interested in the money.
Bishops usually came from the aristocracy and bishoprics were bought and sold. If you had money and you had a son who was a priest, you could buy him a bishopric. The laity was in a state of turmoil. The merchant classes had risen. While the aristocracy still governed, the real power was with the merchants, because they had the money. They controlled the aristocracy. It was very much like today, corporation control governments.
War was their daily bread. When they were not fighting each other, they were fighting the Muslims. The level of education of the average person, even aristocrat was that of a pre-schooler. There were very intelligent people, but not enough education.
Even in the midst of this very depressing picture, God manages to continue to make His presence felt. He continues to break into human history. We see the rise of the Trappists the century before the Franciscans. St. John DeMatha founds the Trinitarians. Francis rises up and founds three orders. Dominic founds two orders. The Servites are born. The Carmelites return from Jerusalem and join the ranks of the Mendicants. The Augustinians go through their own reform.
Now let’s look at today. We have new religious communities. I know that in the USA 15 new Franciscan communities have been born in the last 25 years. That’s an average of one new religious community about every 18 months. They’re all thriving.
There is a new community of Dominican sisters that is thriving, Dominicans of Mary. There are several Augustinian communities: Sisters of Life, Sisters of the Eternal Word and another Marian community whose name escapes me.
There are several new Benedictine communities.
Then there are some lay movements and lay institutes. There are secular societies for priests that are thriving such as the FSSP and the ICRSS. Diocesan seminaries are growing again. I know that my diocese has a waiting list and so do others. The Dominican Friars in the Eastern Province have no more room in their novitiate.
We have some serious cleaning up taking place in the Vatican. Prior to Pope Francis we had Pope John Paul who started a missionary movement that is still running and doing well, especially among the young. Pope Benedict was the teaching pope. He left us with much needed knowledge on the faith. Now Pope Francis is giving us the applications.
There is a strong generation of young Catholics around the the world; but we have to look for them. They’re there. I help out at a parish that has a core group of young Catholics of about 500. These are high school and college age men and women. They have Life Teen. They volunteer in religious education as aids. They run many parish activities that raise funds. They’re active in Respect Life Ministry, with which I work. They have religious education for their own. They have adoration of the Blessed Sacrament one night per week and there are never less than 80 of them.
We had a pro-life chain in the Archdiocese this past Sunday. The organization that was leading this is not a Catholic organization. It’s an interdenominational organization. They do this every year. They form a chain down a road that traverses three counties. It’s impressive to see Christians and Muslims on that chain together.
I teach a grade 6 class of CCD. I teach a course that I created, “Christology in the OT”. It’s incredible to see 11 and 12 year olds reading ancient Hebrew and Latin. I love guiding them through the OT following the shadows of Jesus throughout. It’s very promising. Unfortunately, we don’t have enough catechists with a background in Christology, ancient languages and Sacred Scripture to duplicate the course. But I have already had three catechists spend a year with me learning it and they’re now using it. There is hope, one person at a time, one community at a time.
This is something that I learned from St. Francis of Assisi. God is not outdone by sin. Yes there is sin in the world. The Church is in the world; therefore, she’s not impervious to sin. But there is also potential for great things to happen. It depends on us. Do we want to mourn or do we want to be like the great men and women of the 13th century, courageous enough to believe that God is always with us and with him great things can happen?
Take a glas of water. Fill it to the middle and ask yourself, “What do I have?”
Then stop to think about those who don’t even have a glass.
