By SHAUN KENNEY
Fr. James Martin, SJ, was politely uninvited from a talk at a parish in New Jersey this February, for the predictable reasons. His book Building a Bridge continues to be panned despite his efforts as an olive branch to the LGBT community, plus Qs and Is and plus signs and other letters of the alphabet in alliance.
Characteristically, Fr. Martin lashed out at those behind the undoing of this particular lecture, specifically Michael Voris over at Church Militant and the good folks at Tradition, Family, and Property, whose banners at the March for Life in Washington are instantly recognizable. “Hate mongering and online bullying” were the words Martin used to describe the petitions used to pry his presentation out of a parish and into a conference hall, his opponents driven by nothing but fear, homophobia, and hate.
It has been noted elsewhere that Fr. Martin’s “bridge” is called a confessional. That’s not the point I would like to belabor here. Rather, it is Martin’s uncharitable reaction to his opposition. Do you remember that verse in the Gospels where Christ instructed the apostles to call their opponents haters and homophobes driven by fear?
Matthew 10 suggests the behavior of true apostles: “As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; if not, let your peace return to you. Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words — go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet.”
When Fr. Martin reacts in such a way against critics, it ought to be confirmation to others that what he is selling is — perhaps — a bit disjointed from the charity and true love that Christians are supposed to exhibit toward their critics.
Christ suffering on the cross didn’t expel a slew of epithets at His persecutors. For an example of that sort of behavior, one need only look toward the Bad Thief who demanded God come to him on his terms. Alternatively, the Good Thief begged and implored Christ to remember him despite the depth of his sins.
Guess which one made it across the bridge?
+ + +
For home-schooling parents, you truly cannot go wrong with Angelicum Academy for all your basic needs. Classically trained and with excellent supplementals, the series will teach even your 16-year-olds how to spot errors few others might.
What sort of errors? One textbook cover printed by the Angelicum sent my eldest son scrambling to my philosophy books when a quote on the front was misattributed to Rene Descartes’ Consolations of Philosophy (sic). Of course, the Consolations were written by Boethius, whereas Descartes would have written Discourse on the Method, among other tracts.
Of course, I have not quite yet introduced my eldest to Descartes originals. Save that torture for the college classroom. Yet he had already been introduced to Boethius. Some might question whether or not that sort of training has any practical use in a modern society. I’d suggest that it does among those who recognize the value in learning their own history at a young age and can speak intelligently about ideas.
So congratulations to the Angelicum Academy for producing an eagle eye, even if someone missed the quotation (intentionally or otherwise). One kid down, six more to go.
+ + +
I have to thank the many readers who offered their thoughts on l’affaire Ploumen over these last weeks. Truly, I am gratified to find that so many Catholics across the country were as horrified as I was to see the medal given to such a prominent pro-abortion activist. The later shifts from the Vatican — that it was merely the medal but not the honor, or that it was intended as a slight — were impotent at best and scandalous at worst.
Let us not touch too firmly to the scandal. Rather, each of us should take supreme confidence that the economy of grace found a universal sentiment among the practicing faithful. Not anger, but deeply rooted concern. We live in a time of martyrs, and how exciting it is to be alive in such a time!
Consider our heroes. St. Francis of Assisi and St. Catherine of Siena both found the Church to be in a far more ruinous state of affairs than today. The answer of both was not to walk away from the Catholic faith, but to embrace a fidelity born from a deep and prayerful love of the sacraments. Both knew how to separate the personnel of the Church from the society of the Church — the one institution on Earth that Christ Himself made the Deposit of Truth and Faith the gates of Hell would never prevail against.
Individuals will err; the Church is divinely preserved from error. Hard to see at times, but historically true.
+ + +
Pope Francis released his new apostolic constitution Veritatis Gaudium (The Joy of Truth) regarding the governance of ecclesiastical universities just moments before I submit this column. A blessing in disguise, as this will give me a whole week to read the document and offer some thoughts accordingly as opposed to mere reactions.
+ + +
Of course, I am succeeding (but not replacing) the inestimable Mr. James K. Fitzpatrick for the First Teachers column. Please feel free to send any correspondence for First Teachers to Shaun Kenney, c/o First Teachers, 5289 Venable Rd., Kents Store, VA 23084 — or if it is easier, simply send me an e-mail with First Teachers in the subject line to: svk2cr@virginia.edu.
Powered by WPtouch Mobile Suite for WordPress