March 26, 2007
That's My Church!
The latest Carnival of the Anglican Implosion is up over at the Web Elf Report, continuing to monitor the fallout from the ECUSA's now more or less open breach with the Communion.
Frankly, for me it isn't really a question anymore of whether I'll leave but when. I reckon I'll do what I can for my parish for the rest of my term on the vestry, but I can't really see beyond that. And if there is a bloodbath at the end of September (a very real possibility, as it appears that nobody is bluffing here), my departure could come even sooner.
As before, the issue continues to be Whither Robbo? Do I scout around for other Conservative Anglican refugees with whom to band together, or do I just get it over with and swim the Tiber? (There really are no other options for me.) I've talked about this question here for several years now, but at last I've finally starting looking into it in more earnest.
To this end, I spent the afternoon Friday reading a book called Rome Sweet Home, by Scott and Kimberly Hahn. It's their personal account of their looooooong, long swing from hard-core Calvinist to, well, hard-core R.C.
The book made very interesting reading, in that it outlined a lot of issues I would need to work through. At the same time, given the background of the authors, it highlighted just how close we Palies really are to the Mother Church in terms of things like the centrality of the liturgy and the sacraments. I already take for granted many things that the authors had to face. (I suppose this simply means that there is not one path across the Tiber, but many, many different ones.)
On the other hand, it was a bit off-putting for two reasons: First, the Hahns are theology-junkies to begin with. I lost count of the number of seminary programs, degrees obtained and other academic points in their combined resumes. I'm not a theology-junky, but instead a poorly-informed amateur. Put in musical terms, these people are concert pianists well versed in advanced theory and performance, while I'm still stumbling over two-fingered chopsticks, so there is some definite distance there. (I suppose this is not so much "off-putting" as it is daunting.) Second, the Hahns have a definite evangelical air about them. Enthusiasm of any sort tends to give me the willies, and it's a well-known phenomenon that converts tend to be the most zealous advocates. This is, of course, just a matter of personalities, but if anybody is going to lure me across the Tiber, I don't see them as being the boatmen.
Given this, I'd be interested in any recommendations for other writers on the subject. For instance, I've only read Chesterton in bits and pieces. Perhaps it's time to delve more deeply there. I'm also bulking up again on C.S. Lewis - unlike many others, he seems to have had the gift for describing spiritual joy without all the heavy breathing.
Posted by Robert at March 26, 2007 11:51 AM | TrackBackRobbo,
Father Neuhaus's "Catholic Matters" is an excellent read. He explains his movement to Rome after 30 years as a Lutheran minister.
In a nutshell, Neuhaus found that as time went on, he realized he had simply run out of objections; he had answered all of his questions and decided he was a Catholic.
I read your posts Robbo, and perhaps I read too much into them, but I find myself chuckling and saying "Robbo already is a Catholic -- he just doesn't realize it yet."
Neuhaus also talks about the disconcerting feeling once he became Catholic -- it's a lot bigger on the inside than it seems on the outside. There are many, many kinds of Catholics, and no two are exactly alike.
Posted by: The Colossus at March 26, 2007 12:15 PMScott and Kimberly Hahn are very impressive people. They are also remarkably intense people. Scott is a voracious reader. The theological junkie description made me laugh.
To answer you question more fully, (because there are 3 trillion books out there) could you be a bit more precise as to what you are looking for. As a convert from the English Church, I would recommend anything by Joseph Pearce. Since you once toyed with a career in an English Department, perhaps Pearce's Literary Converts... Since you have been reading C.S. Lewis, you might enjoy his book where he makes the case that if Lewis were alive today, he'd be a Catholic.
Cardinal Newman was too tough for me. But not Mr. P. Surprisingly, I found Cardinal Manning very readable. Mr. P read Belloc and Chesterton, reading the majority of the books a loud to me. I'll have to think some more.
I'd like to second Colusses' thought about already being Catholic. Out of my 4 grandparents, 2 were born Catholics. One left of her own free will and the other was drop kicked out because of his unrepentant sociopathic behavior... When I started learning about Catholicism, I had to chuckle because so much of my outlook was Catholic. My granparents may have left the Catholic Church but the Catholic Church hadn't left them. They passed it on to their children who in turn passed it on to their grandchildren...
God does have a sense of humor...
Posted by: Mrs. Peperium at March 26, 2007 01:12 PMAnd I'm in here screaming "Don't leave us, Robbo! We need the likes of you--one who reads and thinks; one who can put into words the uneasy feeling that there is something nefarious going on in the Episcopal Church. I understand the urge to run. It's more difficult to stay and fight. We didn't "make a fuss" when we should have; now it seems we'll have to go to war. Someone's got to ask the difficult questions and demand answers and be the loud-mouth in the vestry and at each and every meeting. There are many behind you. Don't fail them.
Posted by: pnutqueen at March 26, 2007 05:14 PMWhammer -- As a lifelong Catholic, I quite naturally know less about my own church than do many who converted their way in. No reading list from me. Colossus' point regarding the many flavors of Catholic is right on, though. Just this past week we had a meeting of all of the Parish Councils in our town's six parishes. It was the first such meeting, and in the middle of the chaos I emailed my wife 'one holy, catholic, and apostolic church???' Nevermind the various orders and such -- there is plenty of variation right here in my own town.
There are many issues at play in the RC church these days, and we were meeting on one of them. Front and center right now: we simply have an extreme shortage of priests. The archdiocese sent out questionaires to all of us that had -- no kidding -- 18 essay questions meant to have us show (and I quote) the 'viability of a parish'. Since they can't recruit priests, we're going to have to 'link' or shut parishes.
What strikes me as particularly gruesome in all of this is that all six churches in town are doing great. All are growing, all are financially stable, all have robust programs in the community, we support four schools that are full, etc. We are just plumb out of priests. Which, of course, makes me want to send a note back to the Archbishop saying 'The Church (that would be us) is FINE. How are YOU doing?'
The Catholic church is a great faith but a poorly managed institution. The problems we've got right now are pure Management 101. Basic financial literacy is not to be found, we've got a legal structure that is a litigant's dream, and let's not get into the human resources issues and lack of accountability shown by management in that arena. No problems that couldn't be fixed in a hurry, but the same qualities that keep a 2000-year-old institution lumping along also mean that nothing hurries much.
I write this not to discourage you but to let you know that Heaven will indeed not be found (or made, regardless what your High Priestess says) here on this earth. I'd welcome you in (and Steve-O back), but I'd fully expect to see you on some Parish Council soon enough. From your posts, you will never be a fence-sitter or a wallflower. You'll try to fix what needs fixin'. And we've got some of that.
Posted by: tdp at March 26, 2007 07:44 PMRobbo,
I am looking for a few good reads to slip into a plain brown wrapper for you...
I usually give the Hahn's books to Baptist and other obnoxious people who quote bible passages out of context and tell me I'm going to hell.
Personally, I prefer the books of Father Greeley and Father Groeschel.
Catholic means "universal", or as Flannery O'Connor put it " Here comes everyone". We worship in our culture and customs, not rigidly.
You might want to check out AngloCatholic parishes, that use the liturgy and book of prayer emphasis but are now joined to Rome. Or check out Orthodoxy.
Thankee muchly for all your comments and suggestions (and to those who dropped them directly into the Tasty Bits (TM) Mail Sack as well.)
Just to be clear, lest my snarking seems out of hand, I'm not criticizing the Hahns. Their approach to spreading the Word is just not my cup o' tea.
Posted by: Robbo the LB at March 27, 2007 10:10 AMIf you're going to jump ship, why not come home to the Orthodox Church? After all, it is the original Church founded by Our Lord through his apostles. My parish, St. Justin Martyr, in Jacksonville, FL, is full of former Episcopalians, including one of our priests! We are with the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), services are in English, and converts (like me and my bride) are welcomed with open arms. Visit an OCA church in your area, and/or check out our website at www.st-justin-martyr.org for more info about the Orthodox Faith.
Posted by: Alex. at March 27, 2007 05:19 PMAlex: some here might take issue with your claim.
Robert: I enjoyed Cardinal Newman and Fr. Robert Hugh Benson's autobiographies (Fr. Benson's father was Archbishop of Canterbury, and Fr. Benson was an Anglican priest before he was a Catholic priest). My prayers will be with you as you explore the faith.
Thankee! I am not at all versed in the writings of Fr. Benson, but I know his brother E.F.'s works well.
Posted by: Robbo the LB at March 29, 2007 12:46 PMChristine: "Some" and "might" ain't much.
Posted by: Alex. at March 29, 2007 05:35 PM
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