What do you call a Roman Catholic who believes the church’s teachings on centuries of moral theology, as in doctrines stated in great detail in the church’s official, and easily available, Catechism?
For journalists who do not trust the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at this moment in time, here is the Vatican website copy of the Catechism.
According to the New York Times these pro-Catechism Catholics are part of a “rising right-wing strain within American Christianity as a whole” (I added bold text).
Then again, they might simply be “socially conservative and tradition-minded” folks. Or they may be people who support a “brand of new hard-right rhetoric and community” found in nasty corners of the Internet.
Then (yet) again, they may — this is the important part — be Donald Trump supporters.
But one thing they are not is normal Catholics. People who defend the stated teachings of the church are strange Catholics.
I raise this question because of a fascinating recent Times report that gained traction online for some obvious reasons. This feature was the hook for this week’s “Crossroads” podcast (CLICK HERE to tune that in). Here is the double-decker headline on what was, for me, a interesting but at times bipolar story:
Old Latin Mass Finds New American Audience, Despite Pope’s Disapproval
An ancient form of Catholic worship is drawing in young traditionalists and conservatives. But it signals a divide within the church.
What makes this story so strange?
First of all, it offers some interesting information and images about the waves of people — including many, many large young families — who are embracing the ancient Latin Mass. I would, however, note that just as many or more of these believers are choosing Catholic churches that use the modern Novus Ordo rite, but offer services packed with chants, incense, processions, traditional prayers and, yes, even the Latin form of the Vatican II text. Someone should check and see how many people are requesting Eastern Rite Catholic parishes, as well.
In other words, the current campaign by the Vatican and strategic cardinals (in some blue American zip codes, for example) against the Tridentine Mass and, in some cases, other traditional forms of worship, may be part of a broader story.
But back to the Times piece, which came from the religion desk (lots of fine reporting) but appears to have been edited by the political desk squad. Here are some key passages:
The traditional Latin Mass, an ancient form of Catholic worship that Pope Francis has tried to discourage, is instead experiencing a revival in the United States. It appeals to an overlapping mix of aesthetic traditionalists, young families, new converts and critics of Francis. And its resurgence, boosted by the pandemic years, is part of a rising right-wing strain within American Christianity as a whole.
The Mass has sparked a sprawling proxy battle in the American church over not just songs and prayers but also the future of Catholicism and its role in culture and politics.
It’s a “proxy battle,” you see, because it’s really not about worship and doctrine — it’s about politics.
All together now: Politics is real. Religion? Not so much.
Maybe, just maybe, Times-people believe that these two powerful forces are always related. See this crucial passage:
Although Catholics as a whole are a politically diverse cohort in the United States, frequent Mass attendees tend to be more conservative: 63 percent of Catholics who attend Mass at least monthly supported Donald J. Trump in the 2020 presidential election, compared with 53 percent of less-frequent attendees, according to the Pew Research Center. Informal surveys have found that Latin Mass attendees not only attend Mass more often but hold almost universally conservative views on topics like abortion and gay marriage.
INote these crucial words — “frequent Mass attendees.” In other words, the Times team sees the Latin Mass issue is part of a larger issue focusing on counter-attacks by faithful Catholics on the Sexual Revolution. And these are not “Catholic” views — as in doctrines in the Catechism — these frequent Mass folks (#triggerwarning, with large families) hold “universally conservative views.”
Need a nail in this coffin? This sentence a few lines later will do it:
Political and theological conservatives see in Pope Francis’ restriction of the traditional Latin Mass a troubling disregard for orthodoxy more broadly.
Simply stated: What is the purpose of the word “political” at the start of this sentence? This is the key question for the whole article.
But the face-to-face reporting does show evidence that many of these young Catholics with (#triggerwarning) lots of children are seeking something linked to, well, faith. This is long, but important (I added bold text again):
Some bishops, including those in Chicago and Washington, have drastically reduced the availability of the traditional Latin Mass this year.
“It’s something I couldn’t imagine, having to beg and plead for the traditional Latin Mass,” said Noah Peters, who organized a five-mile “pilgrimage” in September from a cathedral in Arlington, Va., to one in Washington in protest of the restrictions in both dioceses.
Mr. Peters was raised as a secular Jew and was drawn to Catholicism through the traditional Latin Mass “because it had this beauty, timelessness and reverence about it,” he said.
Like Mr. Peters, almost all Latin Mass devotees use a version of the word “reverent” unprompted, contrasting the tone of the Latin Mass with oft-cited if rare examples in modern parishes featuring nontraditional elements like puppets and balloons, a casual treatment of the Eucharist, or music and dance they consider disrespectful. The popular traditionalist podcaster Taylor Marshall often tells a story about feeling driven away from the Novus Ordo when he was served the Eucharist by a layperson wearing a Grover T-shirt.
A Grover t-shirt? That’s all? How about that recent Chicago story that raised all kinds of doctrinal questions? Here is my column on the topic: “Father’s Day Mass in Pride month — Gay dads celebrate the faith of their Chicago parish.”
What is the hard-news reporting that supports the word “rare” in this passage? Most of the Catholics that I hear talking about the worship wars describe their Mass problems in terms of quick, shallow, even shoddy rites that are haunted by folk-mass-era hymns and priests who think they are talk-show hosts.
Once again, read the whole Times story — please. There are plenty of hints at broader topics. And enjoy the podcast and, please, pass it along to others.
