The Future of the Catholic Church in America

Reflecting on Fr. Cozzen's NCR article "The Church will submerge before any emergence, Cathy Kaveny, in a dotCommonweal post titled "A Generation or Two of Real Darkness" asks: "Are we basically headed toward a situation in which liberals and moderates drop out, and conservatives are left with an increasingly smaller leaner, and meaner church?"

I would say "yes," we are in for a generation or two of real darkness if we continue to view the Church in political terms as comprised of liberal, moderate, and conservative members.  If I am a liberal, the conservative becomes an "other" with whom I must contend.  And, if I am a conservative, the liberal becomes an "other" with whom I must contend.  Lost in all this is our primary call, which is, as I see it, to fall in love more and more each day with God who is Love and, as we read yesterday's in Gospel, to spread this message of love to all the nations.

Yes, we have real issues to be worked through painfully, and I don't desire to sweep those issues under the rug.  But, as we fight I pray that we remember that "we are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord, and I pray that all unity will one day be restored."