The state of the Church in a Picture

 

Good teacher what must I do to inherit eternal life? (Luke 18.18)

Lord, will only a few be saved? (Luke 13.23)

Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? (Mark 10.2)

Questions are good. Questions are the doorway to knowledge. Jesus was presented with many questions throughout his ministry. And He answered them. People presented Him with questions because they recognised that “[H]e taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” (Matthew 7.29). When asked good and important questions Jesus gave people the authoritative answers so that they might order their lives, with confidence, upon the Truth. Truth Himself speaks truly or there’s nothing true (Gerard Manley Hopkins SJ, cf. Adoro te devote).

The mission of the Catholic Church is, under the guidance and in the power of the Holy Spirit, to perpetuate the presence of Jesus Christ throughout the world. Through the Church, Jesus Christ has been becoming ever more present down through History. Every time a new tabernacle is erected, whenever or wherever a Sacrament is celebrated, when a Christian prays authentically, wherever the Liturgy is of offered, each time the community gathers, when a human heart is converted through mission, where the poor are loved in His name Jesus Christ becomes more present in the world. Jesus Christ did not leave us behind at His Ascension, He remains with us always (Matt. 28.20).

An important part of this, of course, is that He continues to teach us through the Church. Just as people in Jesus’ own time had many questions for Him, for which they needed answers; so too, in every age the disciples of Jesus Christ have needed the guidance of the master. Which is why it is such a disaster, when the Church fails to teach with clarity.  

I travelled recently to San Sebastiàn in Spain for a break. I really commend it as a holiday destination. September is, apparently, the best month for weather and my experience bore this out. There is a superb town beach, which my friend and I enjoyed; however, there are also some wonderful cultural sites, including some lovely old Churches. 

However, travelling to see ancient Churches these days can open one up to heartbreak. Above is a picture from outside, by the entrance, of the Basilica of Saint Mary of Coro. In this niche built into the wall, a really nebulous piece of modern artwork has been placed; I can only assume replacing a statue of a saint or a holy monument.

If a picture could sum up where it sometimes feels like we are in the Church today, then, for me, this might be it. Whereas a statue of a saint speaks to the world concretely of his or her life, witnesses to virtue, and the incarnation of Christian principles within a human person, what does this say? Rather than a holy image, this holey image speaks of gaps, uncertainty, confusion - what is is even? Furthermore, the fact that it is brilliant white, against the much more ancient stone of the Church walls highlights a discontinuity.

Further horrors awaited us in the next Church we visited. The Church of San Vicente, just down from Our Lady’s Basilica was erected between the 15th & 16th Century, and is home to this beautiful reredos. You may think how lovely - built to the honour and glory of Almighty God. However, as we got closer, we noticed something missing…

The tabernacle had been replaced by a book. We presumed that this was an enthronement of the Word of God, the Bible, and I think that was probably what was meant. However, getting closer it looked a lot more like an altar missal. We could only presume that the parish had wanted to exult the Word of God, but had failed to find a suitably impressive print edition of the Bible, and so had opted for a traditional missal instead. 

Being Catholic priests on holiday, we immediately set about looking for the tabernacle to venerate the Real Presence of Jesus Christ. Predictably we found Him off to the side, but enthroned upon the radiator system.

What does all this say, in answer to the question of what we, as Catholics, believe about the Eucharist? If it were explained to someone that we believe the Eucharist is the very body, blood, soul and divinity of the second person of the Bl. Trinity, what would he make of walking into our Church and finding Him pushed to one side, while a faux Bible is exulted in, what was clearly originally intended to be, His place of honour. There are few priests with a higher view than me of the place Sacred Scripture should have in a Catholic’s life; but when it comes at the expense of the Bl. Sacrament something has gone wrong.

The questions the people put to Jesus Christ in His day were good questions deserving of answers. And so are the questions that people ask of Him, through His Church, today. Until we are prepared to give them those authoritative answers, in charity, and then incarnate them in the life of the Church, the crisis within Catholicism will continue.