A Thinking Reed

Tiber swimming

Written by

Lee M.

in

This article from the Christian Century discusses the journeys of six prominent theologians – three Lutherans, two Anglicans, and a Mennonite – to Rome. The reasons generally seem to be an attraction to Catholic ecclesiology and/or the worry that mainline Protestantism is incapable of embodying a genuinely orthodox and catholic Christianity.

I wonder if there’s something about theologians that makes them particularly prone to this sort of thing. I’d wager that your average parishoner almost never thinks about large questions of ecclesiology, for instance. They may well oppose some innovation in the church, or object to unorthodox preaching or banal worship, but they’re probably just as likely to find a new congregation in another Protestant denomination as to join the Catholic Church.

I admit to having the occasional bout of “Roman fever,” but there are still plenty of areas where I disagree with the Magisterium. Better a good Protestant than a bad Catholic I say. (And I’m not even that good a Protestant.)

Comments

6 responses to “Tiber swimming”

  1. Kevin Jones

    The only good Catholic is a bad Catholic. 🙂

    Like these men, I’m a bit overtheologized myself, especially in the kind of theology that isn’t done on one’s knees. Knowing when to bite one’s pedantic tongue is one of the most important things for academic-types to learn.

    Reply
  2. Lee

    I had the most sympathy for Mickey Mattox, who said:

    “We as a family want to venerate the Blessed Virgin Mary, and to unite our prayers with and to the holy martyrs and saints. We want the holy icons, the rosaries, the religious orders, yes the relics too . . . and to practice and experience the real presence of Christ in the Eucharistic meal while retaining the bond of love and fellowship in communion with the bishop of Rome.”

    That’s a man who yearns to be a Catholic!

    Reply
  3. LutherPunk

    As my mama used to say: “Boy, you think too much.”

    I do suffer from the Roman fever as well from time to time. As a pastor, however, I stay drawn to the ELCA because I love my parishioners, and I know most of them simply want to know how to love God and neighbor and how to live a Christian life. I feel a responsiblity to them, and as such, I stay put.

    Reply
  4. The young fogey

    Well done. Many thanks.

    I wonder if The Christian Century or a journal of its stature has done a similar article on the 20-year-old Orthodox convert boomlet, which recently shook up the American evangelical and charismatic worlds. ’Doxing was hip in those academic circles (such as at Wheaton College and Oral Roberts University) for a while but may be on the wane now (?).

    Of course the RC converts get more publicity as it’s a bigger church and on more Western people’s radar. It’s part of their history, even if they’re centuries and generations removed.

    A Catholic vision: one church under the Pope but with all the traditional rites left alone – I wouldn’t want to see the Orthodox end up like the present-day Byzantine Catholics.

    He is also prefers loyalty to one’s church of origin: “I feel like you need to stay with the people that harmed you.”

    I take it that’s a typo: ‘formed you’?

    Scary thought: although much of what these converts say is sound and beautiful – Lee’s quotation from Mickey Mattox for example – maybe mainstream RC appeals to some ex-mainline Protestants because it’s become so mainline Protestant itself?

    Reply
  5. Lee

    YF – knowing Hauerwas’s work I’d wager that may not be a misprint.

    And, here’s a CC article on converts to Orthdoxoy from a while back:

    http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=3191

    Reply
  6. Jennifer

    I’ve heard the Hauerwas quote before and “harmed” is the correct word.

    I was thinking the same thing as Young Fogey, that from a certain perspective Catholicism in the U.S. looks a lot like any another mainline denomination, in terms of disagreements over liturgy, ethics, and theology.

    I was going to say that the catholicity of the Catholic Church is what makes it attractive when I have my rare bouts of thinking of leaving Methodism, but now that the Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists and everyone else are all over the world, does that matter? But there’s something more to catholicity than geography that I’m thinking about but can’t quite express right now.

    Reply

Leave a reply to Lee Cancel reply

More posts