Finding the voice of the Church by George Dennis O’Brien [book review]

This is an original and very well thought out book. O’Brien is not a theologian, but a philosopher, though he has made his career as a college administrator. Because of this, he takes a different approach to the subject of ‘church” and religion than most authors. He is not terribly concerned about prescribing results or defining appropriate theology. He even wants to move beyond mere morality to deeper matters.

He looks at three questions: What is the proper voice of the church? Is there a voice of Christian faith? Can what is said about Christianity be fundamentally distorted by how it is said? In all of this, he is more concerned about the proper process than forcing a result (how Obama-like).

He is quite capable of standing some traditional formulas on their head. He is willing to agree that outside the church there is no salvation. That many who are not part of this sect or who don’t believe a particular set of tenets are nevertheless saved is not a problem for him. If they are saved, then they are part of the church by definition. Salvation and forgiveness are important because they were important to Jesus. Other matters, not so much.

So, is there a proper voice (the medium being the message) for Christians? In this he focuses on Jesus, identifying him not as a messenger, but the Message – the Word. Any voice used by  Christians should be based on that of Jesus. Not his specific teachings or sayings as passed down to us, but his life, which is God’s Message. Text proofing and developing elaborate theologies may be the work of churches, but Christians have not just a model of how to behave, but a Savior. One who did not come to identify enemies, but to forgive those who identified Him as an enemy.

Concerning the voice of Christian faith, he put Christian morality to one side. Yes, the Golden Rule is fine, yes we should all be good, but what does that have to do with Christian faith? What is the content of our faith and how should we speak it. Do we claim forgiveness for ourselves and expect God to refuse it to others?  Are we satisfied with promoting morality, instead of living a truly Christian life?

Finally, he looks at how Christianity speaks affects to reception of what it says.  As unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity… and Why It Matters by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons documents, the voice used by most Christians just about obliterates the message/Message. The book concludes with a series of proposals for reforming the Catholic Church, which is a very large order, but which can also be the basis of a personal renewal. A greater awareness of just how much my “voice” affects how my message is received would be a great gift.

Along the way, O’Brien uses new and inventive frames. Throughout the book, he considers how to view our world. He uses the image of an author who creates characters, but they soon escape His control. He doesn’t want control, but knows that they will be best off if they live the kind of life He has scripted for them. O’Brien views a self-scripted life as the prototypical and original sin. Jesus comes to show (not tell, since a good author know it is better to show rather than tell) what a life that accepts God’s script is like.

Though some of the book is specifically Catholic, this work will reward the careful reader of any faith, especially Christians. It is quite a change of pace for readers of religious books. Note that this is far from pop theology, but well worth the effort.

Shakespeare: the world as stage by Bill Bryson [review]

I am a fan of Bryson, who is witty, breezy and informative. He is on his usual pace here, running through what is know about Shakespeare (not much) and the various things that people have thought about him (too much).  He debunks a lot of what appears in the more speculative books. A quick and useful corrective to the more expansive works that read so much into a mainly unknown life from his surviving works.

That we have so much text ( a very unusual amount, given the times) and so little actual biographical info, makes Shakespeare a target for all kinds of speculation, most of which tells you more about the author than about Shakespeare.

Got a bone to pick though. Like most English, Bryson parrots the story the Elizabeth didn’t really oppress Catholics, just those who happened the oppose her. Catholics could not attend Mass, were required to attend state approved services, could be fired or financially ruined at any time, could be executed or jailed (pretty much the same thing) for any public display and even powerful nobles had to tread lightly. Yes, loyal citizens were jailed and killed for the crime of being Catholic and nothing else.  Apply those same restrictions to gay, Muslims, blacks and we would be sure that they were being oppressed.

Speaking at WISCNET conference

That was fun.

Wiscnet are the people who run the non-commercial side of the Internet in Wisconsin, that is the Un iversities, K-12, libraries.  The main focus of the conference was broadband and more broadband. I’m in favor of that myself. We have a double T-1 now and know that that will not be enough in the future. The Northern Tier (Internet in Wis, MN, IA, ND, SD) is near completion  (at least the Wisconsin Minnesota part) and that will have a big unseen impact. Extra large fiber from Chicago to Madison, Eau Claire and Twin Cities. Madison is what matters to us, since our feeder lines run from there. This is so fast and secure that something in Chicago will be much like something on our LAN.

Star of the show – Chris Lehman, Principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia. Dynamic and sensible. Old school (yeh Dewey) and pushing the edge. Loves tech, but no techno-lust. Tech is a means, not an end. Anyone who focuses on first priciples, mission  and what works is a neo-traditionalist.

Second star – the Monona Terrace. Beautiful facility. Great view. Love visiting Madcity, just wouldn’t like to work/live there.  Excellent food. Nice meeting rooms. Was there previously to hear my bro Tom (www.thomaspmbarnett.com) speak. Much better when you don’t have to perform.

My piece was small. Only public librarian to talk, almost the only one there. Spent an hour nattering about using Google Maps, Flickr and Print on Demand to re-purpose some of our historical content to a respectable crowd of 26. Program available though I will add narration when I have time. Love the sound of my own voice?

For me the best part is POD, which changes a lot of things. Short runs of items are financially possible. In fact, I could publish as few as two copies of a 100 page book, color cover, perfect bound for about $15 total (counting shipping).  It takes vanity publishing to a whole new level. It makes it possible to publish something for your family or friends, to get extra copies of your thesis, you name it. Lotsa classroom applications. Let your kids write, take photos, draw and then publish it for under $5.00 per copy? Color costs more of course,  but still!

So, happy to have been invited. Now I have a staff development day to work on, a system wide planning session to participate in, a healthly living program (got a free pedometer!!) to walk through and , oh yes, I rolled double nickles this week. Sing it Sammy—I – can’t – be —–55!!!!!!!!

Practicing Catholic by James Carroll [book review]

Practicing Catholic by James Carroll [book review]

Carroll is a very interesting writer. At times he can be too deep, so deep that his reflections seem lost in obscurity. At other times, he often uses his  personal involvement and reactions to frame important issues. This is a very unusual way to craft a narrative, yet Carroll succeeds. He uses his personal and faith history to cover the changes in the Catholic Church over the last fifty (can it be that long?) years.

Drawing on both history and his life, Carroll starts by looking at “Americanism” which the Church first defined in terms of heresy and disloyalty. An American church that valued pluralism, freedom of religion and conscience and democracy was a huge threat to a Vatican that had just lost their temporal power over the Papal States. With secular values on the rise throughout Europe, Darwin seemingly replacing God with chance and the walls coming down on the Old Order, the Papacy responded with a claim of infallibility, a re-statement that there was no salvation outside the Church and a denunciation of the American heresy.

Carroll finds a hero to stand up for America and modernism – John Cardinal Cushing. Cushing had a Jewish brother-in-law. Church dogma said that there is simply no salvation outside the church, defined as the Church. Jews (as Carroll documented in Constantine’s Sword) have suffered greatly under Christianity of all stripes. At that time, a priest in Cushing diocese was boldly reaching this No Salvation doctrine. Cushing found this dogma in contrast with his experience and therefore ethics. For him, dogma had to flow from experience rather than the reverse. Cushing sought to have him silenced and the Vatican agreed with him on the basis that Cushing was a Cardinal.

Vatican II is another event covered in some detail. Despite John XXIII’s wishes, the Council almost came to naught, since the Old Guard tried to sabotage it from the start. Carroll rightly identifies language as a key, as well as dogma that flows from experience, rather than dogma that comes from literal interpretation of language about God, which can NOT be literal, since God is greater than language. Carroll ties this to a war between modernism and a more feudal, authority based religion.

Carroll’s take on contraception may be typical, but his focus on America’s role in the Church is enlightening. He ties in the Berrigans, the anti-war movement, Howl, women’s liberation, Liberation Theology into a bundle that brought him to adulthood and found the Church opposing them all. Unsurprisingly, the priest-pedophile scandal get a chapter, since the need of the hierarchy to protect their own enraged many of the flock that was being used, not protected.

Carroll has a poor opinion of the current pope. When John-Paul prayed with those of other faiths, then Cardinal Ratzinger issued a correction that Catholics can only pray “next to” not with others. Slowly, Benedict is seeking to restore No Salvation Outside the Church and the rule of dogma over experience / ethics. At the end he makes the case for staying Catholic (his choice, though former Catholics are more numerous than many denominations). To the extent that papal infallibility and other current pillars of the Church are modern in origin, he is calling for a Church that maintains continuity while responding to  modernity rather than uncritically fighting it.

Catholics who believe that the Pope (and therefore bishops) are owed unstinting loyalty will hate this book. Catholics who voted for Obama (about half of us) will find a lot here that resonates. Other Christians, people of faith and no faith might well appreciate the history and a view of a Church that is badly split, despite the univocal hierarchy.