|
Tracking
Michelle Moran, the chairperson of the English National Service Committee for the CCR, assesses where we are at this time and reflects on the way forward for the Church in the secularised Europe of today, and the role of CCR within this. |
|
Looking at our own country it is clear that the Uk and Ireland are becoming increasingly secular societies. There is, for example, a strong secular, humanist thread running through a lot of contemporary political thought. Christian morality is increasingly under attack and long accepted traditions such as the existence of faith schools in Britain are now under question. End of Christendom Perhaps we have to admit courageously that the golden age of Christendom (if there ever was one) has now come to an end. Christendom emerged in the 4th century when the emperor Constantine adopted the Christian faith. He consequently issued an edict of toleration effectively ending the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. He and his successors heaped numerous privileges upon the churches and it became advantageous to convert to Christianity. Consequently, the Church began to occupy the centre stage of society. As Christendom took shape there was an increasing alliance between the Church and the State and the Church became associated with power, wealth and status. 1 Today, whether we like it or not, we are living in an era of Post Christendom. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor created quite a stir a few years ago when he stated that ‘we are living in a society where Christianity as we know it has been vanquished to the sidelines’. Indeed it is true that in the past Christianity was centre stage and it influenced much of our culture. Today however the Church is becoming more and more marginalized. The Christian voice that once constituted the overwhelming majority has now become a minority voice often crying in the wilderness. In many ways we are a powerless community, one voice among many others in a highly pluralized culture. It is no wonder that so many of us can sometimes experience a sense of alienation where we no longer feel at home in the society in which we live. The Lord is doing a new thing Throughout this year as we have been celebrating the 40th anniversary of CCR, I have been reflecting on the Old Testament journey where the people of Israel were formed and trained in the Wilderness for 40 years. Seemingly just as they are on the threshold of the Promised Land disaster strikes and as prophesied, Moses dies. The people then have to face the insecurity of embarking on a new phase of the journey under the direction of a less experienced, leader. From his youth Joshua had been trained by Moses and appointed to become his successor (Num 27:15-23), nonetheless, he must have felt overwhelmed by the task ahead of him. The people were still grieving the loss of Moses. He had been held in high regard, indeed ‘there had never been such a prophet in Israel as Moses’ (Deut 34:10). However even in the midst of this difficult situation Joshua hears the voice of the Lord. ‘Moses my servant is dead; rise, it is time and cross the Jordan here, you and all the people’ (Jos 1:2). The era of the ‘Law’ under the leadership of Moses the great legislator had now come to an end. In order to cross the Jordan and to take the land a new leadership was needed. Joshua is the great conquistador and military strategist. He receives his authority from the Lord and is willing to be directed by him step by step. The people have to recognise that the Lord is doing a new thing in their midst. They have to learn to trust Joshua and above all they need courage not to look at the giants but at the opportunities and blessings of their new life in a new land. Time of Transition Reflecting on our current cultural situation, we too are in a time of transition. Just because we are seemingly defeated in some areas does not necessarily mean that we are down and out. Historically this is not the first time the Church has been in this position. The early Church prior to Constantine was powerless, marginalized and often despised yet somehow it managed to survive. God’s promises are true and God has promised that, ‘ I will be with you always, yes even to the end of time’ (Matt 28: 20). So, perhaps we are being given an opportunity to look at things in a new way. This calls for great courage to be able to face the reality of the current situation with confidence. To this end, Pope John Paul II in Ecclesia in Europa reminded us of the importance of praying for an increase in the virtue of hope. For the Israelites, crossing the Jordan involved bereavement. They had to let go of security, and the tried and tested ways of doing things. They had to gain wider vision and perspective and also learn the new lessons of the Lord. Similarly in these days in our society, in the Church and in the CCR we need to be in tune with where and how the Spirit is leading, otherwise we will cling onto old structures and battle plans which may be outdated and ineffective. Footnotes
|
|
||
 |
|||
|
|
|
In
the Renewal, we are called to be a prophetic people and part of this
involves reading the signs of the times. We need to be aware of what
is happening in our society and have a sense of what the Spirit is saying.
I was recently at a meeting where it was reported that when an eminent
Cardinal returned from the recent European Bishops’ Conference
he stated that in the struggle to uphold Christian values in Europe
we have to admit defeat. Indeed, John Paul II stated in Ecclesia in
Europa that one of the many troubling signs clouding the horizon of
our continent is ‘the loss of Europe’s Christian memory and
heritage, accompanied by a kind of practical agnosticism and religious
indifference’.