കത്തോലിക്കാ സഭയില്‍ അരങ്ങേറിക്കൊണ്ടിരിക്കുന്ന കൊള്ളരുതായ്മകളെ ചൂണ്ടിക്കാണിക്കുന്നവര്‍ക്കെതിരേ ദൈവശാപം വര്‍ഷിക്കുന്ന ശുദ്ധഹൃദയര്‍ ഇതൊന്നു വായിക്കണം. ഇന്ന് ജീവിച്ചിരിക്കുന്നവരില്‍ ഏറ്റവും പ്രഗത്ഭനായ ഒരു മതപണ്ഡിതന്‍ പോപ്‌ ബെനെഡിക്റ്റിനും സഭയിലെ മറ്റ് മെത്രാന്മാര്‍ക്കും എഴുതിയ ഒരു കത്തിന്റെ ഉള്ളടക്കത്തെപ്പറ്റിയാണ് പരാമര്‍ശം. ഒന്നും തന്നെ അത്ര പന്തിയല്ലെന്ന് സഭയെ ഇത്ര ആഴമായി അറിയുന്നവര്‍ കരഞ്ഞു പറയുമ്പോള്‍, ഇട്ടോളം വട്ടത്തിലുള്ള കേരളസഭയെന്ന കുളത്തിലെ മാക്രികള്‍ അല്‍മായശബ്ദത്തിലെഴുതുന്നവരെ തൊള്ള തുറന്ന് തെറിയാണ്. എന്തറിഞ്ഞിട്ടാണോ ആവോ! ഇത് വായിച്ചിട്ട് എട്ടും പൊട്ടും തിരിയാത്തവര്‍ക്കായി ഇത് മലയാളത്തിലാക്കാനും തയ്യാറാണ്.
Worcester Telegram and Gazette Tuesday, December 20, 2011 ല്‍ പ്രസിദ്ധീകരിച്ചത്. പാരീസില്‍ നിന്ന് ഈനാശു തലക് അയച്ചു തന്നത്.
Father Kung and Catholicism
AS I SEE IT
‘Our church,” according to the major Catholic theologian of our time, “now finds itself in the worst credibility crisis since the Reformation.” That is the conclusion of Father Hans Kung, motivated by “a profound concern for our church,” in a seven-page letter to Catholic bishops of the world last June.
Although motivated by “a profound concern for our church,” his thoughtful and eloquent plea passed almost without comment, neither widely distributed by the Catholic press nor referred to by an army of academics, theologians, and commentators loyal to the institution.
As someone grateful for my experience as a Catholic — and now as a Quaker — I am deeply puzzled by former compatriots, particularly so-called “Catholic intellectuals” who ignored Father Kung’s statement. Perhaps they are perfectly satisfied with Pope Benedict XVI and church governance generally. Unwilling to engage in responsible debate on major issues facing Catholicism, and Christianity generally, they might at least have acknowledged Father Kung’s contribution to religious dialogue.
Living in a city with three Catholic colleges and Catholics as majority of the population, one wonders how Fr. Kung’s letter failed to evoke wide discussion, let alone agreement or endorsement, among concerned communicants.
Is their lack of concern another confirmation that the institution is crumbling from within? Thirty years ago, Wilfred Sheed, whose parents co-founded Sheed & Ward publishers, said as much. In “Labor, Church, and Mafia,” he charted the decline of the American Catholic Church in this way: It “was still standing solid as the post office in, say, 1966; the Vatican Council had been weathered — better than weathered ... then it was gone.”
Although Sheed spoke precipitously, things have deteriorated further since then, as the hierarchy continues to shoot itself in the foot or head, in full public view.
In his letter to the Bishops, Fr. Kung gives a brief, careful accounting of what’s gone wrong, particularly under Benedict XVI.
Instead of addressing “major challenges of our times,” the pope missed opportunities again and again, including “the opportunity for rapprochement with the Protestant churches … for long-term reconciliation with the Jews … for a dialogue with Muslims in an atmosphere of mutual trust … for reconciliation with the colonized indigenous peoples of Latin America,” as well as “to help the people of Africa by allowing the use of birth control to fight overpopulation and condoms to fight the spread of HIV,” etc.
Ending on a positive note, Fr. Kung lists specific ways that bishops could make up for these failures: “Do not keep silent; Set about reform; Act in a collegial way; Work for regional solutions; Call for a council.”
Pressuring Roman Curia in the spirit of charity, he added, “can be permissible and even necessary when they fail to live up to the spirit of the Gospel and its mission.”
The letter to bishops reminds them that “unconditional obedience is owed to God alone,” underscoring Fr. Kung’s earlier arguments challenging the declaration on papal infallibility: “Unconditional obedience can never be paid to any human authority; it is due to God alone … Your model should be the apostle Paul, who dared to oppose Peter “to his face since he was manifestly in the wrong.” (Galatians 2:11).
For anyone seriously concerned about religion, Father Kung’s Letter is both encouraging and exciting, since it addresses other issues associated with faith and practice. It also reminds us, as Harvey Cox of Harvard Divinity School wrote in 2009 in “The Future of Faith,” that Catholicism occupies a central place in the globe’s religious culture: “But if the papacy is to have a place in this new chapter of Christian history, and I believe it should, then its role will have to change.”
Increasingly alienated from institutional religion, many people, particularly young people, regard themselves as “spiritual” rather than “religious.” I experienced that repeatedly among students I taught at Catholic colleges over the past 40 years. Some threw out all religion, mistakenly I thought, regarding Catholic culture on their campuses as narrow or provincial.
Like their teachers, they were unfamiliar with the remarkable research and scholarship among theologians and religious historians who tend to define “religion,” including Catholicism, more generously and accurately than they did decades ago.
Although popular books on atheism may be responsible for thoughtful Christians abandoning churches, institutional religion is equally culpable for the decline. Why was Fr. Kung’s call to reform so widely ignored by Catholics, particularly those who should know better? Is it because they really do regard blind obedience as a virtue? Or do they fear losing their status among those who go along to get along?
Or perhaps they are satisfied with the status quo ante, embracing a model of the church associated with Pio Nono (Pope Pius IX), over a century ago. I don’t know.
Historically, the primary impetus of religious faith has been threatened by outworn creeds, hierarchies, and alliances with the war-making state. Today, when people are more interested in ethical guidelines and spiritual disciplines than in doctrines, Professor Cox highlights “how a newly global Christianity, enlivened by a multiplicity of culture, is finding its soul again.”
In his challenge to the Catholic bishops, Fr. Kung recommends reasonable reforms that encourage the wider Christian community to embrace that resurgence.
Worcester Telegram and Gazette Tuesday, December 20, 2011 ല്‍ പ്രസിദ്ധീകരിച്ചത്. പാരീസില്‍ നിന്ന് ഈനാശു തലക് അയച്ചു തന്നത്.
Father Kung and Catholicism
AS I SEE IT
‘Our church,” according to the major Catholic theologian of our time, “now finds itself in the worst credibility crisis since the Reformation.” That is the conclusion of Father Hans Kung, motivated by “a profound concern for our church,” in a seven-page letter to Catholic bishops of the world last June.
Although motivated by “a profound concern for our church,” his thoughtful and eloquent plea passed almost without comment, neither widely distributed by the Catholic press nor referred to by an army of academics, theologians, and commentators loyal to the institution.
As someone grateful for my experience as a Catholic — and now as a Quaker — I am deeply puzzled by former compatriots, particularly so-called “Catholic intellectuals” who ignored Father Kung’s statement. Perhaps they are perfectly satisfied with Pope Benedict XVI and church governance generally. Unwilling to engage in responsible debate on major issues facing Catholicism, and Christianity generally, they might at least have acknowledged Father Kung’s contribution to religious dialogue.
Living in a city with three Catholic colleges and Catholics as majority of the population, one wonders how Fr. Kung’s letter failed to evoke wide discussion, let alone agreement or endorsement, among concerned communicants.
Is their lack of concern another confirmation that the institution is crumbling from within? Thirty years ago, Wilfred Sheed, whose parents co-founded Sheed & Ward publishers, said as much. In “Labor, Church, and Mafia,” he charted the decline of the American Catholic Church in this way: It “was still standing solid as the post office in, say, 1966; the Vatican Council had been weathered — better than weathered ... then it was gone.”
Although Sheed spoke precipitously, things have deteriorated further since then, as the hierarchy continues to shoot itself in the foot or head, in full public view.
In his letter to the Bishops, Fr. Kung gives a brief, careful accounting of what’s gone wrong, particularly under Benedict XVI.
Instead of addressing “major challenges of our times,” the pope missed opportunities again and again, including “the opportunity for rapprochement with the Protestant churches … for long-term reconciliation with the Jews … for a dialogue with Muslims in an atmosphere of mutual trust … for reconciliation with the colonized indigenous peoples of Latin America,” as well as “to help the people of Africa by allowing the use of birth control to fight overpopulation and condoms to fight the spread of HIV,” etc.
Ending on a positive note, Fr. Kung lists specific ways that bishops could make up for these failures: “Do not keep silent; Set about reform; Act in a collegial way; Work for regional solutions; Call for a council.”
Pressuring Roman Curia in the spirit of charity, he added, “can be permissible and even necessary when they fail to live up to the spirit of the Gospel and its mission.”
The letter to bishops reminds them that “unconditional obedience is owed to God alone,” underscoring Fr. Kung’s earlier arguments challenging the declaration on papal infallibility: “Unconditional obedience can never be paid to any human authority; it is due to God alone … Your model should be the apostle Paul, who dared to oppose Peter “to his face since he was manifestly in the wrong.” (Galatians 2:11).
For anyone seriously concerned about religion, Father Kung’s Letter is both encouraging and exciting, since it addresses other issues associated with faith and practice. It also reminds us, as Harvey Cox of Harvard Divinity School wrote in 2009 in “The Future of Faith,” that Catholicism occupies a central place in the globe’s religious culture: “But if the papacy is to have a place in this new chapter of Christian history, and I believe it should, then its role will have to change.”
Increasingly alienated from institutional religion, many people, particularly young people, regard themselves as “spiritual” rather than “religious.” I experienced that repeatedly among students I taught at Catholic colleges over the past 40 years. Some threw out all religion, mistakenly I thought, regarding Catholic culture on their campuses as narrow or provincial.
Like their teachers, they were unfamiliar with the remarkable research and scholarship among theologians and religious historians who tend to define “religion,” including Catholicism, more generously and accurately than they did decades ago.
Although popular books on atheism may be responsible for thoughtful Christians abandoning churches, institutional religion is equally culpable for the decline. Why was Fr. Kung’s call to reform so widely ignored by Catholics, particularly those who should know better? Is it because they really do regard blind obedience as a virtue? Or do they fear losing their status among those who go along to get along?
Or perhaps they are satisfied with the status quo ante, embracing a model of the church associated with Pio Nono (Pope Pius IX), over a century ago. I don’t know.
Historically, the primary impetus of religious faith has been threatened by outworn creeds, hierarchies, and alliances with the war-making state. Today, when people are more interested in ethical guidelines and spiritual disciplines than in doctrines, Professor Cox highlights “how a newly global Christianity, enlivened by a multiplicity of culture, is finding its soul again.”
In his challenge to the Catholic bishops, Fr. Kung recommends reasonable reforms that encourage the wider Christian community to embrace that resurgence.
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ReplyDeleteഇതൊന്നു ചുരുക്കി മലയാളത്തിലാക്കാമോ ? അനേകം വായനക്കാര്‍ക് അത് പ്രയോജനപ്പെടും.
ReplyDeleteനന്ദി
Instead of translating the same text above into Malayalam, I've posted professor Hans Küng's letter itself in an abriviated form in Malayalam. Hope the readers would find it useful and encouraging to get involved in the process of modernizing the Catholic Church without any fear.
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