No Catholic Left Behind

It has been gradually dawning on some that Catholics are increasingly unable to distinguish true Catholic doctrine from worldly fashions, are uninformed in Church history prior to Martin Luther, and are completely out to lunch when it comes to traditional liturgy.

Recent proposed improvements to the current English translations of liturgy have aroused concerns that a more faithful translation will confuse most catholics. That may be true, but that’s akin to saying that schools should not teach algebra, as it might confuse the math student.

So, in a more pastoral approach than the bishops have thus suggested, I propose a new program: No Catholic Left Behind. The components would be thus:

1- A liturgy that utilizes our Greco-Latin Catholic heritage, while rendering other elements faithfully into the vernacular.
2- Lectionary from a faithful translation of Sacred Scripture.
3- Homilies that include and reinforce topics from the Catechism and writings from the Fathers of the Church.
4- Music that is easy to sing, and theologically sound.
5- Regular testing of Catholics’ knowledge and advancement in the faith.

I’ll grant that #5 is a stretch, but do you see where I’m going with this? If Catholics are woefully ignorant of their Catholic faith, it’s the bishops and pastors that should be stepping up the efforts to school them. What not start with the Catechism and Humanae Vitae and go forward from there?

No Catholic Left Behind. Its got a ring to it, doesn’t it? Pass it around, and see where it may go..