Some years ago I bought and read Bad Religion by Ross Douthat. Prosperity preaching and slick evangelism got its comeuppance in that book for sure, but I found reading Douthat depressing and kind of sad. His criticisms in Bad religion are right on target but I think he is missing both a pastoral heart and a sense of humor. It’s just hard for me to read religion abstracted from Christians who practice it. I’m not sure why I react this way to Douthat’s intense and interesting commentary on today’s divisions in the church. He just seems to miss the perspective of the ordinary church-goer, all twenty percent of us.
I admit without embarrassment that I haven’t read To Change the Church, Douthat’s latest book. But, I ask myself, do I want to spend upwards of twenty dollars to be led through criticism of Francis and his leadership of the Catholic Church? The college of cardinals knew the kind of person Bergolio was and that’s why they elected him. He is not a surprise pope. He is the expected pope. The cardinals apparently wanted a pastoral pope who was smart and strong enough to deconstruct the Vatican taliban. Many of those same cardinals, I think, like what he is doing. They just don’t appreciate the transparency with which he is doing it.
Maybe my curiosity about how Douthat sees the Catholic Church contracting into polarities will move me to open my wallet and buy his new book. There are ultraconservatives and lunatic liberals out there but most of us are not even close to either pole. In my view, the more serious enemy to the church is secularism with all its ability to squeeze the life out of Christians. Knowing that is depressing enough. Still, I’ll likely buy his new book, the Kindle edition (It’s cheaper.) and become more depressed. But keeping the saints of the church in mind keeps me upbeat and Augustine is one of my favorite Christians. His words about church theological divisions of his day bears repeating in our own: “In essentials, unity. In nonessentials, diversity. In all things, charity.” (See also Ephesians 4:15)