09/17/00

Unity: in Society and in the Lord

September is Unity Month in Chicago. Programs sponsored by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and the Human Relations Foundation of Chicago make the cultural and racial diversity among citizens very clear for all to see and then make the point that unity among us requires tolerance and even acceptance of this diversity by everyone. Without tolerance of differences, society becomes brittle and violent, interest groups become enclaves and people are trapped in worlds limited to their own prejudices.

A few months ago, the Illinois bishops issued a letter urging Catholics to move beyond racism by learning “to see with the eyes of Christ.” The letter addressed the fact of racism and its meaning, drew moral conclusions and suggested some concrete actions which all can take to change our hearts and our society. Re-reading that pastoral letter might be an exercise appropriate to the celebration of Unity Month.

The Church enters into the celebration of Unity Month because she desires to foster respect for human dignity and decrease the violence that has its roots in prejudice and disdain for others. But the Church asks us to move beyond civic tolerance, which accepts others as equals. The Church asks us to reach even beyond neighborliness, which welcomes others as friends. The Church, in the name of Christ, tells us to love others and enjoy our cultural and racial and personal differences as gifts. Unity in society is possible when differences are recognized as gifts to be shared.

But the Church’s very understanding of who Christ is prevents her from simply celebrating all religious differences as blessings. In early September, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a declaration (Dominus Iesus) which restated our belief that Jesus is Lord, the only Son of God and the savior of the entire human race, who wills that all people be gathered into his Body, the Church. In some news reports, the letter was distorted into stating that only Catholics can be saved, an opinion that is contrary to Catholic doctrine. But beyond the misinterpretation, the assertion of universal objective validity for one religion was resented by many, including some Catholics. Unity in the Lord is not an ideal for all.

Although the Church’s defense of human rights and her works of charity are usually appreciated, her teachings are often disliked and, sometimes, even hated. Yet the social teaching and the charitable works are rooted in the Church’s “seeing with the eyes of Christ”. Seeing Christ himself in the vision of faith, we recognize our Lord, the head of the Church, which has a mission as universal as the love of God and the salvific action of Christ.

Asserting foundational Catholic beliefs sometimes elicits angry reactions, since anti-Catholicism is part of the intellectual furniture and the cultural heritage of this country. Few seem disturbed by fundamentalist tracts distributed around the city that say Catholics are not Christians and are surely going to hell. No one should be surprised that Jews do not accept Jesus as the Messiah or as the only begotten Son of God. No one I know is offended that Muslims do not believe that Jesus died on the cross and was, at best, a prophet inferior to Mohammed. People’s sincerely held beliefs deserve respect, even if others believe them wrong.

The Catholic Church, however, remains suspect in many eyes, sometimes because of religious convictions or for political reasons, more often these days because of personal claims. The Church contests claims to sexual freedoms that run counter to our understanding of what it means to receive and transmit human life or that are destructive of the family. Since acceptance of homosexual genital relationships is now a sign of tolerance, opposition to Catholicism is proof of one’s own moral superiority. Since acceptance of abortion is now the test for one’s support of women’s freedom, the Church’s insistence that freedom cannot be purchased with the blood of children makes her an object of hatred in many quarters. The justification for the opposition to Catholic teaching shifts somewhat from generation to generation, but the opposition is always there. It’s no longer acceptable in many quarters to call the Pope the anti-Christ; but “the Vatican” remains a favorite bogeyman, capable of scaring even journalists. For many, Catholicism’s very existence is a threat, either to themselves or to civic harmony and social unity.

With all this, the Church tries to remain faithful to her Lord. Efforts to create a just and harmonious civil society will continue, not just in September but throughout the year. Ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue will go on. We should hope that it will go on with a firmer foundation and a stronger desire to seek understanding with believers of other religious traditions so that all of us may come to the knowledge of the truth. Jesus himself prayed that all would be one in Him and therefore one with the Father through the working of the Holy Spirit. That is our prayer as well; but how or when it will be answered is something we trust God, who loves everyone and who gives us the grace to do the same, to bring about. God bless you.

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