A reprint from the New Oxford Review via the CRFC website. (CRFC = Cardinal Ratzinger Fan Club)
“With few exceptions, the results of Catholic catechesis over the past forty years have been dismal. We Catholics, both laity and clergy, are all too often abysmally ignorant of our own Tradition. For more than two generations now, we have been robbed of the fullness of Catholicism, which is our birthright. With a few thankful exceptions, our collective acquaintance with Scripture is piecemeal, our knowledge of Tradition is pathetic, our hymns are embarrassing, our religious art is ugly, our churches look like U.N. meditation chapels, our ethics are slipshod, and our aesthetic and spiritual sensibilities are so far from being sublime that they almost look ridiculous.”
– Dr. Blosser, The Kasper-Ratzinger Debate and the State of the Church
New Oxford Review (April 2002)
That sums it up quite succintly. What can we do about it? First and foremost we should pray. The Holy Spirit will guide the Church through this trial. Second, guided by the spirit we should determine what we might do in our own parishes to foster better knowledge of and appreciation for the fullness of Catholicism. Catechesis is the key, both for children and adults. I’m pitifully ignorant of what is out there besides Catholic study Bibles and the CCC. Obviously Church history and the Church Fathers should be studied as well. I’m going to make it a point to look into what is offered at my parish and determine if I can participate. Can I be so bold as to suggest our readers do the same?