In his Face the Nation interview, Vance described himself as a “practicing” Catholic—that is, one who regularly attends church. Though polls suggest as many as 20 percent of American adults, or about 50 million people, identify as Catholic, only about 28 percent of them, or 14 million, say they go to church frequently. Once, parishioners financed the church’s social mission, their contributions a vote of confidence in this work. But as the numbers in the pews have diminished over the years, the church has turned to the state for support; individual donations from churchgoers now represent a minuscule portion of its funding for social work. That dynamic has produced a church whose leadership and mission seem increasingly out-of-step with its own congregants.
Go here to read the rest. Caesar has paid the piper and our clerics have gladly danced to it.
Whoever thought Cesaro-papism was only a problem in the Eastern Churches in previous eras would be shocked to see how our bishops gladly take the business from the state and say “thank you sir, may I have another!”
Last Saturday he was back in Cincinnati, where his house is located, and attended the 4:30 Mass at St. Mary Church in Hyde Park. It would be one of the three closest Mass options in relation to his house.
With 14 million practicing Catholics in the US, a modest annual donation of $100 would result in $1.4 billion.
We can do plenty of our own without entangling government money. In fact, if we had only what the pews provide, the Church could not do what the pews do not want to do.
Not going to happen with the bloated bishops that occupy many of those cathedra.
It will be interesting watching them cry for the government teat without seeming to cry for the government teat. I suspect it will involve closing some more viable churches instead of trimming social programs. And of course, blaming the laity for not ponying up enough money.
To go along with B.O.’s proposal: our donations to the Church would go farther if we got rid of the unnecessary diocesan staff and “ministries.” If they could do it at Twitter and (evidently) USAID, the local diocesan chancery should be a piece of cake.
Be careful Fr J.
I think cutting staff may be one of those new heresies, like questioning “synodality”
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