Action Heroes Out of Action

(This is response to Fr. Charle Pope's column, "It Happened on Our Watch," of May 25th, 2012 http://blog.adw.org/2012/05/it-happened-on-our-watch-as-seen-on-tv/)


IF our bishops were 1) to instruct all pastors to have daily Mass at an hour when people of working age can attend ( 7AM?) and to make Confession available before (during, when possible) and after Mass; as well as strongly urge their people to make plentiful use of these sacraments,  we would be adopting in our times the essential strategy that led to the the victory of the Israelites over Canaan.  They made themselves ritually pure, they prayed and offered sacrifice, and went into battle singing.  The Lord fought for them.  The battle is STILL the Lord's, and we have far better methods of purification and a far better Sacrifice.

Beyond that, our people are being de-catechized by the hour through mass media.  Since the way to victory is not  convincing anyone of anything ("Our task is not to produce convincing propaganda," said St Ignatius of Antioch), but rather SELF-SACRIFICE, isn't it time for priests and bishops to cleanse their rectories of the abomination of desolation (otherwise known as TV) and to urge their people to do the same?  People are more than ready for some leadership in this area.

To this the argument is, "People would never do it," but leadership consists in getting people to do what otherwise they would not.  We need to see the Catholic home cleaned up and to become the prayerful, peaceful, holy place that it should be.  From this would come all kinds of vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

The other well worn argument is that we cannot hide our heads in the sand like ostriches.  So then, we are seeing the world clearly, we are well-informed, well-instructed, strengthened in our faith, by watching TV?  No, we would be far better informed, more in tune with reality, by turning it OFF and throwing it out, and the sooner the better.  Without it we would not be the hyper-distracted, tempted, slothful action heroes that we are.  Just that one deed would do more to propel Catholics and their families into deeper sanctity than any other one (non-sacramental) deed they could do.  With deeper sanctity would come victory, for the Lord would fight for us.  But if we are not going to do ALL, neither is He.

What Does She Know?

To get an idea of what your seven year old should know, read "The Lost Tools of Learning,"  an essay by Dorothy Sayers.  (Google it- it's online)

Generally, she should know TONS more than you think or can even imagine.  

When our son was in first grade at the parochial school many years ago, we were dismayed at the total lack of content in the religious ed program, so we got the Baltimore Catechism  and started working with him in the evenings (This whole program is premised on not having a TV in the house, since it fractures the attention span of children) for about twenty minutes.  This was coupled with reading out loud lives of the saints, which makes the Catechism come alive-not three page stories, but whole books.  

Anyway, at one point I remember that he knew something on the order of 18 questions and answers about the Mass as a sacrifice, but the totally mind-boggling thing was  that so did his four year old sister who had been listening in to our sessions.  Young children love to memorize things.  The more they memorize the better they like it, and this includes four- year- olds. They are in what Sayers calls the Poll-parrot stage.  It isn't at all a question of making them memorize anything, but of giving them the opportunity to do so.  

There is a terrific animus against the Baltimore Catechism among older clergy, I think because they were required to memorize the BC when the Poll-parrot stage was slipping away, and because it was not a thing of joy, but of work and tests and displeased parents and teachers if they did badly.  

There is another way, based on presenting it much earlier, and not demanding memorization, but celebrating it.

Going INTO first grade I am convinced that our daughter knew more- far more- about her faith than the eighth grade graduates of that school.  To give you an idea, she knew virtually all of her prayers in English and Latin, including the Salve Regina.  

Again, this is very do-able, and not based on having especially gifted children.

Did this pay off for our children?  At ages 32 and 30 they still practice the faith, and next month our daughter makes final profession as a Carmelite.