Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Cross, Page 4
Thursday, April 8, 1999
Rising
L ife is beautiful. It is perhaps a sign of our
times that some of us needed to see the
remarkable Italian movie La vita e bella (“Life Is
Beautiful”) to be reminded of that basic truth.
Faced with the horrors of a Nazi concentration
camp, the sweet, clown-like Italian Jew, Guido
Orefice — played by the irrepressible Oscar-win
ning actor, Roberto Benigni —manages to con
vince his five-year old son, Giosue, that they are
engaged in a complicated game. If only they play
by the rules (“No crying for Mommy”, “No ask
ing for snacks”) and gain enough points, they will
win. The prize, he says, is a genuine tank, some
thing the boy is fascinated with.
Even as Guido is marched to his death, he stays
in character, plays the game, so that his son will
not be alarmed but will stay hidden until the Ger
mans have left. When the first American tank
arrives in the camp, Giosue cries out, E vero (“It’s
true”), and when reunited with his mother, he
exclaims, Abbiamo vinto (“We won!”). She
responds, Si, abbiamo vinto! Guido’s sacrifice has
not been in vain. His son and his wife live. In
spite of all the gruesome and savage evil they
have experienced, they have survived this place
of death. They are alive, and life is beautiful.
There are some obvious parallels with the
Paschal Mystery that we have just celebrated.
, he restored our life!
Jesus’ sacrificial death brings us life: “Dying, he
destroyed our death” and “rising, he restored our
life.” But it also results in his resurrection from
the dead: “Life’s captain died but now he reigns,
never more to die.” Christ “lives and reigns forev
er and ever,” and Life is beautiful. Life in Christ
is beautiful forever.
It is precisely because of our conviction that
Christ is “the first-born of the dead” that we can
view the image of his crucifixion without averting
our eyes in sorrow and shame. We can gaze upon
his death because we believe so firmly in his res
urrection. Our veneration of his cross is a power
ful reminder of his risen life, the life he shares
with us even now and will share with us com
pletely on the last day. Our life here and now,
whatever our troubles and sorrows, is beautiful.
Eternal life is breathtakingly and spectacularly
gorgeous.
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the corner
stone of Christian faith, is the basis for the
Church’s concern for life, in a “culture of death.”
Because we are convinced that “life is beautiful,”
£ we oppose the wanton taking of life, whether at
8 its beginning (abortion) or at its end (euthanasia),
c whether the victims are “innocent” or “guilty” by
jj human standards.
Our 50-day celebration of Easter is a foretaste
and promise of the Paschal feast of heaven, where
“every tear will be wiped away” and we shall see
the beauty of the living God with our own eyes,
and shall live and reign with him forever.
— DKC
Theology in Catholic universities and colleges
By Father Maurice J. Voity
uch complaining and alarm
sounding is coming from our
Catholic colleges and universities
these days over the upcoming
implementation of a document from
the Holy See concerning the teach
ing of theology.
The U.S. bishops are to consider
and vote on a document of imple
mentation at their annual meeting
this November. That proposal would
be sent to the Holy See for its
approval; and, if approved, new
norms would be in force for our
nation's Catholic higher educational
community.
The Vatican document, “Ex Corde
Ecclesiae” (From the Heart of the
Church), seeks to bring about a
more Catholic identity to Catholic
institutions of higher learning
around the world. It is not aimed at
the Catholic colleges and universi
ties in the United States.
The document states that those
who teach theology in such institu
tions must have a mandate to teach
from competent ecclesiastical
authority; and that, further, profes
sors of theology must take an Oath
of Fidelity to the Holy See.
Competent ecclesiastical authority
in such cases would be the diocesan
bishop; or for institutions operated
by religious congregations, the
major superior.
A good number of our Catholic
universities and colleges in this
country have protested this docu
ment, citing “academic freedom”
and the “autonomy” of their institu
tions. They fear that such controls
will take away from the credibility
of our Catholic institutions, because
it will be perceived that outside con
trol is encroaching on the academic
world. They fear that certain gov
ernment-funded programs would be
removed if the proposed juridical
norms take effect.
With all of the arguments and
smokescreens being tossed up, per
haps one could just cut to the quick,
and look at this in its simplest form.
First of all, the Holy See is not
proposing that these norms be
applied to any academic discipline
but theology. No one is suggesting
that professors cf math, history,
medicine, business, etc., would
come under the scrutiny of the
diocesan bishop or major religious
superior in order to be able to teach.
When looking at “academic free
dom” as it applies to teaching theol
ogy, are the universities suggesting
that theology professors have “carte
blanche” to teach whatever they
want? One would hope not. To
teach theology in a Catholic univer
sity or college is to teach in the
name of the Church. The very fact
that students are taking theological
courses in Catholic institutions
would lead one to the logical con
clusion that these students expect to
be taught what the Church teaches,
not mere idle speculation or the per
sonal agenda of the professor. One
could propose that professors of the
ology have the “academic freedom”
to teach only what the Church
teaches.
They do not have the freedom to
teach what the Church does not
teach, not as a professor of theology
in a Catholic university or college.
The requirement for theology pro
fessors to take an Oath of Fidelity to
the Holy See should not be seen as
some type of strong-arm tactic,
aimed at limiting them. On the con
trary, it should be seen as a declara
tion by the professor that she or he
agrees to teach what the Church
teaches. How can this be seen as an
unreasonable requirement for teach
ing theology in a Catholic institu
tion? (Those professors who happen
to be priests have already taken this
oath prior to their ordination, in case
they may have forgotten.)
As for the autonomy issue, do the
Catholic colleges and universities
think that they are outside the scope
of the jurisdiction of the universal
Church?
The Church has a well-defined
structure, with definite lines of
responsibility and authority. To take
an institution outside of that struc
ture, to say it answers to no other
authority but its own academic com
munity, is to take it outside the
structure of the Church.
At the heart of this issue is
whether or not our Catholic univer
sities and colleges are really
“Catholic,” or if they have become
so secularized that the salvific mis
sion of the Church can hardly be
recognized as part of their identity.
One would hope 5 and pray that the
truly Catholic identity has the high
est priority in all of our higher edu
cational institutions.
The bishops and the heads of the
Catholic colleges and universities
have their work cut out for them in
the months ahead. It should be inter
esting to see what type of document
will finally be approved by the bish
ops for submission to the Holy See.
One thing seems certain. There
will be norms for the Catholic uni
versities and colleges in this coun
try. The Holy See has demanded
them. It is now up to the Catholic
academic community to recognize
the authority of the Holy See in this
regard, and work with the bishops to
draft a set of norms that will be
acceptable to all.
Father Maurice J. Voity is Editor, of
The West Texas Angelus, the newspa
per of the Diocese of San Angelo,
Texas. Reprinted with permission..
Do the Catholic colleges and universities think
that they are outside the scope of the jurisdic
tion of the universal Church?