Postliberal Lessons from Robert Cardinal Sarah’s D.C. Visit

“If Catholics in this country can be a sign of contradiction to your culture, the Holy Spirit will do great things through you," Cardinal Sarah declared.

Last week, I had the honor of attending Mass celebrated by, and followed by a talk from, Robert Cardinal Sarah at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. The event was put on by the Napa Institute and the Catholic Information Center (CIC).

This week’s column will draw three brief lessons to be drawn from the conservative cardinal’s talk, which covered issues spanning from the perils of modern thinking to the future of the Church. 

Jesus First

Cardinal Sarah, citing Archbishop of Washington, D.C. Wilton Cardinal Gregory, criticized President Joe Biden as a “cafeteria Catholic,” and a “Catholic in Name Only.” He stated that this worldview, so commonly held by individuals and within America’s civil institutions, is reflective of an epidemic of “practical atheism.” “Practical atheism” differs from regular atheism in that it represents an outlook or lifestyle more than it does a creed. In the words of His Eminence, practical atheism “does not deny God but functions as if God is not central.”

America’s elite class, and by extension America itself, can best be described as a “practically atheist” country. While the nation’s symbols are decorated with Christian imagery, and an avowed atheist would have trouble getting elected, America writ-large does not act as if Jesus Christ is the ruler of the universe. Debaucherous activity — be it that of sex, money, meanness, or indifference — is hoisted upward by the culture and government. Our Lord is instead treated as an adornment, a little pin to be worn when expedient and hidden when unfashionable. Cardinal Sarah made very clear that the current state of our country is unacceptable.

It’s Our Fault

Cardinal Sarah rested the blame for the West’s current predicament squarely on one lap: that of Christians, lay and religious alike. 

His Eminence emphasized that practical atheism has even made its way into the Church. “How often do we hear from theologians, priests, religious, and even some bishops — or bishops conferences — that we need to adjust our moral theology for considerations that are only human,” he asked. 

The same problem, according to His Eminence, has come for the “liturgy”, where “sacred traditions that have served the Church well for hundreds of years are now portrayed as dangerous. So much focus on the horizontal pushes out the vertical, as if God is an experience rather than an ontological reality.”

Practical atheism in the Church has, in turn, led to a crisis of faith among the laity, and so for the culture. Cardinal Sarah asked:

“How many Catholics attend weekly Mass? How many are involved in the local Church? How many live as if Christ exists, or as if Christ is found in his or her neighbor, or with the firm belief that the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ? How many priests celebrate the Holy Eucharist as if they are truly alter Christus, and, even more so, as if they are ipse Christus — Christ himself? How many believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist?

“The answer is too few. We live as if we do not need redemption through the blood of Christ,” he said. “That is the practical reality for too many in the Church.”

God Bless America!

His Eminence called this crisis of faith a “dangerous disease,” stressing its staggering scale and disastrous consequences: he considers the continent of Europe, once a beacon of the faith, to be “dying or dead.” However, this grim autopsy report did not come without a message of hope. While the Faith in Europe has withered away, new lights glow for the rest of the world.

According to the cardinal, and perhaps to some suprise, the United States is one of those beacons of light — a city upon a hill, you might say. In spite of the fact that liberalism currently reigns supreme, Cardinal Sarah said that “the United States is not like Europe. The faith is still young and maturing. This young vitality is a gift to the Church.” He pointed to the “largely reformed” seminaries, solid episcopal leadership, and most of all, the “vibrant Catholic communities” which are increasing in number.

Cardinal Sarah stressed the extent of America’s witness is also increased by the fact that it is “big and powerful politically, economically and culturally,” making clear that America’s religious renaissance must shine in and through America’s institutions. Christ must be placed at the center of American life, for the sake of both America herself and the rest of the world.

While Cardinal Sarah’s observations may not be entirely new to the readers of this publication, his spirit and courage as he preaches to the American nation is indeed needed. In a country and a Church with so few authentic conservatives, Cardinal Sarah’s mission is all the more important. His Eminence concluded that “if Catholics in this country can be a sign of contradiction to your culture, the Holy Spirit will do great things through you.”

The AdamoZone is a column by Luca Adamo, Vice President of Marketing at The American Postliberal. Published every Friday at 5:00pm EST (sorry for the extreme delay!)

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