A Reflection on the Pope's Visit

Pope Benedict’s historic visit last month has caused many people to wonder what the future now holds for Catholicism in the United States. The Church’s standing in this country was hurt badly by the sexual abuse scandal, a situation which the Pope addressed directly and contritely during his stay. So where does American Catholicism go from here? A recent piece in Time Magazine suggests that the positive reaction to the Pope’s visit may signal the death of liberal Catholicism, a movement that started in the aftermath of the Vatican II reforms of the early 1960’s and has remained an influential presence in the American Church ever since. Liberal Catholics since Vatican II have challenged the Vatican’s doctrinal authority over issues such as birth control, celibacy, abortion, and women in the clergy, butting heads along the way with leading Church figures like Pope John Paul II and, most recently, Pope Benedict XVI. At the same time, church attendance and Catholic identification have decreased as older Catholics have become disillusioned with the Church’s post-Vatican II reforms and younger Catholics have increasingly questioned and/or rejected its conservative stances and central authority. But there is the possibility that Benedict’s successful trip, during which he spoke empathetically and penitently about the Church’s recent missteps, has stopped the bleeding and persuaded many disaffected liberal Catholics that it is still a viable institution capable of acknowledging its errors and operating in the modern world, while staying true to its core principles.