worship

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Parsing Pope Leo XIV: Journalists, Catholic insiders trying to read between the lines

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Parsing Pope Leo XIV: Journalists, Catholic insiders trying to read between the lines

Early in the Mass, the priest -- chanting in Latin -- leads the congregation into a prayer of repentance.

The faithful respond: "Confíteor Deo omnipotenti et vobis, fratres, quia peccavi nimis cogitatione, verbo, opere et omission," which in English is, "I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do."

Then everyone adds: "Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa" -- "through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault."

This Mass is in Latin, but it's the basic Latin text for the Vatican II Novus Ordo (.pdf here), noted Pope Leo XIV, in lengthy interviews with Elise Ann Allen of Crux.

A big issue in current conflicts, he said, is that "people always say 'the Latin Mass.' Well, you can say Mass in Latin right now. If it's the Vatican II rite there's no problem. Obviously, between the Tridentine Mass and the Vatican II Mass … I'm not sure where that's going to go."

It doesn't help, the pope added, when Catholics witness "abuse" of the Novus Ordo. This offends those "looking for a deeper experience of prayer, of contact with the mystery of faith that they seemed to find in the celebration of the Tridentine Mass. Again, we've become polarized, so that instead of being able to say, well, if we celebrate the Vatican II liturgy in a proper way, do you really find that much difference between this experience and that experience?"

Pope Leo's call for celebrating the "Vatican II liturgy in a proper way" -- including Latin -- will "strike at least some American Catholics as either pointedly ironic or frustratingly hypothetical, given the number of bishops who have restricted 'traditional' celebrations of the ordinary form, even those 'proper' according to the rubrics," noted Ed Condon, editor of The Pillar, in a recent online essay.

If the goal is to heal "polarization around the liturgy," the pope needs to describe "proper" ways to celebrate the Novus Ordo, Condon added. But it "remains to be seen if those bishops who have clamped down on ordinary liturgical practices, or taken a relaxed view of liturgical abuses, will feel moved to revisit their positions in the light of the pope's words -- or if the pope will do anything to actively encourage them to do so."

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What is "success" for modern pastors working in a stressful ministry marketplace?

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What is "success" for modern pastors working in a stressful ministry marketplace?

Every decade or so, perhaps during a global pandemic, it's common to see news reports about pastors leaving pulpits in search of less stressful work.

Consider the 2024 Hartford Institute for Religion Research poll in which more than half of pastors said they have, at some point, seriously considered quitting, with 10% admitting this often crossed their minds. According to 2022 polling by the Barna Institute, the main causes for anxiety were strong job stress (56%), feeling isolated (43%) and current political tensions (38%).

These reports are sobering, but complex, noted Ryan Burge of the Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis. But it's important to note the other side of the equation, when studying how clergy view their work. Five years ago, the National Survey of Religious leaders found that, when asked if "in most ways" their lives were ideal, 21% of pastors "completely" agreed, 50% said "moderately" and 16% “slightly." Only 1% "completely" disagreed and 2% said "moderately."

"The long and short of it was this -- I can't find another population group that scores higher on this metric than clergy," noted Burge, on his Graphs about Religion website. In fact, "I'm pretty confident in saying that clergy seemed pretty content with their station in life (or at least this was the case before the pandemic)."

No one doubts that pastors face significant stress, said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. The key is whether clergy and laity have clear understandings about what is expected from pastors and their families.

For example, what does the word "success" mean? Is that defined by growth in the congregation's size, as well as its facilities, staff and budget?

Lifeway has done a number of surveys on topics related to the life of pastors and, for most, "success" means "they are seeing lives changed, people following Christ more closely, troubling sins being avoided, people serving the Lord in ways that they have not done before," said McConnell, reached by telephone. "I think most pastors see some of that every year, but they always want to see more."

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Catholic social media enters the age of digital flocks and "hot priests"

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Catholic social media enters the age of digital flocks and "hot priests"

With a nod to digital life, Merriam-Webster has expanded its "influencer" definition to include a "person who is able to generate interest in something (such as a consumer product) by posting about it on social media."

Pope Leo XIV didn't use that term in his latest remarks on faith in the Internet age, even while addressing the recent Vatican Jubilee for Digital Missionaries and Influencers.

"Today, we are in a culture where the technological dimension is present in almost everything, especially as the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence will mark a new era in the lives of individuals and society as a whole," the pope told more than 1,000 "content creators," from 70 nations.

"We have a duty to work together to develop a way of thinking, to develop a language, of our time, that gives voice to Love" -- with a divine uppercase "L" in his text. "It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter of hearts. This will entail seeking out those who suffer, those who need to know the Lord, so that they may heal their wounds, get back on their feet and find meaning in their lives."

The pope, who studied mathematics as an undergraduate, warned Catholic "influencers" about temptations they should avoid, such as the "logic of division and polarization," "individualism and egocentrism," "fake news" and "frivolity."

The church, he noted, has "never remained passive" when facing cultural change, but strives to separate "good from evil and what was good from what needed to be changed, transformed and purified."

Meanwhile, journalists spotted modern trends while surfing the online work of many participants. The Daily Mail headline proclaimed: "Christianity is sexy now! How 'hot priest' influencers are drawing young people to the church in their droves." The Telegraph went further: "Vatican turns to 'hot priests' to spread faith -- Social media seen as means to ensure survival of a church suffering from declining numbers." 

Hooks for the coverage included an Italian "bodybuilder priest" on Instagram, whose bulging biceps are covered with tattoos. Other "influencer" priests offered digital followers content about their poetry, workouts, guitar skills, cycling trips and adventures with pets, as well as sermons and Bible studies. 

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Living Good Friday -- An Orthodox mother's meditation on autism

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Living Good Friday -- An Orthodox mother's meditation on autism

On many Sundays, Corey Hatfield sent her family ahead into church, while she lingered outside with her autistic son Grayson -- trying to decide if he would scream or run the second they entered the sanctuary.

Approaching the chalice during Holy Communion was another challenge.

"Some Sundays, I drew near with Grayson in a headlock, my hand clamped tightly over his mouth to silence his steady stream of cuss words," she wrote, in "The Light from a Thousand Wounds," her spiritual memoir about the impact of profound autism on her family.

Getting to St. Spyridon Orthodox Church, in Loveland, Colorado, often left her "late, tousled and out-of-breath, adorned in bite marks instead of jewelry. Often, I never even made it to church. … I lamely offered God my unproductive exasperation."

Some congregations may have the resources and space to offer ministries to help families dealing with neurodiversity, said Hatfield, reached by telephone. But everyone needs to know that no one-size-fits-all strategy exists. One professional told her, "If you've seen one autistic kid, you've seen … one autistic kid."

What clergy and their people cannot do is look away, said Metropolitan Nathanael of Chicago, during the "Gathered as One Body: Disability, Accessibility and Inclusion in the Orthodox Church" conference this past spring in Boston.

"Isolation, not disability, is the greatest wound," he said. "Today, many people living with disabilities and their caregivers and families experience the same isolation. They feel invisible in their parishes, they feel they have no one to help them draw near to the healing waters of the church's life. …This is a tragedy, and it is also a sin."

Hatfield, in an interview focusing on issues in her memoir, noted specific responses that congregations could carefully consider.

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The Rev. Bill Moyers clashed, early and often, with religion gaps in major newsrooms

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The Rev. Bill Moyers clashed, early and often, with religion gaps in major newsrooms

The year was 1976 and Jimmy Carter, a Sunday school teacher from Georgia, had shocked major newsrooms by discussing his "born again" faith.

Presidential candidates were not supposed to do things like that.

At CBS News, special correspondent Bill Moyers received a green light for a prime-time feature, "What It Means to be Born Again." After seeing the finished piece, a network executive pulled Moyers aside to chat.

The man's face was so serious, "that I thought he was about to tell me he'd been born again," Moyers told me in 1987. No, the executive said: "That was the worst show I have ever seen in my life."

The program was "cut to bits," Moyers said. Network leaders "didn't think it was news. They just didn't understand what was going on."

The broadcaster faced this disconnect many times. Moyers died on June 24 at the age of 91, after a long and complex career in which he served as speech writer and press secretary for President Lyndon Johnson, followed by decades of work with CBS, NBC and PBS. However, before that, the Rev. Bill Moyers was a Southern Baptist pastor in Texas towns like Brandon and Weir. He was proud of those roots and his convictions as a progressive Baptist.

"By no means is Moyers a typical Southern Baptist," I noted, in a 1993 "On Religion" column. "He is the rare Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary graduate whose books and tapes are popular at New Age conventions. He is a hero wherever there are Baptists whose annual donations to National Public Radio are greater than their gifts to Focus on the Family."

Preaching before the first presidential inauguration of Bill Clinton, another Baptist progressive, Moyers got down to basics, sharing a saying passed on by his father -- Cain and Abel were "the first Baptists because they introduced fratricide" to the biblical drama.

At the heart of Baptist life "is what we call soul competency," he explained.

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The church bombing in ancient Damascus: This was more than a political drama

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The church bombing in ancient Damascus: This was more than a political drama

The faithful gathered for a more than symbolic rite at St. Elias Orthodox Church in Damascus -- the Feast of all Antiochian Saints.

During this June 22 service, a jihadist -- Syria blamed the Islamic State -- entered with a rifle and began firing. As worshippers tackled him, he detonated an explosive vest. In seconds the Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch had more names to add to its two millennia of saints and martyrs.

"Among the spirits of the righteous perfected in faith, give rest, O Savior, to the souls of Your servants, keeping them in the blessed life which is from You, O loving One," Orthodox believers prayed this past Sunday, in global memorial prayers for the new martyrs of Syria.

"In Your place of rest, O Lord, where all Your Saints repose, give rest also to the souls of Your servants, for You alone are immortal." Bishops circulated names to be read aloud: "Nabil, Emile, Souliman, Simon, Abdullah, Amal, Milad, Razzouk, Farid, Peter, Georgios, Mariam, Susan, Julia, Metanios, Maen, Laurance, Anjie. …"

In a funeral for many of the martyrs, Antiochian Patriarch John X preached about the past, the present and the life to come.

"You, beloved martyrs, have left us and were translated to heaven, to eternal life, in the presence of the Lord Who rose from the dead," he said, in an online translation from Arabic. "You were martyred and entered into eternal life … joining the company of all righteous and holy Antiochian Saints, and all the saints. Today, we turn to you. We ask you to pray for us, now that you rest in the Lord's embrace."

It's hard to shock believers in sanctuaries surrounded by centuries of war, conquest and terror. Young people saw three of the faithful attempt to push the attacker away from the flock inside St. Elias.

"Grace, Peter and Milad. I know them personally," said Patriarch John. "These are our people and our heroes. … They would have done the same and protected the people around them even if they were in the mosque."

The political context was significant and, thus, dominated mainstream news reports. BBC noted: "It was the first such attack in Damascus since Islamist-led rebel forces overthrew Bashar al-Assad in December, ending 13 years of devastating civil war."

But, for Christians around the world, this attack also took place in an ancient, truly biblical context.

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Summer beats, dashes of theology and the growing glowing power of hip-hop

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Summer beats, dashes of theology and the growing glowing power of hip-hop

In the first centuries of Christian life, bishops wrestled with the Greek in this puzzle -- whether God the Father and Jesus were "homoiousios (of similar substance)" or "homoousios (of one substance), with "one substance" winning the day.

This "hypostatic union" is a complex, mysterious subject, but hip-hop artist Shai Linne has demonstrated that modern believers can dance to it.

"Two natures united in one glorious person / Jesus, the God-Man, official Soul Reaper / The hypostatic union, it gets no deeper," rapped Linne, on his "Lyrical Theology" disc. "I know it's deep but when you peep, you'll find it's dense / Jesus both God and man, two hundred percents / Fully divine, fully human / Introducing: the hypostatic union."

Nayanna Holley and Steve Zank even found a way, with rap commentary, to use the whole Apostles Creed. Both of these tracks made it into "Good Theology, Good Beats" -- a 100-song summer online playlist created by the Gospel Coalition.

“The purpose of a playlist is simply to bring mixtapes into the 21st century. … You can put lists on social media platforms and hundreds and thousands of people can share them," said Brett McCraken, director of communications for the group and creator of the playlist. "We used to make mix tapes for our friends. Now, there's no limit. … You can literally make an online playlist with just about any song that has ever existed."

Playlists are, for some, an art form -- with creators choosing specific songs and placing them in sequences to address specific issues, said McCracken, reached by telephone.

Playlists also build online networks. With this list, the Gospel Coalition team wanted to reach younger listeners, stressing that musicians around the world are using rap, hip-hop, Afrobeats, Gospel and other forms of music to build more ties between believers in Black, white and Latino cultures. In the no-borders world of Spotify, Instagram and TikTok, this reality is affecting music in many churches, as well as the mainstream media.

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Quiet crisis: Who will lead those small churches all over the United States?

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Quiet crisis: Who will lead those small churches all over the United States?

One of the crucial services the Rev. Tony Marr provides as leader of the Higher Ministries consulting firm is to connect young pastors -- fresh out of seminaries and Bible colleges -- with churches that need new leaders.

But there's a problem. Most of these churches seeking pastors have fewer than 150 members and are considered "small churches" in the Protestant marketplace. Many of them have around 50 active members or less. It takes about 80 to 90 active members, in most church traditions, to pay a full-time pastor's salary.

"This is a conversation I have almost every week," said Marr, who is based in Johnson City, Tennessee. "At any given time, we have three or four small churches looking for pastors. … It seems like nobody wants to go to those small churches. Nobody wants to serve God there."

When Marr asks young pastors to describe their ideal "first job," most say that they want to serve as an associate pastor on the staff of a truly large church -- one with 1,000 members or more. In other words, they want to prepare to lead churches of that size, or larger.

"They have no intention of taking a church with 45 or 50 or 60 active members," he said, reached by telephone. "Many of these young pastors would rather work in coffee shops than lead that kind of church, even if these jobs would let them preach several times a week while ministering to real people and real families. They would rather work part-time, or be volunteers, at the large churches that they see in their futures."

This is a crisis that denominational leaders will have to face, he explained, for a simple reason. A recent survey from Faith Communities Today (.pdf) found that seven out of 10 American congregations have fewer than 100 people attending their main worship services. The average church has 65 members in the pews on Sunday. Digging deeper, in some denominations -- especially shrinking mainline bodies -- most congregations struggle to pay full-time salaries.

Backing that up, a Baptist Press report stressed that the "most recent National Congregations Study (NCS) found the median congregation in the U.S. welcomes 70 regular participants, including adults and children, and has an annual budget of $100,000."

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Challenge for Leo XIV: Battles over Latin and worship traditions are not going away

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Challenge for Leo XIV: Battles over Latin and worship traditions are not going away

On the first Sunday of his papacy, Pope Leo XIV stood on the central Loggia of St. Peter's Basilica and did something that shocked some Catholics -- he chanted the Marian prayer Regina Caeli in Latin.

"Regina caeli, laetare, alleluia," he sang, leading to the crowd's response, "Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia." In English, that would be: "Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia. For He whom you did merit to bear, alleluia."

While many consider Latin chant controversial, the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music immediately launched a project called "Let's Sing with the Pope." It offers "video tutorials on social media to help the People of God sing along with the Holy Father during the upcoming major liturgical celebrations," said Father Robert Mehlhart, on the institute's Instagram account.

The goal, he added, is to "make the rich heritage of Gregorian chant accessible to all."

So far, Pope Leo XIV has not addressed ongoing debates about restrictions on use of the Tridentine Mass, often called the "traditional Latin Mass." Bishops around the world have been pulled into these battles after the 2021 release of the Pope Francis apostolic letter "Traditionis Custodes (Guardians of Tradition)."

In 2023 remarks to Jesuits in Hungary, Pope Francis said stronger restrictions on use of the pre-Vatican II rite were necessary because of a state of "indietrismo" -- or "backwardness" -- caused by a "nostalgic disease" among many Catholics.

"After all the necessary consultations, I decided this because I saw that the good pastoral measures put in place by John Paul II and Benedict XVI were being used in an ideological way, to go backward," he added, in a transcript released by a Jesuit journal.

While use of the Latin Mass remains a flashpoint, a controversy in the rapidly growing Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, has raised questions about the status of other liturgical traditions and symbols.