Working through the changes

I've had a theory lately that Catholicism will get a boost as the Vatican 2 and post-Vatican 2 generations age and make way for the younger generations. The Vatican 2 generation is those who came of age during Vatican 2, and they are age 47 to 64 now. The post-Vatican 2 generation is my generation, those aged 26-46. The next generation down the line is the Millenial generation, aged 18-25.

CARA recently did a survey, reported on by Catholic News Service, where they mentioned how these various groups viewed the church's rules on marriage:

The survey report divided respondents into four generational groups: the pre-Second Vatican Council generation, ages 65 and over in 2007, who made up 19 percent of the respondents; the Vatican II generation, ages 47-64, 31 percent; the post-Vatican II generation, ages 26-46, 40 percent; and the millennial generation, ages 18-25, 10 percent.

"Agreement with church teachings is ... often relatively high among the oldest Catholics. ... To a lesser extent this is also true of the millennial generation," the report said. "Agreement with church teaching is sometimes lowest among the generation of Catholics who came of age during the changes associated with Vatican II and among post-Vatican II-generation Catholics."

Agreement with the church is highest in the old folks and the young folks; those of us in the middle are still battling and arguing about those issues. I've noticed this in different studies that I've read about, and I've seen it with my own friends and family members. It just goes to show how disruptive change can be, and how long it takes to work its way through a group of people.

Comments

[kiwi_nomad06]

I am not so sure I agree with your theory steve ;-)
A friend of mine is a nun in France. She says some of the very conservative orders there are thriving in terms of young vocations. She thinks it is partly because the very rigid structure is what some young ones want- having been brought up with "too much" freedom. But she says that after about ten years, a lot of these young ones leave, as their interior life never came to match up with the external structure they have chosen to live under.
Just a comment from someone who is 'very pretty' - or so a five year old told me in all sincerity today. Aren't five year olds just wonderful?

[Steve Bogner]

Kiwi, I am shocked and dismayed that you disagree with me! Well, not really; I'm sure you'll eventually come around to agree with me because back when my younger son was 5 he told me I was really smart :) Yes, five year olds are great!

[Victor]

Working through changes can certainly sometimes lead to creating a lot of new branches in the tree of life but if we truly are in “God’s Tree,” we can venture as long and as far as we want but God has already made everything perfect and all that’s left is for us to find our way back to the root of the problem.

It doesn’t matter what language we speak, what nationality we belong to or what color our eyes and hairs are, we’re all God’s Children and we all belong to “The Creator’s Own Family Image.”

I once said in one of your post that God was not a smorgasbord but I believe that we are still free to taste the food of life and if we eat too many varieties then who do we blame? I honestly believe that our spirit, soul and inner child is going round and around in the pass and future searching for food for the present and some do get “Fed UP” while searching!

About a week ago somebody said that I was a saint to which I replied that we were all saints. Well deep down in every heart God as planted a seed which is growing in paradise so what do we feed this tree of life?

In prayer I asked God if this person was right and I received this answer. Once upon a time there was a reporter who was assigned to investigate the pros and cons of doing an abortion. This reporter made an appointment with a doctor who was performing at the time and because of our weather this doctor was a little cold. The doctor invited the reporter to come into the clinic to see what all the fuss was about. To make a long story short this reporter stubbled about a discarded fetus and saw an arm and leg severed. I imagined God talking to the heart of this little lost “One” but I could only imagine hearing the little seed of God saying, Don’t cry Daddy! Please don’t cry! They really did not mean to do this to me and just like Your Son said while He was dying on “His Cross” in so many “Words” Please forgive them Father cause they really know not what they do. ABA, I’m sure that you can find me another some one out there to love again.

I’ll close by saying, “Now there’s who I call a real saint and for what it's worth, that’s how “I” see “IT!”

God Bless all “Little Ones” and please keep praying for me also.

[Jeff]

Hi Steve,

I'm not sure that blind, unquestioning obedience to church teachings necessarily translates into a boost for Catholicism, but I hear what you are saying.

I don't think your opinion is based upon the blogosphere alone, but one could get that impression from looking over the blogs.

The pendulum of history swings back and forth between licence and legalism, and I suppose it may be true that we could be swinging back towards legalism again. I have a somewhat different impression. For every young Catholic traditionalist out there still interested in the faith, I'm guessing that there are 100 who feel driven out, put off, lose interest in the faith, or leave for another one altogether. We are in danger of becoming a fossilized museum piece at this rate.

As for the young conservatives who remain, I guess they may have to learn the hard way, perhaps when they are raising children of their own, what it means to be surrounded by an atmosphere of dour legalism. I think one of the biggest tragedies of the abuse crisis is that a lot of young people have missed the point. Instead of putting the blame where it should lie, on clericalism, they blame Vatican II and liberals, and they opt for more blind obedience to clerical figures, which is only asking for more trouble.

But maybe this is what it will take to rebuild. The great theologians of Vatican II were formed in the anti-modernist Church that feared the wider world, under suspicion from the authorities all the time, and were able to step beyond that. Maybe we need to rebuild from there again.

[Steve Bogner]

Victor - I like how you say that working through the changes can create new branches; I think that is definitely true (thanks!).

Hi Jeff - I pared down my blog list a long time ago; I know there are some young conservative Catholic bloggers out there, but that's not what I had in mind. I was going off my experience outside the blog-world. Too many Catholic blogs are trying to prove their point so emphatically that they are blind to the whole package Catholicism has to offer they present a distorted reality (just my opinion).

I don't think it's as simple as a sort-of binary license vs. legalism or progressive vs conservative thing; it's more subtle and nuanced than that. A few years ago Mark Mossa SJ wrote about his experiences with some Gen-Y Catholics (http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=3751) and that comes closer to what I've experienced lately with younger folks. It's not legalism or conservatism, it's different - maybe 'acceptance' is a better word. I think one can accept Church teachings without being legalistic or sliding into legalism or blind obedience. And it's easier to do that when you don't have the baggage the V2 and post-V2 generation carries with it. That's my theory, anyway.

[Jeff]

Steve,

Don't worry, I take your point. And thanks for the link. I'm always interested in what Mark Mossa has to say.

[Owen]

Hi Steve

At 48 I am numbered in the older group yet I find myself much more of the "times" of the middle group however, as a recent convert (and former protestant minister), I find myself inspired by and more in aligned with the youngest group. While the focus of your post is larger than the blog world what I've noted above may be one reason why over all the Catholic blogosphere, primarily populated by folks in the middle group "still battling and arguing about those issues" (and dissenting), holds so little interest for me these days. Of course, having a young twenty something in the house who is like me a recent Catholic convert who fits rather closing to the description you give of this group (particularly as you expand your thoughts in the comment box) is another reason I find my spirit and soul identify more with this gorup that which by demographic is technically mine.

Interesting thoughts from you as ever. Peace of the Good God be with you.

[Steve Bogner]

Hi Jeff - No worries; you got me thinking more and deeper about what I had already written, which is a good thing.

Hi Owen - Yes, converts may not fit those cradle-Catholic age groups. Good point.

[Owen]

Steve, thank you for muddling through my poorly written comment and gleaning my point. I wrote it twice and the cut and paste didn't work so well leaving a number of bad writing errors and next to no punctuation.