Research On Religion » Council of Trent

David Deavel on De Sales, Newman, Chesterton, and Hitchcock

tonygill — Sun, 18 Mar 2018 08:00:21 +0000

Location, location, location. That is the eternal cry of every real estate agent, and it proved prophetic for this week’s guest, Prof. David Deavel, an assistant professor of Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas — as he grew up an evangelical Christian in the shadow of Notre Dame, which gave him the foundation for later converting to Catholicism. And along the way, he became an expert on a number of Catholic saints, theologians, and writers, which is where our discussion winds today. And a winding road it is, starting with St. Francis De Sales, moving into John Henry Newman, off to G.K. Chesterton, and finally stopping with Alfred Hitchcock. This is a fun-filled and light-hearted look at a number of Catholic thinkers and their relationship to our modern world.

The conversation begins with a bit of the background on our guest, and an interesting fun fact that the city of St. Paul was once called “Pig’s Eye.” We learn much about how Prof. Deavel ended up thinking about everything from Catholic social thought to vampires and Harry Potter. After that, we get on to the primary topic at hand, which is Saint Francis De Sales, a priest who originally started out as a lawyer and who was also an avid rower back in the 16th century (and eventually passing in 1622). Prof. Deavel terms De Sales a “patron saint for our time” by observing that Francis threw himself into a very contentious environment in Switzerland several decades after the Protestant Reformation. Catholics were not all that popular in Geneva back then, thus De Sales had to figure out how to keep a low profile (once hiding in a tree for a full day), yet keep true to his love of spreading the Gospel. De Sales strategy was to show and live a life of love, and would often minister in local houses. His understanding that all Christians were holy was a thought that preceded the thinking of the Second Vatican Council’s emphasis on ecumenism by more than three centuries. David points out that in today’s world where politics has become a “blood sport” and all sorts of groups are locked in seemingly endless battle, De Sales message of tolerance is one that should be heralded. Francis De Sales eventually was promoted to bishop of Geneva and founded the Salesians religious order (or Visitation sisters).

We then move on to discuss John Henry Newman who lived for most of the 19th century and became an important figure in Catholic education. Experiencing a Christian conversion at age 16 and becoming an Anglican clergy member in the 1820s, Newman was a principal leader of the Oxford Movement that sought to return the Church of England to its Catholic roots. Though unsuccessful in returning the Anglican Church to Catholicism, Newman found himself converting to Catholicism in the mid-19th century, eventually becoming a Cardinal in the Church. We discuss his emphasis on education, culminating both in his work in Dublin, as well as his series of lectures that culminated in the work The Idea of a University which has heavily influenced Catholic higher education to this day. Although never having hidden in a tree like Francis De Sales, Cardinal Newman has been on the road to sainthood and is currently categorized as Blessed Newman, one step away from becoming an official saint. Our conversation turns then to G.K. Chesterton, another Catholic thinker that has occupied the mind of Dr. Deavel. He contrasts the irreligious early life of Chesterton with the two previous figures we discussed, but notes the similarities in how his faith was shaped early in adulthood, eventually culminating in his admission that he was Christian by age 26 and eventual conversion to Catholicism in 1922. We then veer into the world of Alfred Hitchcock who was influenced by Chesterton but took a much different religious trajectory. Prof. Deavel notes the religious influences in Hitchcock’s life and how he came back to Catholicism at the end of his life. Our conversation ends with some reflections by David on what this eclectic path of study he has taken has revealed to him over time. Recorded: February 23, 2018.

Prof. David Deavel’s Academia.edu page (where you can find his various articles).

LOGOS: A Journal of Catholic Thought and Culture.

The Catholic Controversy, by St. Francis De Sales.

Introduction to the Devout Life, by St. Francis De Sales.

The Idea of a University, by John Henry Newman.

Orthodoxy, by G.K. Chesterton.

“The Ballad of the White Horse,” by G.K. Chesterton.

Martin Luther Insult Generator (mentioned in podcast).

Pope Francis Insult Generator (also mentioned in podcast in an ecumenical spirit).

RELATED PODCASTS

Brian O’Neel on Saint Who? Some Holy Unknowns.

Brian O’Neel on the Saints of January.

Brian O’Neel on the Saints of February.

Jim Tonkowich on Converting to Catholicism.

Corey Olsen on J.R.R. Tolkien.

Louis Markos on the Poetry of Heaven and Hell.

Micah Watson on C.S. Lewis.

James Felak on the Counter-Reformation

tonygill — Sun, 22 Oct 2017 08:00:29 +0000

As we wind down our seven-episode series on the Protestant Reformation, we give the “other side” a chance to make their historical case. Prof. James Felak, a professor of history at the University of Washington (and frequent RoR guest), sits down with Tony to discuss the Catholic response to Luther’s protest. Known popularly as the “Counter-Reformation,” Dr. Felak notes that it really should be termed the Catholic Reformation as we note how Luther, Calvin, Zwingli and others broke with the Church in a schismatic movement. We start the discussion with a look at the religious and political landscape leading up to Luther’s challenge. Fifteenth century Europe was characterized by three key factors that conditioned the Reformation, Felak argues. First was the increasing strength of secular kingdoms relative to the Roman Catholic Church, which prompts a variety of power and financial struggles between the crown(s) and the popes. Growing corruption within the Church presented the second challenge to Christianity during this century, which leads to the third factor — indulgences. Out of curiosity, Tony asks when the Catholic Church began to be called the “Catholic Church,” rather than just the Church given that Catholicism is now used as a term of contradistinction to Protestantism. James mentions that he wonders the same thing too when teaching courses on Christian history, and we more or less agree that the term Catholic Church is put into greater usage in the 16th century. (Listeners are encouraged to weigh in on this question.)

We then move to the early 1500s and the “immediate” (by late medieval standards) reaction of the Vatican to Luther. Tony poses a counterfactual to his historian guest, asking what would the Christian timeline looked like had the Holy See just ignored Martin Luther. There were two popes involved in pushing back against Luther, and times of leadership transition can be difficult. Prof. Felak responds that the Protestant Reformation was a “slow train moving” and it was likely to happen at some point. We talk about how Johann Eck became involved in debates with Luther and how Luther’s pamphleteering left the Vatican no choice but to respond. The printing press made ignoring the issue very difficult. We review the events of the Diet of Worms and then springboard forward to the Council of Trent that sets the “Counter-Reformation” in motion. James points out that Rome was really responding to at least five “reformations” over the first half of the sixteenth century, only one of which was Luther. This included movements spurred on by Zwingli, Calvin, Arminians, other radical reformers, and the breakaway English Church. The Council of Trent — which occurred over several decades (and James explains why) — initiated a two-prong response which was to, first, reform the institutional Church, and second, to answer a variety of doctrinal challenges to the faith. As for the first, there was greater emphasis placed on educating the clergy via rigorous seminary training, incentivize bishops to preach in their own dioceses, and ensure subsequent popes chosen had a strong moral character. There was also a movement to promoting religious orders, which we talk about later. As for the doctrinal pushback, the Catholic Church reaffirmed the seven sacraments, the doctrine of purgatory, and intellectual reasoning regarding the issue of “faith alone or good works.” James spends time to explain the Catholic view of faith and works.

The conversation veers towards a discussion of the religious orders that were promoted to respond to these new institutional and theological challenges. The Jesuits were the most famous of he orders to arise at this time, but Prof. Felak documents a number of other ones, including the shoeless (discalced) Carmelites. He puts this in context of the older orders that emerged centuries before (e.g., Franciscans) and notes the new orders were much more engaged in the world and proselytizing than the earlier ones, including a renewed dedication to education of the clergy and laity. James brings up folks such as Charles Borromeo and Teresa of Avila. Tony asks about the Inquisition, and James responds by pointing out there were four distinct inquisitions including one prior to the Reformation (the Medieval Reformation), the Roman, Spanish, and Portuguese. The latter two had a more political flavor as the Iberian peninsula was not dramatically touched by Protestant reformers and these campaigns were run by kings, not clergy. We finish with some of James’s personal thoughts on how the Reformation affected Christianity and the Catholic Church, as well as how the Reformation has been viewed over the past five centuries. He shares an interesting tale of being in a Seattle bookstore and his thoughts on Lutherans as compared to other Protestant denominations. Recorded: October 6, 2017.

At the Price of the Republic: Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party, 1929-38, by James Felak.

After Hitler, Before Stalin: Catholics, Communists, and Democrats in Slovakia, 1945-48, by James Felak.

“The Blessed Evangelical Mary: Why We Shouldn’t Ignore Her Anymore,” by Timothy George (Christianity Today).

“The Reformation at Five Hundred: An Outline of the Changing Ways We Remember the Reformation,” by Thomas Howard and Mark Knoll (First Things).

RELATED PODCASTS

The Protestant Reformation Series (including podcasts from Goldman, Pfaff, Stark, Gray, Sorenson, and Nelson).

James Felak on Picking Pontiffs and Pope Francis I.

James Felak on Vatican Council II.

James Felak on Pope Pius XII, the Wartime Pontiff.

James Felak on John Paul II and Communism.

Ken Kollman on Church Centralization.

Jon Sweeney on the Pope Who Quit.

Steven Pfaff on the World of 1517

tonygill — Sun, 04 Jun 2017 08:00:26 +0000

Martin Luther’s theological challenge to the Catholic Church that began with an inauspicious posting of 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenberg Cathedral set off a major schismatic movement within Christianity that still reverberates to this day. And yet, there were many “reformers” who had come before Luther that didn’t have the same impact as he did in the early decades of the 16th century. Dr. Steven Pfaff, professor of sociology at the University of Washington, joins us for the second installment in our Protestant Reformation Series to review what European society looked like in the century leading up to the events of 1517. Prof. Pfaff discusses the state-of-the-art social science research on the economic, political, and social changes that were washing over the continent in the late medieval period. We begin first with the political and economic trends of the 15th century. Europe remained largely an agrarian society, but new advances in mining and incipient manufacturing were giving rise to new independent cities and the rise of a new middle class based upon the success of craft guilds and expanding trade routes. Princes were becoming more powerful in certain areas, more universities were being created, and literacy was beginning to spread. While all of these changes look small by today’s standards, they were reshaping the landscape upon which religious change would play out. Prof. Pfaff details a number of developments within the institutional Catholic Church that, to many, looked venal. We cover the expanding trade and monetization of indulgences, the commercialization of pilgrimages, the expanding veneration of saints, and the practice of simony (i.e., the sale of religious offices). Both Steve and Tony note that many of these institutional innovations were part and parcel of the need for a large hierarchical organization to fund and hold itself together in a Europe that was increasingly fragmented during the early and middle medieval period. Social Scientists must be careful in looking back at history with 21st century norms and values, and instead place oneself within the often difficult situations faced by clergy and bishops in centuries gone by. Prof. Pfaff then examines how this variety of social change allowed a particular moment to become a movement. He reminds us that structural conditions alone do not a revolution make, and that many statistical analyses of such factors overlook the relational nature (e.g., interpersonal networks) of social movements. Luther had at his disposal not only the printing press, but a cadre of dedicated students who were motivated to press for reform and schism. Steve also shares his interesting and updated findings about how the Hanseatic League — a dense network of trading partners in central and western Europe — helped to provide a conduit for Reform ideas. Finally, Prof. Pfaff shares what he thinks is the biggest lesson from this historical era, one that still resonates strongly today. Recorded: May 10, 2017.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. Steven Pfaff’s bio at the Dept. of Sociology, University of Washington.

The Spiritual Virtuoso: Personal Faith and Social Transformation, by Marion Goldman and Steven Pfaff (pre-orders available).

Exit-Voice Dynamics and the Collapse of East Germany: The Crisis of Leninism and the Revolution of 1989, by Steven Pfaff.

The Institute for the Study of Religion, Economics, and Society (Chapman University) – graduate student workshop opportunities.

Sacred Trust: The Medieval Church as an Economic Firm, by Robert Ekelund, et al. (mentioned in podcast).

Brand Luther, by Andrew Pettegree (mentioned in podcast).

The 95 Theses, by Martin Luther (mentioned in podcast).

Sermon on Indulgences and Grace, by Martin Luther (mentioned in podcast).

RELATED PODCASTS

Marion Goldman on Martin Luther & Spiritual Virtuosity (Protestant Reformation Series)

Steven Pfaff on the Protestant Reformation (one of our very first recorded episodes!)

Steven Pfaff on Denominationalism, Sin, and Other Stuff.

Oliver Crisp on Calvin and Reformed Theology.

Rod Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part II.

Russell Kleckley on Religion, Science, and Kepler.

Gary Richardson on Religion & Craft Guilds in the Middle Ages.

Rod Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part III

tonygill — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 08:00:20 +0000

Prof. Rodney Stark, co-founder and co-director of Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, joins us once again to talk about the final portion of his monumental book, The Triumph of Christianity. We pick up the story of Christianity’s growth and change with the Protestant Reformation. Prof. Stark notes that the Reformation wasn’t so much of a reform of the Church as it was a breakaway schismatic sect. Whereas there were numerous attempts at schism throughout Christian history, Rod points out that Martin Luther — who did not set out to break from the Vatican — just happened to be at the right place at the right time, which allowed his challenge to various Church doctrines to spread initially as a grassroots movement among the upper classes and then became a tool wherein nobility who were under the tutelage of Rome could gain more financial and political autonomy. We cover the various reasons for the spread of Protestantism including the role of the printing press, college students, and the incentive structure of the northern European nobility. Prof. Stark also notes that Protestantism was not a movement among the lower classes of society given that the poor typically did not attend church in this era. The “myth of medieval piety” is important for understanding why our contemporary era is not witnessing a decline in religiosity, but instead is greater than it ever has been. Our attention then turns to how Luther and Calvin’s schismatic movements challenged the Roman Catholic Church, allowing the “Church of Piety” to finally get the upper hand on the “Church of Power” (a tension we noted in the second of this three-part podcastd series). This discussion also examines what occured (and did not occur) during the Spanish Inquisition and the various witchcraft trials it supposedly spawned. Another interesting consequence of the Protestant Reformation for the Catholic Church was the creation, for the first time, of seminary training as a means of educating priests in theology. Prior to this most priests were trained as “apprentices” and often did not even know the content of the Latin texts they were reciting. This provides clear evidence of how religious pluralism (or competition) helps to keep churches honest to their spiritual mission. Indeed, Prof. Stark notes that the Reformation helped to create, in the Catholic Church, the institution he had always wanted. Tony also adds to the discussion by talking about his own research on the Latin American Catholic Church and how the “reformation” was delayed by several hundred years in that region of the world. It was when Protestants started making gains in the middle part of the 20th century that helped to reform Catholicism there. Rod also lists a number of downsides of the Catholic Counter-Reformation including some problems for intellectual freedom and the Catholic view of commerce and entrepreneurial activity. We then look at the so-called “secularization” of northern Europe and Rod makes a fascinating claim that rather than there being a large drop in the level of Christian practice over the past 500 years, there really was very little Christian practice to begin with, therefore it is hard to argue that Europe is becoming increasingly secularized when it never was really all that religious to begin with, particularly among the popular classes. This discussion opens the door to our conversation of Christianity in the United States and why it has been particularly vibrant relative to the European scene. The main point that Rod makes here is that in the U.S. there is no established church, and hence each religious denomination has to “make it on its own” if it wants to succeed and this prompts a wide range of creativity amongst the clergy. We finish our conversation with Rod’s reflection on the future of faith in the US and he also provides some interesting tidbits from his forthcoming book, America’s Blessing: How Religion Benefits Everyone … Including Atheists. Recorded: September 21, 2012.

The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World’s Largest Religion, by Rodney Stark.

America’s Blessings: How Religion Benefits Everyone… Including Atheists, by Rodney Stark (available November 2012).

Rendering Unto Caesar: The Catholic Church and the State in Latin America, by Anthony Gill (mentioned briefly in the podcast).

Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion.

RELATED PODCASTS

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part I.

Rodney Stark on the Triumph of Christianity, Part II.

Steve Pfaff on the Protestant Reformation.

Steve Pfaff on Denominationalism, Sin, and Other Stuff.