In our imperfectible world, we have hope because we are not bound to perfection and we have a God to take our failure to.
This is what President of the University of Mary Monsignor James Shea encouraged in a breakout session at the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, Ind.
As his name was announced, and without even saying a word, Msgr. Shea walked out to a standing ovation. With rows and rows of people of all ages cheering, it was evident that he was one of the crowd's favorites.
In his session entitled, “The Religion of the Day: Breaking Free from Post-Christian Influence,” Msgr. Shea detailed shifts in American culture that have seemingly created a new religion in our time.
He immediately posed a daunting question: “If I were the Devil, [what would I do here?]”
Then, from the Devil’s perspective, he asked,
“What if there could be a religion that nobody thinks is a religion? What if [you] could take the Good News and make it seem like terrible news?...
What if it could borrow its mythic quality, its epic force from Christianity... so that it would seem like Christianity is boring and the new religion is exhilarating?!...
What if there could be a religion like that, that could cause and inspire and form the most fragile and unconfident people in the history of the world while making them also the most prideful people the world has ever seen?”
Breaking character, he quietly said, “That would be really devastating, and that’s what he did.”
Now, this mentality has infiltrated our days, our entire perspective on life, and especially our universities.
Msgr. Shea shared that these schools, which were places originally meant to be a sanctuary for the betterment of the mind through conversion of intellectual thought are now “the seminaries and monasteries of the new religion.”
He established that the new religion is founded on the rejection of the doctrine of the Fall.
The followers of the new religion believe in the perfectibility of the human person because of this rejection. They believe that we are supposed to be living in a utopia.
Yet, in his detail of this heartbreaking new religion, Msgr. Shea quickly changed his tone.
“Your life, your family, your business, your parish, are arenas for failure," he said slowly.
By knowing that humans are meant to fail and that failure is bound to happen, we can be assured that both “the dying and the rising of Jesus are meant to happen” in our lives.
Msgr. Shea then quoted Father Jacques Philippe:
“Modern man is condemned to success because without God we have no place to take our failure.”
He concluded by rejoicing in Christianity saying, “Jesus has arranged everything so that if we don’t give up, we always win!”
For in Christianity, we do not have to live as the modern man in this post-Christian world and have every opportunity to put on the armor of Christ and our hope in Him.