Adult Education with Dr. Steinfels

Peter Steinfels, author of A People Adrift : The Crisis of the Roman Catholic Church in America spoke at Gonzaga University last night. He was excellent. His speech, and his book, give the most thorough outline of the issues that have been brewing in the church for decades. The issues are key ones. They have divided Catholics.

These are the issues I believe will have to be resolved if and when there is a Vatican III. So over the next few days in this blog, I'm going to take the issues one by one, as explained by Steinfels.

Issue No. 1: Leadership by priests and nuns is giving way to leadership by the laity. This is creating tension among all. Who has the authority? Who has the power?

Steinfels, in his book and talk, said: "Before the 1960s, priests staffed parishes. Sisters ran the schools...By 1997, the numbers of lay ministers in parishes surpassed the number of parish priests. Half feel they have received a call from God...More than 80 percent of the lay parish ministers are women. Questions and tensions about women's role in the church are clearly not going to subside."

Steinfels doesn't offer a solution, but he knows this: "American Catholicism needs priest leaders for a church of lay leaders. Without effective priestly leadership, parishes can survive, but it is unlikely that they will remain vital."