Era of Good Feeling?

A new era of good feeling between Protestants and Roman Catholics in the U.S. was sighted last week by one of the nation's top Catholic theologians. The Rev. Gustave A. Weigel of Maryland's Jesuit Woodstock College. School of Sacred Theology, told the 48th annual convention of the Catholic Press Association in Richmond that "the Catholic is now interested in the Protestant as a Protestant and the Protestant is even more interested in the Catholic as a Catholic."

The Protestant interest, said Father Weigel, is the result of three factors: "numerical increase of Catholics (see below), the loss of Protestant inviolability, and the weakening hold of the Protestant churches on their members." Together these factors have "produced anxiety in Protestantism" and "anxiety engendered humility."

Candles & Statues. Said Father Weigel: "When the minister looked at his congregation of 60 middle-aged and old folk at his Sunday morning service in a church big enough for 300, he could not help thinking of the Catholic church across the street where the building was filled five times every Sunday morning. He was probably angry at first, but later he became curious. How could the Catholics do what his church could not do? He had to study the Catholic church; he could no longer ignore it."

The ecumenical movement toward unity among the Protestant denominations, added Theologian Weigel. "is vital and effective, one of the best efforts the Protestant churches have ever made. The hope of a united church necessarily makes the Protestant look at Catholicism and look at it more sympathetically than he did in the past." The Protestants, he said, are also growing more and more interested in liturgy, increasingly using candles, the cross, vestments, stained glass, "and even statues." Catholic rites are no longer despised as "popish idolatry." and Protestants often visit Catholic churches "to see how the liturgy is to be performed."

For their part. Catholics have a "growing sense of security" and are "no longer afraid of the American Protestant." Catholics have also "expanded intellectually," said Jesuit Weigel, "even though pure intellectualism is not yet a popular Catholic vocation. Ancient bogies and the ghosts of former times have been destroyed. The Catholic is now perfectly ready to associate with the Protestant with affection and trust."

Word of Caution. One of the effects of this new friendship "is a constant invitation from Protestants to Catholics to cooperate with them in their projects." Catholics, he said, "are embarrassed about this new trend. They do not wish to be rude, and they wish to reciprocate the good will shown them. But they do not know to what the acceptance of the invitation commits them. Many therefore politely but awkwardly refuse the welcome, but many more are now accepting the welcome and find the intercourse pleasant and profitable.

"Yet a word of caution must be spoken to Catholics and Protestants alike. Catholics in their simplicity may easily think that the Protestant willingness to come nearer to Catholicism in doctrine and religious cult is a sign that Protestants are now ripe for conversion to the Catholic church. Such an interpretation of events would be woefully erroneous. We simply must face the fact that for the Protestant this action confirms him in his Protestantism." On the other hand, in the Protestant-Catholic dialogue, he said, the Protestant must understand "that the Catholic hasn't the slightest intention of becoming a Protestant."

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