The ignorance of Catholics with regards to their Catholic religion is unimaginable. Ignorance is common among laymen, seminarians, priest and even a few bishops. And news show that the situation is world-wide.
Parents and godparents are totally incapable of transmitting religious knowledge to children. Catholic schools and universities have long abandoned their role of giving their students a Catholic education as John Newman had laid down. Sunday homilies of priests are either empty or pure entertainement. When Pope John Paul II came to Asia 27 years ago he encouraged the bishop’s conference to evangelize. The committee formed for it is still figuring out how to go about it. We, already, have a new Pope.
The worst politicians are catholics and the most corrupt law enforcers are also Catholics. And most of those in jail are Catholics. Ronald Knox, famed Anglican convert to Catholicism decried the fact that he would rather leave his umbrella in a Wesleyan service house than in a Catholic chapel. He would return to the Wesleyan chapel with the umbrella still there but gone in a Catholic chapel.
Add to this the fact that we live in an atmosphere of relativism wherein sound doctrines are repugnant to modern mankind.
The Catholic Church have many Catechisms that summarize the truths of Christ. From the Catechism of St. Cyprian, St. Peter Canisius, St. Thomas of Aquinas, St. John Vianney to the countless penny catechisms available. One can go and visit the information highways and learn everything about the Catholic Church. And still, ignorance is the common denominator of Catholics when it comes to the Catechism.
As a young seminarian I have been hearing about evangelizations and re-evangelizations. But nothing happened. No one had defined what evangelization meant and how to go about it. So it never began.
Here in Asia, whenever the state raises up an issue that goes against Catholic morals, the reponse from the Church is so ineffective, confused and unclear.
The local Catholic radio station did not have a program on Catechism though it had all kinds of programs. They were glad when I volunterred to hold the program on catechism. I use the present Catechism of the Catholic Church with explanations from St. Thomas of Aquinas and St. John Vianney.
Faced with such a situation, can we still look forward to our next generation as our future?