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Archbishop
Fulton Sheen:
A Tale
of Before and After
Second Sunday of June 2011:
Pentecost Sunday
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Recently CNA/ETWN published an article titled: “Advocates press Archbishop Sheen sainthood cause at Vatican” wherein it is stated that the first stage of preparation for his beatification is steadily under way.
Americans have a great affinity for Fulton Sheen who during the 1950’s brought the Catholic Faith into living rooms across the country through the medium of television. His natural charisma and style of speaking was loved and admired by nearly all―even more so appreciated by Catholics was the fact that his show, Life is Worth Living, actually trumped the ratings of other popular secular TV shows in a highly competitive evening time slot.
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Unfortunately, Bishop Sheen’s orthodox thought of that era (1952-1957) was somehow warped during the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), causing him to accept and endorse Modernist errors. How this successful indoctrination of such an intellectual prelate occurred is not precisely known, but we are aware of its ending results: upon returning from Rome to his Rochester, New York diocese, Sheen sought to be the first and foremost American prelate to implement the Council.
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Bishop Sheen at Vatican II
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Bishop Sheen at the Temple B`rith Kodesh in Rochester
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Amongst his first ecumenical forays was speaking in a Jewish synagogue, an event that occurred in 1967, when such an act was still considered radical. That year also witnessed Bishop Sheen informing an audience of Protestant and Jewish leaders that “we have the same God and we are His people” and acting as the main speaker during Rochester’s Ecumenical Day of Prayer for Christian Unity―essentially an Assisi Meeting.
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Future statements would include “we don’t bring Christ to the pagans, we bring Christ out of the pagans” (echoing Karl Rahner’s “anonymous Christian” hypothesis), calling the Hindu Gandhi “a great religious leader”, and supportive words for the arch-Modernist Teilhard de Chardin.
Bishop Sheen’s attitude about the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass also underwent revision, and he became an ardent supporter of the New Mass. Thus ignoring the conclusions of the Ottaviani Intervention, he once said in defense of the revolutionary new rite: “The changes made by Pope Paul VI were not doctrinal changes, they merely changed from Latin to the vernacular.”
So what is the motivation behind this campaign for sainthood―the example of heroic virtue, his personal charism and talents, his popularity with Americans? Or is it simply the desire to canonize another “poster boy” for the Second Vatican Council? Within the article first cited, the author calls Sheen “a model of orthodoxy” while recalling his “televangelist” successes with American viewers―certainly that was true before the Council, but what about after when he made an about face?
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While we are required to question the beatification of Archbishop Fulton Sheen for the reasons above, nevertheless, we must continue to give him credit where it is due, particularly on the following points:
He demonstrated to the public that it was possible to be Catholic and intelligent at the same time―a useful asset, particularly in the face of the rash behavior of many Catholics.
His influence undoubtedly contributed to the surge of converts the Catholic Church in the United States witnessed during the 1950s.
He maintained a firm stand against Communism, even when such a position made him unpopular with many, including fellow bishops.
He showed a unique grasp of the Catholic Faith based on the principles of St. Thomas Aquinas, and likewise exercised a special talent in explaining the faith to the “man in the pew”.
He gave us memorable quotes which are still applicable today, such as: “There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate the Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they mistakenly believe to be the Catholic Church.”
His pre-conciliar works resonate with traditional thinking and serve as an effective remedy against the novelties of Vatican II as well as the errors of the modern mind. Click here for books available from Angelus Press >
So we don't want to throw the baby out with the bath water. Thus we can proudly be Catholic with the pre-conciliar Bishop Sheen, who gives us the very reasons why we must refuse the novelties expressed by the later Bishop Sheen.
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Some titles available
from Angelus Press
Bishop Sheen's Life of Christ
Old Errors and New Labels
Fulton Sheen: Family Retreat DVD
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Biographical sources:
Treasure in Clay, [Autobiography] (Ignatius Press, 1993)
America's Bishop: The Life and Times of Bishop Sheen, Thomas C. Reeve’s (Encounter Books, 2001)
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