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This is the second in a three-part series covering the spring Evening of World Faith presentation at Oblate School of Theology.
SAN ANTONIO • The three Abrahamic faiths were represented March 7 in a continuing dialogue that has been taking place at Oblate School of Theology since 2000. The topic explored this time was “Authority: Used or Misused?” under the broader subject, “On Whose Authority? How Religious Authority is Developed and Used in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.”
Presentations were given by Imam Omar Shakir, spiritual leader of Masjid Bilal Mosque; Scott Woodward, D.Min., assistant professor of pastoral theology at Oblate School of Theology; and Hazzan David Silverstein, J.D., leader of the new Congregation Israel. Imam Shakir’s presentation was covered in the April 13 issue of Today’s Catholic.
Woodward began by stating the concept of authority is so broad in Christianity, differing from group to group, that he would primarily speak on that term as it related to Catholic Christianity. He described the ultimate authority for Christians as lying in the work of the Holy Spirit, with the church constantly seeking the guidance of this third person of the Trinity “who guides and teaches the church at all times.”
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“The Spirit,” he continued, “is the ultimate source of all truth and all knowledge and Catholics in particular refer to the historical collection of this guidance as tradition.” He added that it is the duty of bishops specifically and Christians in general to pass on this tradition and to interpret it for the present age so that all can understand it.
The pope, the bishop of Rome, has specific duties, he noted, with regard to authority in some areas, such as collective actions of the bishops in ecumenical councils. As the symbol of their unity, it is the pope who guides the collective action of the bishops in this.
“Our first model is always Jesus,” said Woodward, going on to describe Jesus’ example of authority in Matthew 20, in which the mother of James and John begs Christ to let her two sons sit on either side of him in his kingdom.
Jesus replied that the Gentiles lord it over the people to show their authority, but this would not be so in heaven. “Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant,” he said. “Whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as ransom for many.”
“This,” Woodward said, “is the model of leadership and authority we have as Christians — one of servant leadership. It is why the title given to pope and bishop is ‘Servant of the Servants of God.’” Being both leader and servant can be tricky, however, he said, noting that power in humans tends to go to one’s head.
“Is authority always used as Jesus wanted us to use it?” he asked. “To answer in the affirmative would in essence deny the reality of sin.” Noting that sometimes the wrong people get into office and use their authority wrongly, he observed this was the case in the church’s sex abuse crisis, when some in leadership positions failed to protect “the smallest, weakest members of our community.”
However, he noted there are likewise examples of many bishops who have acted courageously in the face of antagonism from the community, such as Archbishop Joseph E. Rummel in New Orleans, who in 1962 desegregated the Catholic schools despite fierce opposition even from some Catholics. His original pastoral letter on the subject was published in 1953 and he never wavered in the belief that racial discrimination was unacceptable.
Another example given by Woodward was that of Pope Benedict XV who reached out to in an attempt to draw Christianity together, feeling that a united Christianity could have prevented the devastation of World War I. The pope reached out to the Eastern and Orthodox churches and supported the founding of what became Save the Children by two women in predominantly non-Catholic Great Britain. “These are things that were almost unheard of at the time,” said Woodward.
Noting the firestorm caused when our current pope, Benedict XVI, gave a private speech at the University of Regensburg, reading from a historical document in which Islam was decried as violent, Woodward pointed out the uproar that ensued was due to it being read by the pope and would not have occurred had he been reading from the text in the previous church offices he had held.
The fact that the pope spent the following months trying to reframe the text and apologize for any misunderstanding, was something that had never been done by a pope before and took great courage, Woodward noted. “This is the way we would hope leaders would act,” he said, “if they realize they have acted in error.”
In conclusion, Woodward quoted from an article written by Rabbi Ron Kronish on the 40th anniversary of the Declaration of the Relationship of the Christian Church to Non-Christian Religions. Kronish wrote that religions must speak and act for peace in the world, stating this is what the primary message of religion is about.
The old perspective of power needs to be replaced, continued Woodward. “Let’s bring on the other one that pushes healing and unity at the heart of all faiths.”
In the May 11 issue — Hazzan David Silverstein, J.D. |