I’d like to take a moment to talk about another component of my vision for The Catholic Magazine: a deliberate emphasis on the catholicity–that is, the universality–of the Church. Some of our readers likely know about and appreciate the unique and valuable Eastern Churches, such as the Maronites, the Melkites, the Ukrainian Catholic Church…the list goes on and on. But for those who may not know what I’m talking about, here’s a quick rundown of things–simplified greatly for the sake of brevity:
So often we in the United States hear about “The Roman Catholic Church”, but did you know that the “Roman” part of the Church is just one part of the Church? Most of us, myself included, belong to the Roman Church, which traces its roots back to Rome itself in the early years of the Christian Church. But many other Churches within the Catholic Church exist, many with their own rites, spiritualities, and theologies. Some trace their histories back to other early Churches, some of which we read about in the New Testament.
Confused yet? You don’t need to be.
Basically, think of the Catholic Church, as a whole, sort of like the USA: the USA is composed of fifty states, each with its own laws and jurisdiction. Some states are larger than others, and many have distinctly different cultures within them. (Try dropping a New Yorker in the middle of the Deep South and watch what happens. Talk about culture shock! I say this as someone with family living in the northeast, the west, and the south.) Likewise, the “culture” of the Roman Church, of which most Catholics in the United States are members, differs dramatically from that of the Chaldean Catholic Church, to take an example, though both are fully Catholic and in union with each other, and both have members within the USA. Though we may be part of different particular Churches within the larger Catholic Church, we’re still Catholic–like how people in California and those in Alabama are all American. All of the Eastern Catholic Churches are fully Catholic. (We’ll get into the Catholic East’s understanding of the role of the pope in future articles written by Eastern Catholics. I’m really excited about these articles.)
So, why does the catholicity of the Church matter for this magazine?
The magazine will feature voices from the Eastern Churches and from the Western Church. I don’t know of any other Catholic publication which deliberately operates with the goal of providing a space for the East and the West to work together and to support each other.
Also, crucially, these articles about the East will be written by Eastern Catholics. In a conversation with our first Eastern writer, a reader in the Melkite Church, we discussed how he will be “authentically Eastern” in his writing and perspective for this magazine. He’ll write soon, among other articles, about how Vatican II benefited the Eastern Churches significantly.
In short, then, I am very excited for the future of the magazine and the vital role our Eastern friends will have in shaping the conversation here.