Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Careers, Workplace and Religion
Papal Controversy in the United States

Papal Controversy in the United States

Last updated on: June 30, 2025 at 6:42 am by William Droel

0 Comments

Papal Controversy in the United States 2025-06-30T06:42:42-06:00 William Droel

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

It was called Americanism. Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903) condemned it.

In 1899 Leo XIII sent a three-page letter to the U.S. bishops in care of Cardinal James Gibbons (1834-1921) of Baltimore. It is titled Witness to Our Good or sometimes On New Opinions of Virtue, Nature and Grace. Leo XIII’s admonishment was aimed at progressive U.S. Catholics. Its general theme speaks to today’s U.S. Catholics—conservatives and liberals.

The second paragraph of Witness to Our Good mentions Fr. Isaac Hecker, CSP (1819-1888), the principal founder of the Paulists. Hecker himself was not Leo XIII’s villain. In fact, Hecker died more than ten years before the papal letter. Rather, as Leo XIII says, a translated biography of Hecker, written in 1891 by Fr. Walter Elliott, CSP (1842-1928), “has caused no little controversy” in Europe. Leo XIII goes on to name the erroneous traits of Americanism as conveyed in the biography, more specifically in its French introduction by Fr. Felix Klein (1862-1953), a professor of philosophy and literature in Paris.

Hecker desired a Catholicism appealing to North Americans, rather than one dependent upon European languages, customs, theological formulae and rituals. Hecker was optimistic that our country’s pluralism, religious freedom, voluntary associations, layered authority and individual striving are harmonious with Catholicism.

Hecker’s disposition toward the U.S. emerged amid a strong anti-Catholic movement among nativists. Contrary to their attitude, Hecker believed that Catholicism makes a positive contribution to our country. Further, the church learns from give-and-take in our modern world. Thus to live the gospel within the specific conditions of North America requires Christians to engage, humanize and civilize their surroundings, said Hecker.

Of course, Hecker’s view can go too far. When Christianity is fused with any one culture or political regime, religion is debased. Public figures, as we know, can coopt religion for their own ambitions.

What is it like in the U.S. today? Our libertarian culture makes individual choice the highest value. Freedom is equated with options, devoid of pre-set, firm obligations. Decisions in our culture are always circumstantial, not directed by any absolutes. A term like alternative facts is accepted as rational. Thus some—conservatives and liberals—are cafeteria Catholics. That is, their faith being captured by our individualistic culture, they select some Catholic markers of identity while ignoring some basics. A cafeteria Catholic might say, for example, that any individual woman has an unencumbered, autonomous right to abortion. Or a cafeteria Catholic might say that assisting refugees, immigrants or others in need is an individual’s choice, not obligatory in any way.

Leo XIII’s main concern in Witness to Our Good is the danger of religion over-embracing a particular culture, society or political order. Yes, patriotism is healthy. In the U.S. our patriotism is devotion to and respect of our experiment in democracy, regardless of anyone’s religion or birthplace. Be aware, however, that healthy patriotism differs from nationalism: The attitude that our country is ipso facto superior, that it stands alone, that it is destined to expand with never an apology. A Christian nationalist uses religion to distort history, to excuse the serious shortcomings of their political favorites, to claim the superiority of their type of Christian over other denominations and to favor their race or ethnicity over others.

Perhaps Leo XIII’s Witness to Our Good would have better made the point without dragging Hecker or an obscure introduction to a biography into it. Like his predecessor, Chicago’s-own Pope Leo XIV must deal with the position of Catholicism within U.S. culture, and other cultures as well. He knows that some U.S. Catholics, including its leaders, have bought big time into our extreme style of individualistic capitalism and the political policies supporting it. There are also a few Catholics who, reacting to the defects in our culture, opt for sectarianism, a trip to an imagined golden age. This retreat is no better. A genuine Catholic life “in our age,” says Hecker, must take its place “in busy marts, in counting rooms, in workshops, in homes and in the varied relations that form human society, and it is into these that sanctity is to be introduced… [We are to] seek occasions to practice virtue, to do something for God, and these occasions are, if I may use the expression, right under our noses.”

Droel is associated with National Center for the Laity (PO Box 291102, Chicago, IL 60629). It distributes a new edition of Leo XIII’s encyclical, On the Condition of Labor ($7).

History and Religion

Uncategorized

Previous Post

June 23, 2025

Leo XIII Blesses Labor Unions

Next Post

July 15, 2025 Churches and Candidates Don't Mix

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"Bill-I observe that subsidiarity/localism is actually a big issue. Some of the alienation that is ..."

Chicagoan

Localism

"l think that this commentary by Bill Droel offers a perspective that can help the ..."

Chicagoan

Turning To Politics

"Droel commits the sin of lying to the innocent and unable to defend themselves. He ..."

I Love Libertarians

Strikes

"I propose that the best way to help working class people in the US is ..."

bill wald

Extreme Capitalism

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 May 2022 April 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 June 2021 May 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What city is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Vatican City Florence Jerusalem Rome