READING THE "SIGNS OF THE TIMES"?

The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudiam et Spes) was promulgated by Blessed Pope Paul VI on December 7 1965.

In this ground-breaking document, the Fathers of Vatican Council II stated: “... the Church has always had the duty of scrutinizing the signs of the times and of interpreting them in the light of the Gospel. Thus, in language intelligible to each generation, she can respond to the perennial questions which men ask about this present life and the life to come, and about the relationship of the one to the other. We must therefore recognize and understand the world in which we live, its explanations, its longings, and its often dramatic characteristics.”

It appears that the Holy See is doing just this and what it discerns in the “signs of the times” is not encouraging for the Body of Christ.


The Vatican announced that guidelines are being drafted to help Catholic dioceses find appropriate ways to decommission unneeded church buildings so they don’t end up as discos, gymnasiums or nightclubs.


The Vatican’s Culture Ministry is teaming up with Rome’s Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University and the Italian Bishops’ Conference to host an international conference in November on managing the sale of church buildings and handling of their assets. 


The event already has a title: “Doesn’t God Dwell Here Anymore?”

Culture Minister, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, told reporters that many dioceses in Europe, North America and Australia have more church buildings than they need or can maintain, thanks to an increasingly secularized society, fewer church-going Catholics and financial constraints.


The Vatican wants to ensure the buildings maintain some of the spiritual, cultural and social value they had as consecrated places of worship, His Eminence said.


The message from the Holy See is itself “a sign of the times”.


It appears that the Vatican has concluded that the loss of faithful within this “increasingly secularized society” is permanent and irredeemable.

Such an admission by the Holy See, even if obliquely, is stunning indeed.


Dear Holy Spirit, come to the rescue of the Church entrusted to Your Watchful Care by the Lord Jesus.  May their be a revival of faith among Your People and a return to the Wisdom of the Gospel and the spiritual nourishment derived from the Divine Sacraments.

Come, Holy Spirit, come!