Left: The interior of Church of Saint Michael, New York City (www.stmichaelnyc.com); right: Fr. George Rutler
Rev. George William Rutler, 69, is pastor of the Church of
St. Michael in New York City. He was raised in the Episcopal tradition
while growing up in the Northeast, and served nine years as an Episcopal
priest. He converted to Catholicism in 1979, and was ordained a priest
in 1981.
He has served in a variety of parishes in New York, and
as chaplain for many organizations, including Legatus, an organization
for Catholic business leaders. He has served as a retreat master for
religious orders, including the Missionaries of Charity. He is a
sought-after lecturer, had a television program with EWTN, and has
written numerous books and magazine articles. His newest books include Principalities and Powers: Spiritual Combat 1942-1943 (St. Augustine’s Press) and Hints of Heaven
(Sophia Institute Press), to be released for Lent 2015, which explores
how Christ’s parables give us “hints” as to what heaven is like.
He
is also working with Ignatius Press on a book of selected writings and
hopes to write a biography of Louis IX of France, the only French king
to be canonized. Fr. Rutler recently spoke with CWR.
CWR: You’ve
spent half your life as a Roman Catholic and half in the Episcopalian
church. The Church of England—of which the Episcopalian church is an
outgrowth—recently made the news by naming its first female bishop,
Libby Lane. How has the Episcopalian church changed over your lifetime?
Fr. Rutler: It’s
changed very significantly. It is vanishing. A few generations ago, it
was the unofficial official church of the United States. It was a
visible presence in the national order. It was prosperous and effective
in many ways.
That’s all gone now. It doesn’t exist anymore. The
remnant you see is post-Christian. It is a vivid but tragic example of
what happens when you abandon a serious commitment to the teachings of
Christ. Demographically, the Church of England will not exist in 20
years. Other Anglican groups outside England have been ordaining women
as priests and bishops in recent years, and the result has not only been
theologically chaotic but a demographic catastrophe.
CWR: More Roman Catholics in England go to Mass than Anglicans in England.
Fr. Rutler: Yes. And, more Muslims are going to mosques there.
[Fr.
Rutler subsequently offered these statistics: 1) There have been 5.3
million fewer British-born people describing themselves as Christians, a
decline of 15% in just a decade. 2) At the same time, the number of
Muslims in England and Wales surged by 75% – boosted by almost 600,000
more foreign-born followers of the Islamic faith. 3) While almost half
of British Muslims are under the age of 25, almost a quarter of
Christians (Protestants and Catholics) are over 65.]
CWR: Some
are excited to see Libby Lane become a bishop. British Prime Minister
David Cameron called it “an historic appointment and an important step
forward for the Church towards greater equality in its senior
positions.” What is your reaction?
Fr. Rutler: That’s
the sort of thing he’d say. He has called himself a “vaguely
practicing” Christian. There are members of his own party who would call
him a vaguely practicing thinker. His comments on religion can’t be
taken seriously.
But regardless, just as the Holy See considers
denominations such as the Church of England “ecclesial entities” rather
than apostolic churches, Mrs. Lane and other Anglican “bishops” and
“priests” lack valid orders, though I am sure they try to minister the
best they can even if oblivious to their lay status. Pope John Paul II
definitively made it clear that the Church has no authority to ordain
women to Holy Orders.
CWR: Your Manhattan parish is in “Hell’s Kitchen,” an area once known for its high crime rate. Is it a difficult parish to serve?
Fr. Rutler: Every
parish has its pluses and minuses. Mine was founded in 1857 for Irish
immigrants. The site of the church has since moved, but it once included
a massive church and school which served 10,000 parishioners.
By
the 1960s and '70s, the area was crime-ridden and poor, but still home
to many immigrants. The “Westies,” or Irish mafia, ruled the area. They
were notorious not just for their crime, but for being sadists. The
parish virtually evaporated; there were almost no parishioners. It was
questionable whether the parish could continue.
But the area has
revitalized and undergone a big real estate boom. We have many building
projects going on, bringing many new people into the area. Property
values have risen. A subway stop will soon open near the church to serve
the rapidly growing neighborhood.
But the question is, how many
will we make Catholic? Our job is not to just serve ethnic communities
with large concentrations of Catholics, but to fulfill the great
evangelical commission of Christ: make disciples of all nations. He
didn’t tell us to just go out into the Catholic neighborhoods. I think
we need to resist the financial temptation to sell the property during
this economic upturn, and see that there is a tremendous potential for
converts here.
CWR: The Archdiocese of New York
has closed a net 31 parishes, with perhaps more closures on the way. Why
are fewer and fewer residents making participation in the life of the
Church a part of their lives?
Fr. Rutler: New
Yorkers are part of Western culture, which is in the midst of being
secularized. Our religious instinct has faded, and our traditionally
Catholic families are moving out of the City.
Part of the problem
is the need for effective catechesis. The ignorance of the Faith among
the young is stunning. Our Catholic schools have been in a state of
decline. In some of our schools we’re covering up our religious symbols
so we can receive money from the state.
Also, there has been a
liturgical failing. The liturgy is a prime means of evangelizing people,
but our liturgies are often banal.
CWR: About
37% of pregnancies in New York City end in abortion (approximately
74,000 abortions annually), which is one of the highest rates of
abortion in the country. Why don’t more New Yorkers listen to the
Church’s right-to-life message?
Fr. Rutler: Young
people learn moral precepts through their families. In New York, we’ve
had a serious breakdown of family life. More than half of babies in New
York City are born out of wedlock. We have some wonderful Catholic
pro-life organizations, such as the Sisters of Life, but they only reach
a small fraction of the population.
CWR: About a
year ago, in January 2014, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that
residents who are “right-to-life” and “anti-gay” (meaning opposed to
same-sex marriage) are “extreme conservatives” and “have no place in the
state of New York.” How alarming do you find the governor’s comments,
and is it ironic that they come from someone who identifies himself as
Catholic?
Fr. Rutler: I wrote an article on this topic.
One positive aspect of this Cuomo is that he doesn’t pretend his
position is Catholic. Mario Cuomo, his father who previously served as
governor, did.
Yes, Andrew Cuomo’s comments are alarming, but I’d
find it more alarming if government officials who are promoting evil are
happy with the Church. Our Lord said, “Blessed are you when men
reproach you, and persecute you, and speaking falsely, say all manner of
evil against you, for my sake.” [Matt 5:11]. Catholics for too long
have had a comfortable relationship with the government. It’s like a
cushion on which we’ve laid our head. But it’s a dangerous thing when we
seek the approval of politicians. It leads to our being exploited by
government.
CWR: You were a witness to the 9-11
attacks in New York City. A decade later, in 2011, an Islamic cultural
center opened two blocks from Ground Zero (the “Ground Zero mosque”).
And, plans were submitted to demolish the site and build a much larger
Islamic center. Do you think many of your fellow New Yorkers have failed
to consider the role Islam played in the 9-11 attacks, and ongoing
attacks on the West and Christians today?
Fr. Rutler: The
World Trade Center was not destroyed by Presbyterians. Catholics are
naïve if they try to ignore that the attackers were Muslim. As I said in one of my recent articles,
society is in a similar place today as it was in regards to Hitler in
the 1930s. People were accommodating themselves to National Socialism or
Hitlerism because they thought it would bring down Marxism. The Nazis,
in fact, presented themselves as the anti-Bolsheviks. But, they didn’t
appreciate the disease they were unleashing on the world.
People
who describe themselves as liberals today are often protective and
defensive about Islam, despite the fact that it is so intrinsically
opposed to what these progressives claim to represent. The only
explanation I can come up with is that these Western socialists or
progressives are hostile to Judeo-Christian civilization and see Muslims
as an effective force against it. The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
This
is coupled with the fact that the secular media so often downplays or
ignores the atrocities committed by Islamists. Just recently, for
example, four Christian children were lined up by ISIS in Iraq and told
to deny Christ and convert to Islam. When they refused, they were
decapitated. I don’t recall seeing that in the New York Times.
CWR: One
of New York’s best known and beloved priests, Fr. Benedict Groeschel,
died recently. Did you know him well, and what are your thoughts on his
passing?
Fr. Rutler: Yes. I’ve spoken to him many
times, and we’ve participated in many conferences together. He has
offered me much wise advice. He was wise about the things of this world
as well as those of the next. I wish more people would have listened to
him.
Father was saddened by the loss of nerve of Catholics, especially Catholic religious, in standing up to the zeitgeist,
or spirit of our age. It prompted him to join in the founding of the
Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. He believed many older orders had lost
their zeal, were accommodating to the times, and did not address the
deeper issues of our society. He spoke out against abortion and
homosexualism; he was involved in COURAGE, the Church’s apostolate for
people with same-sex attractions.
He was a sign of contradiction
[Luke 2:34] and experienced the hostility those receive who offer that
kind of prophetic witness. His order has been very successful in
attracting vocations.
His sense of humor attracted people to him. A
sense of humor is a trait of the balanced; the unbalanced and fanatical
don’t have one. They have no ability to laugh at themselves or the
ridiculous things of life.
Fr. Groeschel was criticized for some
unfortunate comments about child sex abuse and Coach Jerry Sandusky at
the end of his life, but he was not well at the time.
CWR: Speaking of priests, how has the Archdiocese of New York done for vocations?
Fr. Rutler: The
past 20 years has been very poor. We do not do well as compared to
other dioceses our size. Many of our most zealous young men pursuing
vocations do not choose the diocesan seminary but religious orders,
where they find more clarity and stability. The Dominican Friars of the
Province of St. Joseph, for example, have drawn many vocations from the
archdiocese.
However, among our few vocations in the archdiocese,
we have some excellent young men. I was blessed to have some come from
my previous parish.
CWR: You’ve praised the work
of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict. What impressions do you have of
our current Holy Father, Pope Francis?
Fr. Rutler: Pope
Benedict would be a hard act for anyone to follow. Only once every
three or four centuries do you get a pope with an intellect like Pope
Benedict’s. I miss his clarity. [Read Fr. Rutler’s thoughts on the resignation of Pope Benedict.]
Pope
Francis is a man of deep faith, but his pontificate has sent off many
confusing signals. When you read what [Pope Francis] says, he uses
expressions which are hard to understand in terms of logic. He would
benefit by the use of more measured speech. Recently, for example, the
media reported that he said dogs go to heaven. This reporting actually
twisted his original comments. But he has to understand that any casual
comment he makes will be taken by demagogues to promote disorder and
confusion. It may be that the press is to blame, but he would benefit by
being more careful in what he says in the upcoming years.
CWR: Among your many books is Crisis of Saints,
in which you remind the reader that holiness is not just for priests
and nuns, but everyone. What advice do you offer the average
Catholic-in-the-pew on how he might become holy?
Fr. Rutler: I like to use the Latin phrase age quod agis:
do what you’re doing. Holiness is serving God in your station in life
using your talents, whatever they may be. I was blessed to work with
Mother Teresa and her community, the Missionaries of Charity. She liked
to say, “Do what you’re doing, but do it with love.” That is the essence
of holiness.
And, we have to remember to be Christians, not
politicians; this especially true for those of us who are priests and
bishops. St. Paul warns Timothy about pleasing men. When we ask “How
will this make me look?” we’re betraying Christ. Christ will judge us on
the Last Day, not a Gallup poll.
CWR: What concerns do you have about Catholic education?
Fr. Rutler: Our
Catholic education system is a disaster, from kindergarten to the
university level. I am continually appalled by the ignorance of Catholic
college graduates I meet. They know nothing at all about the Faith or
Western culture. We’ve returned to the period of 800-1200, with the
Church the repository of learning in the midst of the total dearth of
the life of the mind.
We have a generation of parents who did not
receive the Faith from the previous generation. Fifty years ago, parents
had some sense of their obligations to God and tried to pass them on to
their children. But today, many parents are a blank slate when it comes
to religion. They have nothing to pass on to their children. Some have
turned to homeschooling, but that’s a small percentage of the total.
There are also some splendid new academies and colleges faithful to the
Magisterium which are opening, which I hope will serve as models for
renewal for some existing institutions.
In our recent discussions
of the Church and family, much attention has been paid to those in
irregular situations, such as the divorced. These are important
considerations, but let’s keep our focus on the traditional family unit
and on how we can support it. The family is our future.
The people
I find most heroic in our society are young couples bringing up
children. I’ve had parents bring their babies to Mass and get
embarrassed when they cry. They come to me afterward and apologize for
the disruption. I say, “Don’t apologize, that’s the sound of the
future.”
