Posted on 08/25/2011 9:54:43 AM PDT by marshmallow
The Salvation Army's Regent Hall was packed last night for Michael Voris' talk on "Living the Catholic faith radically!" It was good to see so many young people in the crowd, as well as a fair number of what a friend of mine would call "the usual suspects". Not only did I meet a few members of the Guild of Blessed Titus Brandsma, as well as other Catholic bloggers, at the event, but was also introduced to many new faces.
More to the point, it was actually good to be present in person to see and hear Michael Voris in action for myself. He is obviously someone who is deeply committed to the Catholic faith and to upholding the truths of the Church, even if that results in him being unpopular. His return to Catholicism, through the intercession of his dying mother and at a time of great personal loss, was also quite an amazing and humbling story - which explains why he is so determined to save as many souls as possible through discovering the joys of being Catholic. It also explains why he can sometimes be "hard hitting", for it was as a result of a "jarring" comment made by his gravely ill mother that he was forced to confront reality for the first time. It was only then that he was able to accept the transforming power of Catholicism. In fact, he appeared hurt by those who have called him "uncharitable", as he knows himself how seemingly uncharitable words actually led to his own truly charitable conversion of life.
What Michael Voris had to say was, in the main, a "(real) Catholic pep talk", designed to rally the troops. But it was also full of personal anecdotes, including an interesting memory he has of serving Mass, as a 14-year-old, for the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J Sheen - an obvious hero of his. Of course, the speech was also an eloquent and concise defence of the Catholic Church, as well as a litany of praise to God for having given us the "gift" of Catholicism. In that sense, it's probably true to say that - like all the apostles, saints and martyrs - Voris does not believe in making concessions to the world or to error in the Church. In that sense, liberals and non-Catholics might have had their feelings hurt by his talk - to which Michael Voris would (rightly) have pointed out that Our Lord came to save souls and proclaim the truth in all its fullness, not to water it down in case one or two "felt" personally (and subjectively) slighted.
Last night's talk left me - and many others - wondering "why can't our bishops and priests be so bold in proclaiming our Catholic faith?" Are they embarrassed by our faith, given to us by God? Maybe they don't fully believe in the power of the Gospel to challenge and change lives? They might not think that lives need changing? If so, then it might be that their own lives need to change, for all Christians will have to give an account of ourselves one day.
I am really glad that I went to the talk, and that I joined some of the others in a pub afterwards. It's good that the Church has men who, like Voris, are willing to make themselves unpopular for the truth. It was also a joy to see that so many young people are genuinely attracted to an unapologetic or unabashed Catholicism - such as those, like Paul Smeaton, who organised the talk. All in all, then, it was a really joyful and grace-filled evening... Even if it did make me think that I might sometimes be one of those timid people who occasionally accommodate the world through a false sense of charity.
To see Michael Voris in action please follow this link to RealCatholicTV (YouTube)
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