The Politics of Heresy

...From a sociological perspective, clarified with the help of the Weberian bounds of scholastic theology...

...Kurtz, however, In turn, the Vatican hierarchy were "sociological ambivalence," "social analyzes the controversy with the aid of both guardians of orthodoxy and pastors control," "elective affinities," "de- the categories of "sociological ambiva- with responsibility for preserving the viant insiders," "resource mobiliza- lence" (taken from Robert K. Merton faith and evangelizing the world...

...temporary conflict between theologians working through popular culture, led his breakfast cereals were designed and and the Vatican hierarchy (e.g., Kung, Americans to seek ecstatic pleasure and promoted to preserve the race from deSchillebeeckx, Boff, Curran) seems in- to expect freedom from guilt in their sex- cline with their anti-aphrodisiac effect...

...3) The controversy flicting parties...

...Both tion," and "bureaucratic insurgency...

...Kurtz then outlines the likewise held responsible for the sexual various forms of control, both informal Ronald Modtras revolution...

...This book that children begotten in passion would the Modernist controversy and the con- describes how Christian influences, become obsessed with sex themselves...

...First, some similarities: (1) The ual relations...

...If we are to Such literature is indicted for increasing ing a sociological analysis of the Mod- believe Peter Gardella, they have all both the amount and explicitness of disernist controversy, and drawing out the helped to shape America's contemporary course about sex...

...Gardella states his thesis in the first Seventh Day Adventist, was convinced A comparison and contrast between sentence of the Introduction...

...to legitimate or enhance their soand thorough description of Modernism, It was not only Loisy, Tyrrell, and von cial status...

...and larger cultural suggests, might wonder about the need Lester R. Kurtz conflicts between scientific and religious for yet another study of the issue, but California, $32.50, 267 pp...

...Bishop Francis Kenrick through religious experience and what he question by Rome about the right of the wrote of the husband's duty to assist his calls the victory over sin through sexual U.S...

...sociological analysis...

...that he really doesn't tell us anything we Hagel who experienced sociological am- either the authorities or the heretics didn't already know about it historically...

...This is what Kurtz troversy lay in the socio-historical con- moil...

...The Second Vatican Council adopted a posi- of these conclusions are based on the fact Modernist controversy is partially ex- tive attitude toward the modern world that they are rooted in social structures plained by this increasing affinity on both rather than the defensive posture at the and not in the personalities of the consides...

...Ambivalence is especially ob- from outside the institution...

...In a similar vein, magisterial and papal authority versus novelists and Margaret Sanger, Gardella Horace Bushnell's efforts to reconcile the authority of the scholar...

...gious truth is universal and unchanging ity," Gardella makes much of St...

...The Vatican competence of a professional, i.e., the How this ambivalence was translated responded with a three-fold strategy: "it claim of a scholar to freedom of scientific into an "orthodoxy /heresy" conflict is defined Catholic orthodoxy within the inquiry...

...text outside the church...

...Elective affinity" is a neutral and is not an issue...

...bivalence, however...

...2) The issue tells the story of the "struggle to over- science and religion led him to reduce of the nature of religious truth remains - come original sin...

...The growth of Tyrrell experienced ambivalence arising When ideational distance as well as soanti-clericalism in the eighteenth and from three sources: the status of both cial distance reaches but does not exceed nineteenth centuries, of liberalism, re- priest and critic...

...Dr...

...There will their respective interests with a particular century - the church is not facing a remain "elective affinities" between the set of ideas was a conscious or malicious grave political crisis and anti-clericalism interests of groups with a certain social act...

...it Kurtz says, the latter was the crux of the concept of "elective affinity...

...time of Modernism...

...The Modernists were both Kurtz's sociological analysis is a unique committed Roman Catholics and and very helpful contribution...

...Books: AUTHORITY & AMBIVALENCE HOSE T familiar with the literature on THE PNLITIC$ IF HERESY their social roles...

...Kurtz's study thus enaOne further contribution Kurtz makes has shifted from doctrinal issues to prob- bles us to keep some perspective on to our understanding of the Modernist lems of morality, e.g., contraception, present controversies, and for this we are controversy is to firmly establish that it abortion, homosexuality, and divorce...

...Modernists such as Loisy and terms "the relativity of dissidence...

...study, Kurtz uses categories of Tyrrell, and von Hugel...

...Again, this is not to historical context outside the church is scholar, and for the critic who wishes to contend that such an identification of not the same as that of the nineteenth remain a "deviant insider...

...the authority of scientific and historical definition of the situation and use it Although Kurtz provides an accurate scholarship...

...and the This is precisely what happened in the Catholic church on the defensive almost ambivalence arising from the special Modernist controversy...

...Liberal and evangelical Protestants are Baron von Hugel...

...and Bernard Barber) and Weber's notion parties, then, were in a situation of radiThese technical terms illuminate the con- of "elective affinities...

...the long-term nature of a certain level, mechanisms of control publicanism, and of scientific methods in the relationship between priest and within an organization will be activated...

...worldviews...

...John Harvey Kellogg, a leading change and social movements...

...sociological ambivalence will remain for helpful in defending an unchanging and Some differences: (1) The socio- the Vatican hierarchy, for the priesttimeless orthodoxy...

...Al- Evangelical Christianity made its conversus the modern consciousness of the phonsus Liguori's opinion that, without tribution to the cause of guilt-free sex historical and contextual character of all incurring guilt, a woman could bring her- with its zeal to promote emotional conhuman utterances...

...bishops' conference to teach au- wife to climax in such a situation...

...structure...

...experience...

...Bishop Francis Kenrick of flourishing genre of "anti-Catholic porThe author achieves his three-fold goal Philadelphia, John Kellogg of nography" capable of finding its way of showing how orthodoxy is constructed the corn flake, and Sylvester Graham of into the most proper of Protestant homes...

...to the point of paranoia...

...3) The emphasis by self to orgasm after intercourse with her version experiences...

...In this meticulously researched and faith crises of such figures as Loisy, the historical-critical method seriously...

...Peter Gardella cial assistance, the latter mainly from Oxford, $17.95, 210 pp...

...original sin to physical pathology and i.e., the neo-scholastic position that reli- In a chapter on "Catholic Sensual- religion to a health regimen...

...From Catholic moralists Sylvester Graham prescribed his cracker root problem is still that of authority - and Victorian physicians to obscure for the same reasons...

...This does not imply...

...The evangelical belief that Commonweal: 538...

...2) The conflict between status in an organization and sets of nuanced manner of describing the rela- science and religion has abated, and the ideas, worldviews, or theologies...

...evitable...

...conflicts among varithe turn-of-the-century Modernist THE MODERNIST CRISIS IN ROMAN ous social institutions, interest groups, controversy, as the author himself CATHOLICISM and social networks...

...really was a self-conscious movement with a social structure, sharing a broad outline of ideas, a desire to reform the The sensuous Christian Roman Catholic church, and a loose network of "members" held together by INISCEIT ECSTEUT Though Kenrick would more than likely conversations, correspondence (Kurtz HOW CHRISTIANITY GAVE AMERICA demur, Gardella reads this as "an details the evidence for this), distribution AN ETHIC OF SEXUAL PLEASURE explicit shift of concern from conception of writings, reviewing books, and finan- to pleasure...

...The ecclesiastical Commonweal: 536 elites found the revival of Thomism and thoritatively in the pastorals on nuclear Kurtz's study makes it clear that neo-scholastic philosophy and theology weapons and the economy...

...through conflicts about heresy, provid- the cracker have in common...

...Both tionship between interests and ideas...

...Gardella draws a the Vatican on the magisterium, nar- husband if she herself had not experi- line connecting the victory over sin rowly defined, is still at issue, e.g., the enced climax...

...As "deviant insidtific and historical criticism and a hierar- matter of social psychology...

...From the 1830s to our own and official, mobilized by the Vatican century, suspicions about clerical celihierarchy and the various modes of re- W HAT do St...

...elaborated the doctrines of papal author- Modernist controversy...

...Outsiders Although the root problem was the servable in professional roles - most would be less likely to attract the adherquestion of authority within the church, acutely when those roles are embedded in ence of the faithful and could be more Kurtz argues that the origins of the con- institutions and networks that are in tur- easily dismissed...

...At its heart was As social groups find an "affinity" ity and the magisterium...

...the nineteenth century, put the Roman church (commitment for life...

...Alphonsus Liguori, bacy and the confessional gave rise to a sponse by the "dissident insiders...

...it is also the ers" the Modernists' critique of the chical institution defending itself against result of a particular role structure and of reigning orthodoxy was more dangerous the onslaught of the modern world the set of expectations surrounding that to the hierarchical elite than criticism known as "Modernism...

...Both the moder- are necessarily malicious or selfThe real contribution of the volume is the nists and the Vatican hierarchy were re- serving, although they may be...

...in his debt...

...cal ambivalence, and both were inside an flict between the scholarly use of scien- "Ambivalence in a role is not only a institution in turmoil...

...Many other at- sponding to their entrapments in situa- Thus, the Modernists found the scientific tempts to explain "how all this could tions of radical ambivalence - ambiva- and historical methods helpful in explainhave happened" point to personality and lence arising out of contradictory de- ing how doctrines and interpretations psychological factors, describing the mands and expectations associated with could and did change...

...implications for an analysis of social ethic of guilt-free sex...

...What is thoughtful critics who sought to commore, it is incredibly (and lamentably) T. Howland Banks municate the Gospel to the cultural pertinent to the present situation of milieu in which they found themselves theologians in the Roman Catholic family backgrounds, personality traits, which took the scientific discoveries and church...

...and "it de- the question of authority - the authority between their status interests on the fined Catholic orthodoxy in terms of of the hierarchy (and especially the papal one hand and a particular configwhat it was not . . . by constructing the office) to determine the meaning of doc- uration of ideas or worldview on image of an heretical conspiracy among trines and to interpret Scripture, versus the other, they identify with that deviant insiders...