Letter to the Editor: Being Catholic is tougher than being an ordinary Christian

Thoughts on being Catholic in Quincy:

I like my priest, Msgr. Leo Enlow, very much at St. Peter Parish. I believe he is a true priest, and I don’t think I could do his job. The crosses our priests bear are heavy, and there is a priest shortage for multiple reasons. I cannot tell you how impressed I am with St. Peter’s. The staff is over-the-top incredible. It runs like a well-oiled machine. There is no better organization for 100 miles. 

The pastor at St. Peter helped to change me last year when my daughter asked me to engage in reconciliation. I will admit that a Zanger (go figure) helped me to see the light during the confession process, and the pastor at St. Peter also acted as a conduit to the light, and I am healed. It was a shocking display of grace I received, so thank you to all three of those humans. 

Full disclosure: I am a much better Christian than I am a Catholic. Being Catholic, in my opinion, is much more difficult than being “just Christian.” I would go so far to say that I’m not a good Catholic. I can explain transubstantiation, so in that regard, I’m a better Catholic than most, but again, I feel like I’m doing a terrible job. 

It’s not enough that I baptized my kids and send all three to a Catholic school. I do not attend Mass enough, I do not tithe adequately, and I do not volunteer at the church. This drought of inadequacy pulls me down into the wasteland of bad Catholic. I believe my time will come when I’m not buried in my work (multiple jobs, youth coaching endeavors, matrimony, strict bedtimes, etc.) 

I wish I had more discipline for what it takes to be Catholic. I am lacking in effort and again, I am sorry. I should try to be better. I need daily injections of the Holy Spirit, and I believe I get them, but I’m still not holding up my part of the bargain of what it means to be Catholic.

I’m sorry for my behavior, and I’m sorry for that disheartening analysis. I’m no Galileo, but he got excommunicated while being correct. I feel like I’m correct as well in some respects, so maybe that’s why I feel so nervous about being Catholic.

The Catholic Church has separated many times, and I think it’ll continue to lose membership/enrollment going forward. It’s certainly getting competition from rock band church outfits, and I understand why.

I’m not judging the rock band church outfits, after all. I can see why so many QND grads leave the church and attend non-denominational churches in town. There are many reasons why this phenomenon may be so abundant: Fewer strings attached, easier paths, strong leadership, and lower costs. The pill, the fertility rate, inflation, the downfalls of society, the rise of fun megachurches with their thrift shops and the superiority complex of Catholic leaders all contribute to its modern-day problems.

Imagine you can’t stand the government school model, and you actively try to be a good person. Maybe you’re even Christian, going to church and studying the Bible. Then you try to move your family into the Catholic model, and the leaders play games with statements like, “Thank you for coming. Please convert or risk not going to Heaven. If you don’t convert, pay this higher fee. If you do convert and don’t attend Mass 51 percent of the time, pay this higher fee. You live in this mansion down the street from St. Peter’s. Please subsidize all the other parishes.”

Being Catholic is tougher than being an ordinary Christian, I’m telling you. There is always more at stake when you’re Catholic. It’s a supreme challenge. In fact, I like this. I don’t feel superior, but I understand how Catholic leaders feel superior. I get it. It’s like the University of Notre Dame’s football team has a culture, and Northern Illinois’ football team has a culture. The Catholics built much of Western civilization, and they certainly cornered the market on education. They’re the winners in this manner.

No offense to the Baptists and the Methodists. I like them as well.

The Catholic schools in Quincy are moving to the public-school model because they’re losing enrollment and money. I’m not saying it’s a completely bad idea to move to a public-school model. But I don’t believe the unelected lay leaders fully understand the unintended consequences, like parish collapse, for example.

On Tuesday night during an information gathering session at the Connie Niemann Center for Music, many people tried asking difficult questions at the end of the session. Many of them were not allowed to ask difficult questions. It felt like a compassionate Third Reich situation, with bullying and intimidation overwhelming the Q&A process. 

The process Tuesday night angered many people. I’d even go so far to say that this whole process over the past three years has angered a lot of people. Where does the anger come from? From not fully and explicitly stating the problem and making parishioners read between the lines for three years. I have never heard anyone say that St. Dominic is failing, and if the big-money parishes don’t bail them out, we’re going to lose them to the public schools. 

Did someone say that and I’m not listening? 

The new school model has been unveiled, and it was a thin veil to begin with. It was the worst-kept secret in Quincy. Many people felt like they knew this was happening since the listening sessions in April 2022. The leaders quickly said no one knew until last month. That feels a little dirty and untrue. Some of the proletariat is a bit upset, but the bourgeoisie maintains that we shall eat cake? This creates more than frustration.

The parishes now risk losing their identities as parents become disenchanted as they drive to separate schools, and the capital flows to the union boss. You may say, “Frank, I’m in the public school system, and we do this too.” I say, “Well, congratulations and good for you, knee bender. Keep ripping off the ancient words of wisdom off your classroom walls and let me know how that works out for society. By the way, where is your parish?”

I have non-selfish reasons for questioning the new plan, like parish decay. I have a selfish reason as well.

My wife and I bought a house a block from St. Peter, and we are one year away from allowing all three of our children to walk to school together. Do you think that is beautiful or stupid? My wife and I have planned our lives around this. Instead, next year, my wife may have to drive to two or three different schools instead of just driving to work. 

I know what some are thinking: Boo-hoo. I told you it was a selfish reason.

The Father Roy Bauer model is my favorite, but that model is impossible today. My parents paid $0 in tuition at St. Peter, but those were the 80s and 90s — pre-Columbine, pre-internet, pre-smart phones.

We can never go back.

Frankie Murphy-Giesing
Quincy, Illinois