The Great Mysteries by Andrew M. Greeley
"The Great Mysteries" by Andrew M. Greeley presents a contemporary exploration of Catholic faith, emphasizing the importance of human experience in understanding religious teachings. Greeley, a Catholic priest and sociologist, begins each chapter with questions that resonate with common human experiences, such as life's purpose and the existence of evil. He uses a question-and-answer format reminiscent of the Baltimore catechism, aiming to create a more relatable and experience-based approach to faith rather than a strict adherence to dogma.
The book addresses profound questions surrounding the nature of God, the mystery of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and key aspects of Catholic belief, such as baptism and salvation. Greeley recognizes the pain and confusion present in life while also highlighting the goodness and meaning that individuals can find. He argues that Christianity offers hope and a framework to understand life's mysteries, encouraging readers to view religion as a means of orienting themselves in the world rather than merely following a set of rules. Written in the context of post-Vatican II changes in the Church, Greeley's work seeks to harmonize faith with the complexities of modern life, inviting readers to engage in a deeper dialogue about their beliefs and experiences.
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The Great Mysteries by Andrew M. Greeley
First published: New York: Seabury Press, 1976
Genre(s): Nonfiction
Subgenre(s): Handbook for living; theology
Core issue(s): Catholics and Catholicism; church; faith; freedom and free will; religion
Overview
A Catholic priest, sociologist, and author, the Reverend Dr. Andrew Greeley begins his “essential catechism” with the supposition that all religion comes out of experience. Jesus taught with parables to which his listeners could relate and which they could understand. The early Christians shared the experience of the Risen Lord. They then went out to preach the good news of that experience. Only later was that experience codified into a formal religion. Christianity can solve problems and provide answers to the big mysteries of life, such as why God made us, why there is evil, and what happens after death. Greeley addresses these questions as well as questions that relate directly to Christianity and Catholicism. He delves into the mystery of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the person of Mary, mother of Jesus. He also discusses whether baptism is necessary for salvation and salvation is possible outside the Church.
Greeley begins each chapter with a question rooted in human experience. The question-and-answer format was common in the Baltimore catechism, which generations of Catholic children used to learn their faith. Greeley restates those traditional questions in slightly different ways to emphasize that this is a catechism rooted in experience (a bottom-up approach to faith) rather than dogma (a top-down paradigm). For example, the first question, “Why did God make me?” is rephrased as “Is there any purpose in my life?”
Sadly, human experience is often rooted in pain. Greeley explores the lack of purpose we all seem to feel at one point or another in our lives. He discusses the evil in the world and the evil within ourselves. He acknowledges how difficult it can be for us to trust. He examines the ways our sexual relationships with others mystify us. He delves into our sense of guilt, our lack of community, and our destruction of our natural environment. However, Greeley acknowledges that even in the midst of all that global pain, at an individual level we find goodness, have meaningful sexual relationships, make friends, and find forgiveness.
Greeley uses these individual experiences as a jumping-off point to explore what Christianity and Catholicism have to say about these mysteries of life. Through the person of Jesus, God has shown us how much he loves us. He made us in order to have a relationship with him, and there lies our purpose. Having conquered death, Jesus gives us reason to hope. Our lives are not in vain. Death is not the end. By the same token, the resurrection is the great triumph over evil. Jesus has defeated evil, and with his help so can we. The Holy Spirit continues to encourage us to trust in God, to take risks, to become the full embodiment of humanity that God calls us to be. Through Baptism, both the body and the soul receive grace and become conduits of goodness. The Eucharist unites us with Jesus and with each other, creating a foundational community from which all other communities can grow and prosper. Marriage rites and Catholic devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus, celebrate our sexuality. We believe that in God’s hands there will be a final accounting of good and evil, that there will be justice, but that his justice will be one of mercy. We believe in the kingdom of God and that in some small way, through love, we can contribute to that reality being here, now.
Greeley challenges us to take a fresh look at our religion. All too often we consider religion to be legalistic, a long list of what we should and should not do. The Great Mysteries encourages us to view religion instead as a way of orienting ourselves in the world, a way of thinking, loving, and responding to others and the environment. Religion, in particular the Catholic religion, offers a positive approach to life. It provides hope and answers to the questions that plague our lives. It offers meaning and comfort. It challenges us to transform ourselves into something greater than what we are now. While none of its principles can be unequivocally proven by science (religion does involve faith, after all), our daily experience leads us to the truths it defends.
Christian Themes
What does it mean to be Christian, in particular a Catholic Christian? How does that impact the way we relate to the world? Is it possible to begin with our common human experiences and extrapolate great truths about life? Will our experience lead us to God? A catechism offers the guiding principles of a religion. Usually, that means beginning with what the religion has to say and then fitting life experiences into that framework. Greeley takes the opposite approach. He begins with human experience and shows how it leads believers to the truth of the Catholic faith.
The Great Mysteries was written approximately a decade after the Second Vatican Council, popularly known as Vatican II (1962-1965). The period witnessed great upheaval in the Catholic Church. There had been a strong tendency toward legalism, which had existed since the Reformation in the 1500’s and 1600’s. In the 1960’s, those rules and regulations were being called into question. The Baltimore catechism, which was the means by which nearly all Catholics learned their faith, offered simple answers to complex questions. Children were expected to memorize it and obey; there was no room for discussion. In many ways, the Baltimore catechism had provided a very secure foundation for the faith. One always knew what to expect and how to live. Vatican II pulled the rug out from under many Catholics. It called the laity to greater participation in the Church. It encouraged conversation among all the people of God. It acknowledged the many ways the Holy Spirit continues to work in the world. While the basic tenets of the faith remained the same, much of the window dressing changed.
Just over a decade after Vatican II, Greeley offered the The Great Mysteries as a new way of educating people about the faith. His method allowed for questioning and for the input of human experience, encouraging seekers to delve into the reality that is human existence and move from that to the reality that is God.
The Catholic Church would publish its new catechism of the Catholic Church in 1992. This work would reflect the teachings of Vatican II fully. While still authoritative, the pat answers were gone. The complexities of modern life were taken into consideration. Greeley, a controversial figure among Catholics, whose liberal stances have distanced him from the Church, nevertheless continues to offer questioning Catholics, through his “essential catechism” and many other works, a way to approach the faith that, for many, harmonizes it more fully with the human experience.
Sources for Further Study
Greeley, Andrew. The Catholic Imagination. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001. Greeley discusses what makes Catholics unique, placing special emphasis on the appreciation Catholics have for God in the world, which is illustrated particularly through Catholic contributions to art, music, and literature.
Greeley, Andrew. The Great Mysteries: Experiencing Catholic Faith from the Inside Out. New York: Sheed & Ward, 2003. An updated version of Greeley’s original “catechism.”
The New St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism (No. 2). New York: Catholic Book Publishing, 1999. Aimed at sixth, seventh, and eighth graders, this is a reprint of the classic text used by Catholics to learn their faith.