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Tranquility in the Church is a rare and beautiful thing, with an emphasis on that word, “rare.” And this explains why two of my favorite saints are Francis of Assisi and Augustine of Hippo.
Both men lived at a time of conflict within the Church and turmoil in the surrounding culture. And neither man was weak or naïve. Francis was very far from the effeminate flower child of popular imagination. He was a formidable man and a demanding religious founder with an intense devotion to the Eucharist. And Augustine was a faithful shepherd to his people in a world of widespread heresy; a bishop not just with a great intellect, but also with the backbone to speak and fight for the truth. Which he did, vigorously, throughout his ministry.
And that brings us to a paradox. The Church is our Mater et Magistra, our mother and teacher, the source of our solace. She exists to transform the world through the proclamation of Jesus Christ. And history shows that, on the balance, she’s done a pretty good job of it. The Church is, and always has been, loaded with unknown, everyday saints, and a great many other good people trying to be saints. And yet, right alongside them in the Church is an energetic minority of frauds, hypocrites, and villains.
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