EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN

Mom would cringe when she walked into a house and saw an old fashioned iron or a washboard sitting out on display as an antique or conversation piece. “We hated those things,” she would say, “they were a drudgery to use. We were so thankful to be done with them and move on to modern conveniences.”

But to the younger generation they took on new meaning. They became a connection to a heritage and to people. (Can you imagine? Grandma used this at one time.) They became a link to something greater. (I am part of a family.) And, quite honestly, more artistic quality was put into many things from past times so they are more interesting and pleasing objects at which to look.

The situation is not much different in the Church. Young religious and priests come on the scene and start dragging out items that those directly before us have been busily packing away. The new generation goes to the basement or attic and hauls things out much to the chagrin of those who were happy to be done with them and who are often hostile toward those who have a new appreciation for them. Why is this?

As much as I hate to admit it, sattvicarrior does have at least this point; symbols only have the meaning that we assign to them. To those who came before us, these items can be symbols of oppression, associated with leadership against whom they were defining themselves, a mark of who stood with the past and who is moving on with the future. Seminarians and those discerning religious orders who had an affinity for such things were (are) looked upon with suspicion and even outright hostility. “Do they intend to bring back the worse of what these things symbolize?”

Yet, for the “New Faithful”, be they religious, clergy, or lay, the meanings of the symbols have changed. These things mark an allegiance with all that the Church hopes for the future while maintaining a healthy respect for our heritage and history. They have become that by which new generations of Catholics take a stand against worldliness and thereby find in them not oppression, but freedom. In these symbols hope is seen, the promise of a strong tomorrow built on a solid history. They have become again visible indictors of our unity.

The world is full of strong symbols beckoning people away from faith. If we intend to win people to Christ and the Church, we need to use what we have at our disposal. One of our assets is our strong symbol system and we need to use it. So while it behooves us to get over fading hang-ups and embrace them, those who employ them anew need to do so with respect and care; for they are powerful.