[J.] Enoch Powell (1912-1998),
No Easy Answers (London: Sheldon Press, 1973), p. 116:
From pulpits throughout the land they [the Christian laity] hear homilies on trade unions and industrial
relations, on housing, on economics and productivity, on politics and trade—all of them subjects in which the clergy as such have no special competence and about which in
consequence many of those whom they address understand
a great deal more than they do. 'Why?' ask the laity.
'Surely it is to avoid having to talk to us about that which is the sole reason and justification for their
calling: the doctrine and sacraments of the Church. It is their escapism.' This more and more fervent desire of the clergy to be heard talking about, and concerning themselves in, the business of the hour—and incidentally, in doing so, to be seen wearing the fashionable clothing of the hour—is the symptom of a flight from their own
business.
Id., p. 118:
More and more the Church—and not, so far as I see, only
in England—has
tried
to be heard by saying and doing
anything and everything but what
it alone can say and do.
Not surprisingly,
it is heard less and less. Is
it too late for
it to be itself again?
Related post:
Politics and the Pulpit.