Catholic Multiculturalism: An Oxymoron?

James L. Heft, S. M, Catholic Multiculturalism: An Oxymoron? Introduction When the title of a lecture poses a question, the answer is often apparent only by the end ofthe lecture.1 Allow me to make clear at the outset that I believe and will argue that Catholicism, and more particularly, Catholic universities, bear a special responsibility to foster multiculturalism. That having been said, whv then do some think that Catholicism and multiculturalism might well be mutually exclusive? Well, it is a fact that some prominent Christians and Catholics would appear to be deeply opposed to multiculturalism . Allow me to offer recent examples of three high-profile Christians, two of them prominent Catholics, who do oppose it—or, at least certain forms of it. First, in his most recent book, which has the ominous title, Slouching Toward Gomorrah: Modem Liberalism and American Decline, the legal scholar Robert H. Bork states: Logos 1:3 1997 Catholic Multiculturalism:An Oxymoron? Multiculturalism is a lie, or rather a series of lies: the lie that EuropeanAmerican culture is uniquely oppressive; the lie diat culture has been formed to preserve the dominance of heterosexual white males; and the lie that other cultures are equal to die culture of dieWest. 2 Richard John Neuhaus, a Ludieran pastor who recently converted to Catholicism and is the editor of First Things, a journal dedicated to the role ofreligion in public life, said recently that we're very much involved in a culture war in America. One form is the insurgency of religion and religiously motivated political activism in the public arena. Anodier form, on the odier side, is the celebration ofmulticulturalism , which is basically saying diat diere is no culture—Western or American culture—diat is worthy of our adherence.3 Finally, Cardinal Ratzinger, the Head ofthe Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, that is, the person who, after the Holy Spirit and the pope, bears principal responsibility for ensuring the orthodoxy of the Church's teaching, told a group of eighty bishops last September that relativism, not the theology ofliberation, now posed die central problem to Catholic faith. He said tiiat relativism is "presented as a position defined positively by the concepts of tolerance and knowledge through dialogue and freedom," and adds tiiat "relativism appears to be the philosophical foundation ofdemocracy."4 Taken togetiier, or even separately for that matter, these statements —that multiculturalism is a He, that it claims no culture is worthy of our adherence, and that in those places where it flourishes most, that is, in liberal democracies, relativism seems inevitable— these statements form a severe indictment of die movement. Hence the title of this address appears as a question: Is Catholic multiculturalism an oxymoron? As a question, my title indicates that I don't tiiink Catholicism must oppose multiculturalism, or at least certain forms of it. In fact, I will argue that Catholicism, again, rightly 13 14 Logos understood, is, by necessity, open to all cultures and can be enriched by all cultures, even as it offers its own critique and challenge to those aspects ofvarious cultures it might find it necessary to criticize or to oppose. More specifically, I will offer several reflections on why Catiiolic universities ought to welcome multiculturalism and what they can contribute in a distinctive way to its goals. Finally, I will revisit the statements ofthe three individuals I cited at die beginning of this article. Multiculturalism in the United States Over the years, commentators on American culture have used various words to express the fact tiiat the people of the United States come from many different countries and cultures. Earlier in this century, authors frequently spoke of our cultural pluralism. In the sixties, politicians and religious leaders championed civil rights for minorities, especially for the black population. In the seventies and eighties, the word "minority" often referred to ethnicity and gender. About die same time, the words "diversity" and "multiculturalism " increasingly appeared.5 Though each of these words has been defined in many and sometimes even opposing ways, suffice it here to mention that diversity has frequently meant a commitment to having a variety and even balance of races and genders in a specific workplace, or on...