Trying Times: Essays on Catholic Higher Education in the 20th Century (review)

Trying Times: Essays on Catholic Higher Education in the 20th Century. Edited by William M. Shea with Daniel Van Slyke. [South Florida-Rochester-Saint Louis Studies on Religion and the Social Order.] (Atlanta: Scholars Press. 1999. Pp. xx, 264. $39.95.)

This volume brings together nine essays written for a year-long seminar and a conference funded by the Lilly Foundation and held at Saint Louis University during the 1996-97 academic year. Each deals with a different question in the recent history of Catholic higher education in the United States, ranging from legal issues to philosophical explorations of its evolving role and status in American society. It is not a book for readers new to the subject, although few chapters assume much prior knowledge and the caliber of writing is generally good. Rather, it seems intended for specialists, or readers familiar with the growing body of work on religion and higher education.

As often is the case in books of this type, the quality of the essays is variable, and there is little apparent method in their sequence of presentation. Each is concerned with a discrete subject, and they make no reference to one another. Consequently, there is little sense of dialogue and exchange between the authors, even though it is clear that their views on certain issues are quite different. While the book's introduction does provide a commentary on the topics covered, the opportunity for a wider and perhaps livelier discussion is left unfulfilled.

Some of the essays provide detailed accounts of events not available in more general histories. This is the case with Charles Wilson's description of legal cases that have shaped federal policies toward Catholic and other religiously affiliated institutions. Other essays have a somewhat narrower focus. Paul J. Shore looks at the story of Father Claude Heithaus, an early critic of racial discrimination at Saint Louis University, who was silenced by his superiors. Along the same lines, Michael D. Barber, S.J., examines the case of Teilhard de Chardin, who was removed from a teaching post and sent to China for suggesting that he supported the theory of evolution. Regarding scholarship on Catholic campuses, Patrick W. Carey examines the evolution of theology and religious studies programs, and William M. Shea discusses the Macelwane Report on Jesuit scholarship in the 1930's.

Other chapters tackle broader themes, with varying degrees of success. Alice Gallin, for instance, offers thoughtful reflections on the changing religious character of Catholic institutions, suggesting they will not follow in the footsteps of formerly Protestant institutions that today are secular. This essay is preceded by Richard T. Hughes's account of the changing religious atmosphere on selected Protestant (evangelical) campuses, and together they offer a telling account of religion in contemporary higher education. Together, they complement the argument by William Rehg, S.J., who maintains that Catholic institutions still can ensure that a religious perspective is presented, amidst other views, in the great debates of the age. All three authors recognize that the days of an uncomplicated, unified religious identity are long gone; pluralism is the watchword now, and Catholic teachings must stand scrutiny along with other ideas.

The weakest essay in the book is by James Hitchcock, a thinly veiled lament for the lost days when Catholic universities were bound by tradition and Neo-Scholastic orthodoxy. He accuses these institutions of slavishly following academic fashion and catering to the whims of students, including ever larger numbers of non-Catholics. One wonders whether Hitchcock would have agreed with the silencing of Father Heithaus at Saint Louis more than fifty years ago. Was it the price of tradition preserved? If not, how does one keep the multitudinous forces of modernity at bay? Hitchcock offers few answers to such questions, nor does he carefully examine the historical record for roads not taken.

Unfortunately, the varied strands of this book never come together...