We are in the midst of a civilizational crisis, perhaps the worst in the history of Christendom. But this time, we are not faced with plagues or wars that threaten our bodies. We are in danger of losing the soul of our civilization.
The crisis is threefold: it is within the Church, within the world, and the mode by which we pass down the Great Tradition.
First, in the Church—multiple generations of poor catechesis and faithlessness has led to pervasive ignorance of, indifference toward, and sometimes outright rejection of the Great Tradition among Catholics..
Second, in the world—the Great Tradition has virtually disappeared from the vast majority of modern education programs. Niche options are available to those who can afford it. But multiple generations have now been systematically robbed of their heritage.
Third, and finally, the Great Tradition is often contained in books that remain, as they have for millennia, bare text on a page. They lack beauty, and often fail to explain and provide context for their content, leaving uninformed modern readers in the dark. But in a time when formerly Christian societies have gone through a media revolution, bare text with no explanations, no context, and no beauty, is no longer captivating to a culture that has become irreversibly digital, electronic, and visual.
All of this has led to the practical death of the Great Tradition, and the result is multiple generations both in the Church and the world that have been orphaned from their heritage. The resulting misery and alienation is all around us. Our civilization retains a few remnants of the old “body” of Christendom, but it is quickly losing its soul, and with it its desire to go on.
