A few months ago, I started to experience some persistent soreness in my hips, knees and ankles. It was nothing serious, but enough to notice. I assumed this was simply part of getting older.
I also jog nearly every morning, rotating the same two pairs of running shoes for the last five years. I estimate that each pair has about 2,500 miles on it. That’s way too many, but the shoes work just fine! And I like what’s familiar. And shoes are expensive.
But my very durable, very comfortable shoes recently started to show their age. The soles were worn smooth. Small holes and rips on the tops and sides started to expand.
Finally, a few weeks ago, I had to give in and buy new running shoes. The first time I wore them, there was so much cushion in the soles that I felt like I was running a foot off the ground. I nearly lost my balance. And another funny thing happened: After only three days, the soreness in my joints was entirely gone.
Sometimes, change is good. Often, we need to make the simplest and most obvious change in order to get better results, but we still resist it. We resist because of the comfort of habit, an obsession with “what worked before,” pride or just plain apathy.
I notice this attitude of resistance a lot in myself. I also notice it in our parishes and our diocese, particularly when there is new leadership.
Why do we lose our minds over the color of paint on the wall, the arrangement of furniture in the sanctuary, the choice of music, the use of new scheduling software, the style of vestment the priest is wearing and so on? None of these things are trivial, and they should be carefully considered. But they all need to change sometimes.
Liturgical renewal is perpetual, even as it happens in continuity with the great ecclesial tradition of the Church.
Take, for example, the National Eucharistic Revival. It seeks to respond to the needs of the Church today by putting the Eucharist at the center of all aspects of Christian life. This will require some change.
Consider also the Synod on Synodality, which calls for collaborative leadership in the Church to include the gifts of both clergy and laity. It will require some change.
To label either of these as “conservative” or “progressive” is meaningless. What they share is a common hope: that good can result from doing things differently.
Clinging to “what worked before” is poison to any organization that wants to thrive. It is as stubborn as wearing out an old pair of sneakers, and it will cause unnecessary aches and pains.
Seasoned readers might remark that my joint stiffness will eventually return. There will be an age at which new shoes won’t fix it. When that happens, I will need to find some new solution or adjustment or acceptance.
May we always be open to change that leads us ever closer to holiness.
