On July 27, Bishop Robert Barron was awarded the Josef Pieper Prize in Münster, Germany, joining the ranks of Rémi Brague and Charles Taylor. The prize is given “for exemplary publications and work on the Christian idea of man,” and Barron’s Word on Fire project clearly reflects that standard. Yet the moment Barron was announced as the next prize winner, protests broke out in Münster; “F**k USA” and “F**k Trump” were spray-painted on a local historic church. Critics, including the local youth organization of the Green party, accused the bishop of being a Trump supporter and thus an extremist. More shockingly, the Catholic theological faculty at the University of Münster accused Barron of standing for “a kind of Catholicism that excludes people like LGBTQ Catholics or migrants,” and of supporting “authoritarianism in the U.S.” and elsewhere. With academics like these, what could possibly go wrong with the formation of seminarians and other theology students?
In our time, and especially in Germany, attempts at finding the middle ground, at being centered or balanced—qualities that Robert Barron embodies academically and temperamentally—are deemed irresponsible at best and dangerous at worst. Ours is a world of parties and polarization, such that bridge-building is regarded with suspicion. To work with the other side is to “deal with the devil.” This is the case even within the German Church—and has been since Vatican II and its unintended consequences. I sympathize with Pope Leo XIV, whose work as pontiff has barely even begun.
The Church needs to recover a culture of debate. In order to get there, we need reconciliation. We need depolarization. In other words, we need people like Robert Barron, who reminds us that the Church, the bride of Christ, is an institution with a mission, not to be viewed through the lens of power or politics. We must beware of theological and philosophical narcissism, clothed in the guise of “tradition” or “progress.” In the Church, God must be at the center, not us—for it is God who draws us, and at times even drags us, beyond ourselves, out of ourselves, toward himself who is holy, transcendent. That is what true liberation, freedom, forgiveness, and salvation mean.
The ever-popular debates about the liturgy, though not always fruitful, nevertheless belong at the heart of the Church, much more so than secular politics. We must move away from the belief that salvation is contingent on the type of liturgy one attends. We must also refrain from overburdening our bishops, as if they alone could and should be responsible for fixing everything. True synodality requires structured collaboration aimed at greater fidelity and more effective mission, which can only be realized together. For the bishops and their diocesan offices (especially well-funded dioceses), this will mean letting go of many secondary projects and activities and focusing on the primary mission: support, formation, supervision, education, and inspiration for the life and mission of parishes, pastors, and missionaries. Evangelization happens at the grassroots level, but also through the internet, as Barron has demonstrated for years.
Church renewal is well underway, and bishops like Robert Barron are leading the charge. The protests against him reveal just how far behind the German Church is in this regard, still entrenched in its own, largely imagined version of Christendom that no longer exists. Yet there are signs of renewal: people like Bishop Stefan Oster of Passau, who praised and defended Barron. The seeds are there, though they have yet to adequately bloom. For now, the German Church largely remains alienated from the renewal and ressourcement that Barron represents.
Not even the late Pope Francis was able to make much headway against the Germanic tide of self-referential theologizing that continues to drown its institutions. In recent years, the Holy See has ignored the German Church to a remarkable degree. I’m beginning to wonder if this was a strategic choice. I do suspect, however, that the cumulative influence of all German bishops on the global Church is much smaller than the reach of Robert Barron. It is clear that Barron has reflected more deeply on the challenges of evangelizing in the contemporary world, and has demonstrated greater boldness in proclaiming the gospel. Despite all its financial resources and theological firepower, the German Church has achieved very little when it comes to actual evangelization. It is incapable of exiting its ecclesiastical echo chambers and ivory towers.
The fact is, Church renewal is happening, regardless of whether the German hierarchy is on board. It’s time for the German bishops to wake up. Evangelization is not a top-down, centralist enterprise, something that thrives on technocratic governance or that consists in the execution of diocesan or Vatican programs. Instead, each ministry and hierarchical level—bishops, priests, laypeople—must do their part. The execution need not be perfect; the Holy Spirit will guide. But given that we are all fallen creatures and prone to error and sin, the effort will need oversight, boundaries, purification—and it is here where the hierarchy and magisterium step in. This will entail a lot of work, as well as risk, but we must not be afraid of either.
Josef Pieper anticipated this moment of Church renewal. At present, it shows a great deal of promise, providing clarity and encouragement. If it receives good, generous, discerning, and confident hierarchical accompaniment and oversight, chances are it will flourish and bear fruit far beyond our expectations.
But one thing is also clear: The renewal arising in the Church is much more traditional than many would have imagined, rooted in the understanding that one can only be truly “apostolic” and “traditional” by remaining faithful and actively proclaiming the gospel. Authentic renewal lies in spreading the good news of our Lord and Savior, not in shaping others to fit our own personal, self-centered vision. Pieper, and Barron as his heir, speak a different language, the language of Christ’s love. That is real progress and real fidelity. The Josef Pieper Foundation was right to award Robert Barron and not bow to worldly pressure.
