Until 1994, this generation did not know a universal and reliable catechism. Here lies the foundation. In the Classroom Today, heaven and hell and the saving of one's soul are not central to everything learned by the Catholic student as they ought to be. Students were once told that people expected more of Catholics than of others, that Catholics who gave a good example could bring many people into the Church and gain merit for heaven, and that those who gave scandal had a corresponding debt to pay at the Judgment. The Catholic press too have submitted to this mainstreaming of Catholicism in their obvious efforts to conform with the modern zeitgeist.
Diocesan weeklies published by the local bishop are no exception.
Claiming to be instruments of evangelization to the local church, many are often agents of dissent and misinformation, perpetuating a false ambiguity and insouciance that leaves Catholics in the slump of confusion. Many columnists who appear in diocesan newspapers throughout the country each week write primarily their personal opinions or prejudices. Notre Dame theologian Fr. McBrien's Catholicism , a theology textbook which presents serious misleading statements about Catholic doctrine, calling into question such basics of the faith as the Resurrection. Rather than seeking to educate or form readers in authentic Catholic consciousness, often times these articles serve only to confirm us in our daily routine.