Culturally Catholic

Reflection for December 7, 2025 — The Second Sunday of Advent
In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, we learn about John the Baptist preaching and baptizing people in the desert. He encounters Pharisees and Sadducees and warns them to produce “good fruit.” Find the daily reading here.

Catholic culture is so thick, you could spread it on a scone. Or a baguette. Or a slice of ciabatta bread. Or naan (Wait, do you put butter on naan? I would, because I’m Midwestern, but I sense that this is, perhaps, incorrect).

Okay, maybe my comparison is imperfect, but what I’m saying is this: Catholic culture is delicious, it’s versatile, and it’s nourishing. It’s the same everywhere, even though it also looks and feels totally unique in every place. The Day of the Dead in Mexico, Simbang Gabi in the Philippines, St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland, Meskel in Ethiopia, Semana Santa processions in Spain: these are all touchstones of Catholic culture.

It is so, so beautiful to be culturally Catholic. But today, when I hear John the Baptist’s words to the Pharisees and the Sadducees, I am reminded that Catholicism is so much more than just cultural expression.

The Pharisees and Sadducees were loyal sons of Abraham and scrupulous observers of the law of Moses. Their culture, you could say, was strong. But John the Baptist is telling them — and he’s telling us — that culture isn’t enough.

Actions, rituals, traditions, sentiments, nostalgia — none of it matters unless it bears the fruit of a transformed heart.

It’s something to remember, especially as we approach Christmas, a time when culture and cultural rituals become so (beautifully) prominent. In the cultural practice of Christmas, we are like the Wise Men approaching the manger, bearing our gifts. But how terrible would it have been if the wise men had hurried away, their culture expressed, their ritual complete, and gone back to the world unchanged by the gaze of the Infant?

So be culturally Catholic. Bring these gifts to the Christ Child — but linger there. Reflect. And then when you return to the world, you will bring Catholic culture with you.

©LPi