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"An American Catholic Response to the Twentieth Century is an appropriate subtitle, for this book is about
Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, a man very much a symbol of the 20th century. Bishop Sheen, who gained popularity as the host of
"Life Is Worth Living" one of the first regularly aired religious programs in the United States, was also known as a
fierce objector to communism. The book spends half of its 320 pages detailing Bishop Sheen's seemingly one-man war against
the red menace. Bishop Sheen used radio, television and books to denounce communism and promote the ambiguous concept of
Catholic Action. Bishop Sheen "generalized in a philosophical vein, rather than emphasizing pure religious teachings,
because he wanted to appeal to the largest possible audience," author Kathleen Riley writes. Bishop Sheen drew criticism
over speaking in these general terms. After World War II, Bishop Sheen looked for another target to attack. He chose
secularism, a sense of spirituality without God. He spoke out against psychoanalysis, which he thought could lead some
away from the Church. He clarified his view in his book, Peace of Soul. He encouraged people in need to go to
confession, which he called "the key to happiness in the modern world." The book spends little time on Bishop Sheen's
period as the bishop of Rochester, which seems fitting as he retired after only three years. Nor does the author speak of
Bishop Sheen's cause for canonization, which began in 2000. By the end of the book, Bishop Sheen comes across as someone
who best served the Church as a spokesman who used the airwaves to spread the Gospel." --Patrick
J. Buechi in Western New York Catholic, September 2004
Almost 25 years after his death,
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen still plays a role in the life of a Church he served faithfully more than
50 years as priest, bishop, teacher and preacher. His tapes, books and TV programs regularly
appear in bookstores and on cable television. Some people are actively promoting the cause for
his canonization. Ironically, while he was still living, some of them might have been vocal in
protesting Bishop Sheen's theological stance as preacher, teacher of social justice and champion
of the essential message of the Gospel: to preach the "good news" to the alienated. "Saints," Bishop
Sheen once wrote, come in different guises "to break up the monotony of life." He would certainly
qualify for sainthood by that definition!
Kathleen Riley provides a well-researched
study (based on her doctoral dissertation) of the life of Fulton J. Sheen. Her years of graduate
study at Notre Dame University and diligent research in the Sheen Archives in Rochester gave her
the tools and insights to produce a first-rate biography of one of America's most popular and
eloquent Roman Catholic bishops. In successive chapters, Riley demonstrates how this golden-tongued
orator utilized a solid intellectual and spiritual foundation for his engaging approach to the
education of university students and countless Americans of diverse theological backgrounds.
For many, Sheen was the
encouraging voice of the Church during the years of the Depression; a voice of hope during the
years of World War II; a voice of revival and call to conversion in the 1950s; a voice for the
poor of the world in the 1960s; a voice that took on flesh in the three years as Bishop of Rochester;
and a less audible voice of reflection in the years prior to his death in 1979. To understand
better the public Bishop Sheen, Riley demonstrates his innate desire to use his natural talents
for public speaking to make the complexities of philosophy and theology simple. At times he
spoke for effect assuming that his listeners understood fully the underpinnings of his message.
The early chapters of the book describe his training, especially at Louvain, his deserved reputation
as a brilliant Thomistic philosopher in the classrooms of Catholic University and his increasing
output as an author. These well-crafted chapters prepare us to watch Sheen's life unfold naturally
as a teacher and preacher committed to making the "theory" of the classroom something really
"worth living."
For me, Riley's analysis of Sheen's
early academic years gives a perspective of what he was all about, especially when he arrived in
Rochester to test his theology of Church and social justice. His new diocese had little personal
understanding of the man. They knew nothing about him as a philosopher and they only assumed that
he was an able administrator. Hitherto they had listened admiringly to his radio and television
monologues, but naturally with no chance to inquire further from the speaker himself. Riley
gently helps the reader to understand these dynamics.
Even if Sheen had remained a professor
for budding philosophers and theologians, he would have made a significant contribution to the
intellectual life of the Church. His choice to use the pulpits of churches, radio and television
fulfilled an overwhelming need for him to use his intellectual aptitude to help ordinary people
make sense out of their daily lives. The warm smile, the piercing eyes and the handsome demeanor
served him well as a speaker who could embrace an audience as if he had a special message for each
of his listeners.
Riley's compelling biography of Fulton
J. Sheen judiciously guides the reader to a better understanding of who he was. Although a Catholic,
he addressed millions of Americans of many faiths. He spoke; and he was heard.
--Fr. William E. Graf is chair of the religious studies department at Rochester's St. John
Fisher College and pastor of Fairport's Church of the Resurrection. This review appeared in the
Rochester Diocesan newspaper.
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Kathleen L. Riley, a native of Lockport, New York, is an Associate
Professor of History at Ohio Dominican University. She received her B.A. from Nazareth College
of Rochester, and her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. She teaches a variety of
courses in both History and Humanities Programs at Ohio Dominican, including a course on American
Religious History which focuses on Fulton J. Sheen as a major figure in the Post World War II Religious
Revival in the United States. Returning to her native western New York roots during the summer
months, she offers the course in American Religion at Canisius College in Buffalo as well, and
is currently working on a book about her hometown: Lockport: Historic Jewel of the Erie Canal..