Luke 5:38
But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.
The Church is often absurdly divided between those called “Progressive” and those called “Traditionalist.” The “Traditionalist” is thought to be the foe of the “Progressive.” But it is the nature of orthodoxy both to conserve Tradition and to progress, as in today’s gospel. This being so, it is often the heterodox who are both “Traditionalist” and “Progressive,” since the former is pining for the Good Old Days while the latter is often simply falling for faddism. Today, we often see this paradox played out with the Holy Father, who is following the logic of the Spirit in the Second Vatican Council and leaving both “Traditionalists” (who want the Old Wine of the pre-conciliar Church) and “Progressives” (who want the Near Beer of watered-down Catholic Faith) covered in confusion as he faithfully drinks and shares the New Wine of the Spirit. Truly creative and loving orthodoxy trumps myopic political categories every time.
