The Problem
In his letter to the bishops of the Catholic Church, March 10, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI stated,
In our days, when in vast areas of the world the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel, the overriding priority is to make God present in this world and to show men and women the way to God. Not just any god, but the God who spoke on Sinai; to that God whose face we recognize in a love which presses "to the end" (cf. John 13:1) - in Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. The real problem at this moment of our history is that God is disappearing from the human horizon, and, with the dimming of the light which comes from God, humanity is losing its bearings, with increasingly evident destructive effects. Leading men and women to God, to the God who speaks in the Bible: this is the supreme and fundamental priority of the Church and of the Successor of Peter at the present time.
The Holy Father continued these thoughts when on his apostolic journey to Angola he stated,
Today it is up to you, brothers and sisters . . . to offer the Risen Christ to your fellow citizens . . . Someone may object: "Why not leave them in peace? They have their truth, and we have ours. Let us all try to live in peace, leaving everyone as they are, so they can best be themselves." But if we are convinced and have come to experience that without Christ life lacks something, that something real - indeed, the most real thing of all - is missing, we must also be convinced that we do no injustice to anyone if we present Christ to them and thus grant them the opportunity of finding their truest and most authentic selves, the joy of finding life. Indeed, we must do this. It is our duty to offer everyone this possibility of attaining eternal life.
Today, the Catholic Church is faced with a two-fold problem, we are witnessing not only, as the Holy Father stated in his letter to the Bishops quoted above, the disappearance of God from the human horizon, but also, the inability of those who profess him to communicate their faith to others. Before Catholics can follow the lead of the Pope in becoming a light of Christ to a world in darkness, they must themselves be formed in the knowledge of the Truth which saves.
Our Vision and Mission
In an age when the basic teachings of the Catholic Faith have been neglected and the faithful are in great need of intellectual faith formation, the Institute of Catholic Culture stands as a sign of hope.
Taking our Lord's final command to the Apostles to "make disciples of all nations," as our own, the Institute of Catholic Culture was founded in answer to the Church's call for a "New Evangelization."
To this end, the Institute hosts educational seminars specifically designed to build bridges of understanding, teaching authentic Catholic history, philosophy, and theology as a way of healing the wounds in the Body of Christ, and reaching out to those who seek knowledge of the Truth.
Welcoming some of the most influential teachers of our time, the Institute offers participants an organic formation in the Catholic Faith while providing a social setting where the Faith is not only learned, but lived. All are welcome to join the Institute of Catholic Culture and seek the Truth revealed in our Lord and God, Jesus Christ.
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