ACMICA – Unashamedly Cardijn

Peter Maher*
October 2003

I have just returned from the national chaplains conference in Adelaide. Adelaide has been the centre of support in Australia for Cardinal Joseph Cardijn’s dream – the Young Christian Workers (YCW). Visiting this city led me to reflect on the place of the Cardijn movements in Australia. Cardijn was a major figure in the development of the lay movements in the 20th century Catholic church. His methodology of “see, judge and act”, known sometimes as reflection and action method was immortalised in Pacem in Terris, Pope John XXIII’s social encyclical.

Cardijn’s great contribution was the YCW movement. He saw that the workers would find their faith relevant if it related more to their struggle for justice in their experience of work and life. Thus he developed the simple methodology of reflection on experience through a theological/faith lens to bring about effective action for change so that the gospel could be an effective tool of personal and social transformation.

My visit to Adelaide reminded me that the Cardijn movements are being marginalised in the church today. There are a number of forces that are contributing to this. The declining presence of young people in the church, the failure to engage young people in reflection and action, and limited funding available to these movements are some forces. It led me to reflect on the importance and role of ACMICA in maintaining the Cardijn tradition in the Australian Catholic church.

ACMCIA needs to look beyond the mere maintenance of an historic tradition. What would Cardijn see as the way of engaging culture and faith in today’s complex world? We might dream of a prophetic approach that carries the Cardijn methodology into the 21st century. I wonder if the issues that Cardijn would recognise like peace, worker rights, ecology, economic and social justice might be augmented in our time by issues such as cultural diversity, ecumenical and interfaith relations, indigenous reconciliation, terrorism, war and international relations, development and international trade, the comodification of peoples, and the marginalisation of the poor, women and those with different sexual preferences. We might also choose to reflect on the way the church is more concerned with self-preservation than with serving the needs of those who suffer and experience oppression.

Our future as church is to be found in a spirit of gospel abandonment, while holding deeply to methods of gospel living that encourage critical thinking, deep analysis, careful study, theological reflection and courageous action. This we call the Cardijn method and ACMICA is firmly in this school. What does this call us to do now?

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