Forgive us if we pack the streets around Ed Sullivan Theatre next spring, searching the sky for plumes of white smoke. True, the transition from David Letterman to Stephen Colbert hardly calls for a conclave, and the future of the Late Show has little to do with the life of the Church worldwide. Even so, it feels like a momentous occasion for Catholics, who despite constituting the largest religious body in the country, usually search in vain for signs of communion in popular culture (that second-largest religious body—lapsed Catholics—offers a more populous field of celebrity ambassadors).
It remains to be seen, of course, how much of Colbert’s current character will transfer to his new position: whether there will be any on-air recitations of the Nicene Creed, or apologies for the doctrine of creation ex nihilo, or recurring appearances by Fr. James Martin, S.J. We would do well not to set our expectations too high. But if it would be misguided to expect an evangelization of the Late Night airwaves, it would be equally foolish to ignore what all the speculation along such lines suggests—that Stephen Colbert, even before his CBS debut, is the public face of progressive Catholicism in our eccentric chapter of American history.
Read Full Article »