catholicsphere

“Thirty-three percent of respondents to an online poll at Beliefnet.com … said Winfrey has had “a more profound impact” on their spiritual lives than their clergypersons.”

“Rev. John Cusick, the straight-talking director of young adult ministries for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago and a preaching priest-in-residence at Old St. Pat’s” had this to say in the article:

“Oprah has the most popular talk show in America — why wouldn’t she be a tremendous influence?” Cusick said when I mentioned the Beliefnet poll. “It makes all kind of sense to me. I’m not thrilled with it, but I think Oprah is quite level-headed. Look at what she did after Hurricane Katrina. In many ways she was more of a moral voice around what was happening in New Orleans than any voice I heard. Any politician. Anyone. I mean, she was outraged at the [government's] response. She did a whole show about it.

“What she’s doing is helping people to trigger the spiritual self that every one of us has. And then people can move on to say, ‘What am I going to do with this? … I somehow need to feed this spiritual hunger that I’m beginning to experience,” he said. “My job is to try to offer that answer.”

I think what Fr. John has said here at the end is very important. What Oprah (and others) wake up in the spirits of people is not enough to sustain them. They will eventually find they need something more, something “real” … and that is where we need to direct them to the fullness of truth of the living God.