Weigel’s Lenten Modernism: The ‘Adventure’ of Apostasy Disguised as Spirituality
Introduction: A Summary of the Article’s Modernist Lenten Program
The cited article, published on the National Catholic Register portal on March 18, 2026, presents a commentary by George Weigel on three “great Lenten themes” for the contemporary period. Weigel, identified as a distinguished senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, frames Lent’s purpose as preparing for Easter’s glory through: 1) an “annual catechumenate” linked to the post-Vatican II liturgical reform’s retrieval of the catechumenate; 2) what Pope Benedict XVI termed “the adventure of God, the greatness of what he has done for us,” described as God “coming out from himself” in creation, covenant, Incarnation, and Spirit; and 3) “deepening friendship with Christ,” derived from Lenten Gospel readings. The article promotes Weigel’s book, *Roman Pilgrimage*, as an aid to experience Lenten “architectural and aesthetic grandeur.” The underlying thesis is that the post-conciliar Church’s liturgical and spiritual renewal provides a superior, more engaging framework for Lent than previous traditions. This analysis will demonstrate that Weigel’s themes are not merely superficial updates but are intrinsic expressions of the theological and spiritual bankruptcy of the post-1958 “church,” constituting a radical departure from integral Catholic doctrine and a poisoning of the Lenten season with naturalistic, humanistic, and modernist errors.
