And I still do.

Dr. Suess’s delightful I Had Trouble In Getting To Solla Selew is the first book I can remember getting at a bookstore. I was very little (maybe four or five years old), and going to bookstores was not a common occurrence. We had lots of books around the house, mind you, but with three older siblings buying lots of new kid’s books was hardly a priority. So going to the bookstore with my mom (or maybe with both parents, I don’t recall) was a special occasion. What prompted it, I have no idea.

If you’re not familiar with the book, it involves a young fellow who gets thoroughly disgusted with the “troubles” lurking around his home, troubles that bite him or sting him or trip him and that won’t leave him alone. He hears of a wonderful land called Solla Selew, where they never have troubles (or at least very few), and he sets out to find it. And, of course, what he finds are more and more troubles, mostly more serious than the ones at home. And Solla Selew proves to be unattainable. Eventually he buys a big baseball bat and heads for home, resolved that his troubles will have trouble with him.

Some of you might be thinking that our journey from Anglicanism to Catholicism is a quest for the wonderful, magical Solla Selew, that, tired of the troubles currently plaguing the Anglican Communion (on which be God’s blessing) we’ve run away to a place where we think we’ll never have troubles, at least very few. On the contrary. Very much on the contrary.

The same forces that have taken over the leadership of the Episcopal Church and that are tearing the Anglican Communion in two are at work throughout our culture and are certainly present in the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. As Christians of any stripe we can’t hide from them; we have to take our stand for what is right, where ever we find ourselves. I’m sure Jane and I will have ample opportunity to do that in our new home. On top of that there are not enough priests, there are the sex scandals, there are the massive settlements resulting from the sex scandals, there are the laity who aren’t used to the notion of active evangelism, there are all sorts of things to be concerned about.

But seriously, what would you expect from the Catholic Church? It’s full of Catholics! Which is to say, Christians, which is to say people, which is to say sinners. Of course there will be trouble.

Nevertheless, I think Rome is a much better place to stand. In the Episcopal Church, there’s nothing left but a faithful remnant. In the wider Anglican Communion, much of the body is perfectly sound–by weight of numbers, the majority of it. But, as the state of the Church of England and Rowan William’s failure of leadership has shown over the last few years, the Communion has a bad case of heart disease. It’s not clear that the patient can be saved.

Rome, by contrast, has a strong and healthy center in Pope Benedict and the Magisterium. The center can hold; and with Christ’s help it will, even if the extremities are a bit ragged.

One final reflection: for the first time in years I feel like I can invite people to come to church with me. Most of the folks I run into day-to-day, outside of my family, I run into at work. JPL is a big place, and people live all over Southern California, sometimes commuting quite preposterous distances every day. While I’d have gladly invited them to come to St. Luke’s, few live near enough to attend St. Luke’s regularly. And if not St. Luke’s, where could I suggest they go? I certainly didn’t want to direct them to the nearest Episcopal parish, not without knowing which one it was, and quite possibly not even then. Faithful Anglican parishes are scarce here in Southern California. And while it would undoubtedly be better for them to join a Lutheran or Presbyterian or Baptist or non-denominational congregation and come to know Christ than not, it just seemed wrong to say “Jesus loves you and wants you to be baptized and follow Him, but you don’t want to join my Church.”

Jane, I might add, had similar concerns for our children, when it came time for them to head off to college. Where, in general, could we recommend that our kids go to church?

Now, at least, that problem is dealt with. I can wholeheartedly say, “Jesus loves you. Come and be baptized, and follow him. There’s sure to be a Catholic church near you.”

At least, in principle I can say that–actually opening my mouth and saying it to a living, breathing, flesh-and-blood person face to face is harder.