It would be an understatement to say that much of the news coming out of the Catholic Church lately hasn't been good. Pedophilia, cover-ups and lawsuits dominate the headlines, causing concerns about a drop-off in financial contributions, not to mention an image damaged perhaps beyond repair. But the news from Catholic book publishing is surprisingly positive—not just in spite of the sex abuse scandal, but sometimes because of it. A whole new category of post-scandal reform books has emerged, while a growing number of Catholics seem drawn back to their faith's roots during these difficult times. Overall, publishers say they are optimistic about the Catholic market, and they have the sales figures to justify that optimism. With some 60 million Americans claiming the Catholic faith, many publishers have found that staying true to their niche not only has helped them navigate the tricky economic present, but also bodes well for the future.
Beyond Issue Fatigue
That Catholics are tired of reading about pedophilia brings near-unanimous agreement. Issue fatigue has set in, even as new allegations of abuse and cover-up are reported almost daily. Nor are Joe and Jane Pew-sitter interested in blame and one-issue analysis. Liberals have already read and agree with Garry Wills, who blames the conservative hierarchy; conservatives side with George Weigel, who finds fault with liberal laity. Those in the middle are hungry for context, so it's not surprising that most of the new post-sex-abuse books focus on reform and broader issues. In fact, almost all the publishers who spoke with PW went out of their way to emphasize that their books are not really related to the crisis or were started long before the latest rash of revelations.
"People don't want to pay $25 to read about priests abusing children. What people want to read about is, where do we go from here," said John Louden, executive editor at Harper San Francisco. He characterized today's Catholic readers as sophisticated but also weary; they're looking for something hopeful and optimistic without being naïve. Louden believes David Gibson hits that tone in The Coming Catholic Church (HSF, June), which examines the "revolution from below" in the U.S. church.
Author Peter Steinfels also sees an underlying "quiet crisis" getting louder. "The sex abuse crisis did not change the course of American Catholicism, it accelerated the course it was already on," said the New York Times columnist. "It made the questions and problems all the more urgent." His A People Adrift (Simon & Schuster, May) offers a blueprint for the future while attributing the current church climate to tension between pre— and post—Vatican II Catholics and between ordained and lay leaders.
The emergence of the laity and their role in church leadership is a hot topic. The Liturgical Press sees it as a growing niche, with two fall releases on the subject: By What Authority by Rich Gaillardetz and Ordering the Baptismal Priesthood, an anthology by 10 leading theologians. "I think there is a market for books on reform; in fact, I would say the market was under way before the sex abuse crisis," said press director Peter Dwyer. "People want to take the next step and say, 'What does this mean? Where do we go from here?'"
Also looking at the issue of lay leadership and influence is Liberation of the Laity by Paul Lakeland (Continuum, March). Although the sex abuse crisis didn't prompt the book, it did prime the audience, said senior editor Frank Oveis. "People feel galvanized enough to say, 'Look, we need change.'" Catholics, Oveis believes, fall into one of three categories: those who don't read religion books at all, those interested primarily in personal spirituality and those focused on structural issues. The third group, he said, is sizeable. "A few years ago it used to be restricted to what you might call 'professional agitators.' But what we've seen in reaction to the scandals is that, at least for awhile, a broader emerging group is interested in what reforms are possible."
A related issue that's moved to the front burner, thanks in part to the sex abuse crisis and its coverage in the media, is anti-Catholicism, referred to as "the last acceptable prejudice" in the subtitles of two books, both released in May. Philip Jenkins insists that hatred against Catholics is alive and well in The New Anti-Catholicism (Oxford), while Mark Massa makes a more nuanced argument in Anti-Catholicism in America (Crossroad). Oxford executive editor Cynthia Read said she expects Jenkins's book to attract Catholic readers as well as "people in public discourse or concerned about religious intolerance."
While some Catholic publishers have shunned books related to the crisis altogether, they insist it isn't out of fear of criticizing the church or avoidance of the issue. The topic's news value has attracted the attention of larger, secular houses, making it more difficult for smaller religion presses to compete for big-name authors. But others believe the market just isn't there, or they want to do books that have more staying power and can perform well on the backlist. Joe Durepos, senior acquisitions editor at Loyola Press, said, "Much of what's going on is old news, and the church is already moving forward."
One Catholic publisher even sees an upside to the crisis. "It has certainly rocked people's faith. At the same time, something beautiful has emerged from it," said Jeremy Langford, editorial director of Sheed & Ward. "People are struggling to justify their faith and wondering why they are a part of this [church]. So they are even more aggressively wanting to know about their faith and what the core of it is. People are, 'What does it really mean to be Catholic?'"
No Identity Crisis Here
Individual Catholics aren't the only ones wrestling with their Catholic identity. Catholic publishers also have done some soul-searching and decided that wholeheartedly embracing their Catholic character has been good for business. Although they certainly aren't responsible for the sex abuse crisis, conventional wisdom assumes Catholic publishers must be taking a financial hit from it. But despite the reported decreased donations to the church because of the scandal—not to mention the general economic downturn—most Catholic houses say their sales, especially to parishes, have held steady.
"This is the advantage of being a niche publisher," said Crossroad executive manager John Jones. "We were not as vulnerable to the downturn." While admitting that 2001 was "a very difficult year for everyone," Jones said Crossroad has stayed afloat by sticking with its academic line while realistically reaching out to wider trade markets with some of its titles. Like many smaller religion publishers, Crossroad has learned that achieving massive trade success has been harder than merely getting their products on the shelves at Borders or Barnes & Noble.
The lesson, Jones and others say, is not to water down Catholic books. "When you go into the trade you have to be who you are. You can't think in terms of trade or Catholic," he said. "We went in with books that had a wider readership but were also clearly Catholic."
Others have little interest in the general trade. "We have very good sales to the institutional market—parishes, retreat centers, schools—and we're seeing an increase of individual sales on our Web site," said Lisa Biedenbach, executive director at St. Anthony Messenger Press. "We continue to see a great need for books that help people determine what Catholic identity is."
Twenty-Third Publications also is focusing on its niche of catechetical and pastoral books, such as training manuals for lectors and eucharistic ministers, prayer books for teachers, and marriage and baptism preparation guides. Churches buy in bulk and rarely return. "In our experience, the sex abuse scandal hasn't affected sales from parishes," said publisher Gwen Costello. Catholic bookstores are another story. "They are clearly struggling," she said. "Our strength is our parish market, although it takes a lot more effort to keep the same level."
The Liturgical Press also has made successful forays into the trade while still emphasizing its academic and pastoral/professional lines. "For us trade distribution is an important additional channel, but parishes are our primary customers," said Dwyer. Of its annual list of 75 titles, about a dozen have trade potential, he said.
Likewise, Ave Maria Press has put a new emphasis on its institutional products, such as high school texts, sacramental preparation and parish ministry materials. "We see our trade books—spirituality, family life, pastoral care—as complimentary to this effort," said publisher Frank Cunningham. Ave Maria's separate trade imprint, Sorin Books, has seen success with parenting titles such as A Teen's Game Plan for Life by former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz (22,000 copies sold in eight months) and with popular spirituality books.
Spirituality also has been a successful trade niche for Orbis, although publisher Michael Leach said he no longer intentionally aims for crossover books. "If I do a very good book for my core market, it's going to reach a wider market because there's interest in things Catholic and in things spiritual," said Leach, adding that Orbis has seen "good numbers" with the chains and Amazon. "We're doing better than ever in our 20 years. We're selling more books, we know what our vision is and we've become a brand name."
Orbis has maintained an emphasis on the theological/academic market, while also trying to reach out to post—college age Catholics through a new program aimed at the young adult audience. "We've been able to build up a stable of young authors, but we've not yet built up a market," said Leach. "It's very hard to reach young adults directly."
Fresh Twists on Tradition
One way to reach the next generation of Catholics, many publishers have figured out, is by offering books that present the basics of the spiritual tradition—things they might have missed during high school catechism class—with a hip, fresh spin. In fact, the buzzword for any successful Catholic spirituality book these days is "tradition."
Despite the seeming glut of spirituality titles, interest has not died down, publishers report. But today's Catholic seekers want more than watered-down, feel-good pabulum. Nor are they content to merely memorize the catechism. That's why savvy publishers are packaging gems from the 2,000-year-old Catholic tradition—things like the rosary, saints and other popular devotions—in a way that makes them seem new to Catholics of the third millennium.
"There's definitely a trending backward," said Loyola's Durepos. "Everyone was looking forward. Now we're looking backward. The challenge is to do that with fresh eyes." Durepos compares Catholic publishers to Indiana Jones—"finding things of great value from the past to bring them to our audience today," he said, citing Bert Ghezzi's forthcoming The Sign (spring 2004), about the sign of the cross, as an example. "As Catholic publishers, we're custodians of the tradition."
Leach of Orbis has been singing this tune for years. "The deposit of faith has a wealth of spiritual wisdom that has hardly been touched," he said. "The key is finding fresh ways of speaking about it. The language and metaphors have to be new and fresh."
One of those fresh voices, Leach said, is Robert Barron, a Catholic priest with a penchant for "taking Christianity and writing about it in a new way that's totally Catholic." His The Strangest Way (2002) has been successful for Orbis, as has Edwina Gateley's Soul Sisters (2002), which uses women from Scripture as archetypes for women today.
Women are a popular theme in this whole revival of tradition. Books on women saints, women in scripture and women mystics abound. The decades-long explosion of feminist reinterpretation of the tradition continues, said Oveis of Continuum, which releases Truly Our Sister, Elizabeth Johnson's take on Mary, in May. But, said Oveis , "There are more publishers and would-be writers than there is a market," he said. "[These books] have pretty much reached everybody who's interested in that message."
Still, the mining of tradition has only just begun, and Catholic houses aren't the only ones playing Indiana Jones. "A common thread though all the Catholic books we're doing is a strong connection to tradition," said Doubleday's executive editor Trace Murphy. From mass market and gift editions of the Catechism of the Catholic Church to bestsellers by convert-apologist Scott Hahn, Doubleday's Catholic line has tradition written all over it. Hahn's The Lamb's Supper (1999), with 150,000 in print, is being followed by Lord, Have Mercy (March) about Confession. Other Doubleday authors are reexamining such aspects of Catholic tradition such as The New Stations of the Cross (Image, Jan.) by Megan McKenna and the sacraments (Bert Ghezzi's Sacred Passages, July).
"Every generation has to make these things their own," said Murphy, adding that this generation is hungry for information. He said, "People want to be informed about the faith. Books are a great way to find out about that."
Slant to the Right?
But does this tradition trend have Catholic publishing looking not only backward but rightward? With the success of authors such as Hahn, Weigel and Patrick Madrid (Surprised by Truth ), it seems like conservative or traditional authors are selling lots of books. But those willing to speculate disagree about whether the trend will continue.
"I do see more traditional books having a strong market. In a very uncertain world, for some people the Catholic Church is a kind of anchor of certainty," said HSF's Louden, who added that he's "definitely open to it."
Leach of Orbis also sees a "sizable" market for conservative books. "They give comfort and reassurance to people," said Leach. "But I don't think they're going to continue. As we get a new generation we need to put the wine into new wineskins."
Even Sophia Institute Press, originally founded to publish classics for an older, traditional audience, has had to shift its focus. "That audience has faded away," said publisher John Barger. "They've gotten old and don't read much." But Barger distinguishes between conservative Catholics—who want to go back to a pre—Vatican II church—and those who are orthodox. "There's a new generation of people who are faithful to the teachings of the church but are not trying to reconstitute a 1950s Catholicism," he said. "These people are not hungry for the old ways. They're hungry for what's true."
In the end, the labels "liberal" and "conservative" may no longer work when describing contemporary Catholics. Crossroad's Jones finds that authors under 40 fit neither category. "These younger authors don't frame the questions the same way people did 30 years ago," he said, holding up as an example new author Pia De Solemi, whose Different and Equal (fall 2004) will present a Catholic feminism that fits with Aquinas's (and Pope John Paul II's) teaching about the complementarity of men and women.
As liberals begin to see the value of tradition and conservatives give up trying to go back to a pre—Vatican II church, book publishers are keeping their fingers on the pulse for trends that might appeal to the broadest cross-section of Catholics. So predicted Dwyer of Liturgical Press. "The marketplace is mediating a moderation between extremes of left and right," he said. "It's moving both extremes toward the center."
