Newman and the Laity

Newman had an enormous respect for the laity.He recalled that during the Arian crisis,many bishops became Arian while the laity kept the Faith.Fr Thwaites used to quote this frequently.It is possible that the powersthat be are going to focus on the social teaching of the Church-not a bad thing-and evade the more difficult areas including Catholic sexual ethics.It is up to the laity to uphold and defend the constant teaching of the Church against the new Arian onslaught.