Yesterday was the 30th anniversary of the death of Bishop Fulton Sheen, called “the greatest communicator of the twentieth century” by none other than Billy Graham. A special memorial Mass was celebrated in his honor last night at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York:
To a Catholic boy like Tim Dolan, growing up in the heartland when Protestant neighbors still made casual jokes about the “papists” next door, Bishop Fulton J. Sheen rode into town in the 1950s on the new main street of the United States, the television set, like a true-blue American hero.
“He showed the broad American public that the truths of our faith were consonant with the highest values of the society: patriotism, God, family and the struggle against Communism,” said that boy, now known as Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York.
Orthodox. Faithful. Free.
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. . . the unabashed Catholicism of the red cape and crucifix worn by Bishop Sheen during all his broadcasts—though risky in its time—proved that the core beliefs of a Catholic “could be expressed by a person who was well-educated, down to earth and not threatening in the least,” he said.
The article mentions his great “crossover appeal,” which was really the key to his success. I remember hearing how my (very) Protestant grandmother would tune into his program without fail every week; as his shows regularly drew in tens of millions of viewers, there were clearly many more just like her.
Further proof of his broad popularity comes in this great clip that the Anchoress found, from his appearance on a different TV show—What’s My Line? The little touches here are great—his warm reception from the crowd, the way he signs “JMJ” above his name, the panel’s reaction when they discover who they mystery guest is. You can see what a much-beloved figure he was—and why.