Tim Russert

It's been kind of amazing to hear the glowing descriptions of Tim Russert's life and faith, and the way he kept his work and family life in balance. I always found him to be someone I enjoyed watching, both for his insightful, probing questions and for his refreshing lack of grandstanding. For the masses who didn't know him personally, a picture is emerging of someone whose faith was very important to him, and as much as it could in his position, it found its way into his work in some subtle and surprising ways. Newsweek is running an article by an Anglican friend of his whom he convinced to debate Christopher Hitchens on the air, even though he doesn't typically engage in debates (and was concerned that Hitchens would eat his lunch).

I heard a suggestion today that too much is being made of Tim Russert's faith, because it wasn't front & center in his work (in terms of content choices, presumably meaning he should have stuck with Catholic themes or somehow consistently identified himself as a Catholic on the air). I don't think that's a reasonable test to apply to someone; there is no moral imperative that a person who is a journalist by trade be a "Catholic" journalist, meaning that he only works in Catholic media or does stories with a Catholic theme. That wouldn't be any more reasonable than expecting someone to be a "Catholic" doctor, or lawyer, or mechanic. It quickly becomes an artificial distinction. We're called to bring our principles and a well-formed conscience into the workplace, no matter what we do. That's going to mean that our values and our choices should reflect Catholic teaching and values; it doesn't mean that we have to build a separate Catholic sub-culture.

A Catholic surgeon doesn't need to insist on praying with his patients or only operating on Christians to live out his faith though his work; he does it by using his skills to save lives, by making choices consistent with a Catholic world view, and by treating colleagues and patients with respect. A Catholic attorney doesn't have to only work on Church related business or restrict himself to civil liberties cases. Living his faith might mean that he turns down certain kinds of cases or restricts himself to potentially less lucrative areas of the law in order to avoid ethical dilemmas. In my case, there are radio formats in which I wouldn't work, certain kinds of commercial reads I wouldn't do, etc., were I to go back to a secular format. It's very challenging to live one's faith in a secular setting, but I also think it's were a person can often do the most good.

I choose to work in Catholic media because I feel it's where I can do the most good, and where I've had the best opportunities to talk about things that are important to me. It doesn't mean I couldn't work in a secular talk format, or go back to my roots in music radio. If I did make that kind of choice, it would be incumbent upon me to make sure that the station, format, and subject matter I chose lined up with Catholic teaching. It doesn't make one choice right and another wrong.

The remarkable thing about Tim Russert was that he lived a life that embraced his faith, and won the respect of a lot of people who didn't share his views. He worked at the highest level of an industry that often spurns and ridicules people of faith. He presided over "Meet the Press" for 20 years, and was NBC's Washington Bureau Chief. The many glowing accounts of his life have included accolades from a bishop or two, as well as news people and politicians. They respected his work and appreciated his ethics and morality. In a culture growing increasingly hostile to faith in any form, that's pretty remarkable.