There is a certain theologian that is quite popular in most Catholic circles. I would not call him a traditionalist, nor a modernist. I will not give his name here. I know of many people who have read his books, and they all say he has helped them understand the Catholic faith better. This truly is the duty of a theologian.
I myself have read a few of his books, and I have read things he has posted online for a while now. Here is the rub: I have never really appreciated his writings. It is not a personal thing, it is entirely theological. No, he has never espoused heresy to my knowledge. The theological issue that I find problematic is the fact that I have never read anything by him that I would consider deep or profound. His writings are always extremely basic, even to the point of being simplistic.
In fact, much of what he writes is so simple that it appears to be written for children rather than adults (yet his books and internet posts never say that is the case). Someone once told me that his ministry was to make things clear for those who had a hard time understanding theology. I could understand that if he were writing about deep concepts and seeking to make them clear. That is not, however, what is printed. He writes about basic concepts in a simplistic manner.
This is not written to insult the man, but rather to point out two things. First, we truly are a society of people with weak faith. There are not only numerous heresies that Catholics have fallen into today, but we also have "dumbed-down" our faith that is accurate until someone who is merely pointing out basic concepts is considered "a wonderful theologian". Secondly, if the theologian is going to do all the work of a theologian then he will need to move people beyond the simple basics (even the Scriptures say we must move beyond "childish things").
We, as people of faith, need to work towards greater maturity. This means that we cannot be satisfied with what we were taught at seven years old, when we are fifty-seven years old. Yes, truth is always truth, but if we settle in to being content with the message of, "be good", in everything we read, then our spirits will be stunted in their growth. The author of the New Testament book of Hebrews said "let us move on to maturity" in our faith.
Is that how we see our faith journey? Are we always moving towards greater maturity? Have we stumbled and gotten stuck in the basics, or stopped learning because we do not want to be challenged to work harder in our faith? The earliest testimony about Christ was "Jesus is Lord" (and many died for saying that), but eventually we needed the Nicene Creed, because we cannot remain in elementary school our entire lives.
If we can gain something good from a theologian who communicates the faith clearly, then we can praise God for that. Let us, however, make sure that we are not settling in to the easy stuff. God wants us to move to a spiritual maturity, and that means that we cannot become spiritually stagnant. Examine your faith and ask the simple question of whether you are truly growing in the faith or have you settled in and become "comfortable" where you are at, and do not want to grow up in Christ?