Since pope Francis was elected pope, many people have said to me that they have become disillusioned with the Catholic Church, because the pope has changed Church teaching. This is not true and in fact he hasn’t changed any Church teaching. He unnerves people because he has often said things that are open to different interpretation and when asked to clarify what he means, he doesn’t, which is not helpful as it can be confusing.
For example, in a document called Fiducia Supplicans, people think that he has approved gay marriage and that gay marriage can now be blessed by a priest. That is not what it says. The document says that a priest can bless any individual, but not a gay couple. Any individual can receive a blessing from a priest, that has always been the case. The problem is that it is very hard to bless two individuals together and not give the impression that you are blessing a gay marriage. It is confusing.
Recently pope Francis said that different religions are like different languages leading people to God. What people heard was that the pope said that all religions are the same. That’s not what he said. The part people didn’t hear is what he said next. He said, different religions are like different languages leading people to God, but that Christianity is completely different because it is revealed directly by God.
Remember that what you hear through the media usually has a spin on it to make it more controversial, to get us worked up and watch more news.
There is a big difference between a pope giving his opinion on something vs changing Church teaching. Most of what we have heard are his personal opinions. Changing Church teaching is a much bigger deal than you might think and doesn’t happen easily.
‘But isn’t what the pope says infallible?’ Generally not. The pope’s teaching is infallible only under certain conditions. It has to be a teaching given with the bishops from all over the world in agreement on a particular teaching. Then it is believed to be without error and so, infallible. In fact it has only been used twice in history: once to declare the Dogma (official teaching) of the Immaculate Conception and also for the teaching of the Assumption, which says that at the end of her earthly life, Our Lady was assumed body and soul into heaven. That is only twice in history!
So don’t be afraid of when opinions are given by the pope. They are important opinions since they come from the pope, but an opinion is not church teaching.
Having said that, there are a number of things going on in the Church, which I find very disturbing. For example, in 2022, archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, hired a lady to work in the Pontifical Academy for Life. The lady he employed, Mariano Mazzucato, is an atheist and proabortion. The cardinal said it was for her expertise. Is there no one among the 1.4 billion Catholics who has the same expertise? And that is no disrespect to her personally, or what she believes, but that is not right.
Things like that are very disturbing, but my work is to focus on being here in this parish and to try and guide you spiritually in whatever way I can, above all by bringing the Eucharist to you. We pray for the Church every day, but there is kind of healthy detachment needed on my part. I will continue to pray for our Church and indeed our country, but then I have to let go and remember that it is God’s Church and we all need to do the same: pray for the Church and then let go. It’s the same for our country. We do whatever we can to make our country a better place by the way each of us lives, we pray for our country, but then we need to let go.
In St. Matthew’s Gospel (16:18), Jesus says to Peter, ‘You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church and the gates of the underworld shall not prevail against it.’ The second half of that sentence is really important: ‘And the gates of the underworld shall not prevail against it.’
St. John’s Gospel says something similar, ‘The light shines in the darkness, the darkness has not overcome it.’ (John 1:5). God’s Church is indestructible, because it is from God. It will often take a beating because of the human side of it, but it cannot be stopped because it is from God.
When you think about it, what are the odds of an institution surviving all the sexual abuse scandals and financial scandals, bad example and corruption? That should be enough to stop people studying for the priesthood or religious life and cause everyone to abandon the Church. And yet, young men and women continue to give themselves to the priesthood and religious life and people continue to come to Church and not only that, but the Church continues to grow. God keeps inspiring people to dedicate their lives to him and people respond to it.
Last year over 500 adults made their Confirmation and were received into the Church. It was the biggest number ever in this diocese. What does that tell you? It is God’s Church and it is unstoppable.
With that in mind, don’t be afraid of scandals and bad example, or even opinions from the pope which are not always clear. It can be upsetting, but remember it is God’s Church and not of human origin.
Popes come and go, bishops and priests come and go and right now we are going through a very turbulent time in the Church, but don’t be afraid of that.
‘You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church and the gates of the underworld shall not prevail against it.
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