Pope Francis
Pope Francis has been accused of heresy over his thawing relations with remarried Catholics.
More than 60 priests, theologians and academics have lashed out at
the Pontiff in relation to his 2016 opening to divorced and civilly
remarried Catholics.
In a 25-page letter delivered to Francis last month, the 62
signatories issued a 'filial correction' - meaning brotherly correction -
to the pope - a measure they said hadn't been employed since the 14th
century.
The letter accused Francis of propagating seven heretical positions
concerning marriage, moral life and the sacraments with his 2016
document 'The Joy of Love' and subsequent 'acts, words and omissions.'
The initiative follows another formal act by four tradition-minded
cardinals who wrote to Francis last year asking him to clarify a series
of questions, or 'dubbia,' they had about his 2016 text.
Francis hasn't responded to either initiative. The Vatican
spokesman didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment late
Saturday.
None of the signatories of the new letter is a cardinal, and the
highest-ranking churchman listed is actually someone whose organization
has no legal standing in the Catholic Church: Bishop Bernard Fellay,
superior of the breakaway Society of St. Pius X.
Several other signatories are well-known admirers of the old Latin Mass which Fellay's followers celebrate.
But organizers said the initiative was nevertheless significant and
a sign of the concern among a certain contingent of academics and
pastors over Francis' positions, which they said posed a danger to the
faithful.
'There is a role for theologians and philosophers to explain to
people the church's teaching, to correct misunderstandings,' said Joseph
Shaw, a spokesman for the initiative, signatory of the correction and
senior research fellow in moral philosophy at Oxford University.
When it was released in April 2016, 'The Joy of Love' immediately
sparked controversy because it opened the door to letting civilly
remarried Catholics receive Communion.
Church teaching holds that unless these Catholics obtain an
annulment - a church decree that their first marriage was invalid - they
cannot receive the sacraments, since they are seen as committing
adultery.
Francis didn't create a church-wide pass for these Catholics, but
suggested - in vague terms and strategically placed footnotes - that
bishops and priests could do so on a case-by-case basis after
accompanying them on a spiritual journey of discernment.
Subsequent comments and writings have made clear he intended such
wiggle room, part of his belief that God's mercy extends in particular
to sinners and that the Eucharist isn't a prize for the perfect but
nourishment for the weak.
Shaw said none of the four cardinals involved in the initial 'dubbia' letter, nor any other cardinal, was involved in the 'filial correction.'
Organizers said the last time such a correction was issued was to Pope John XXII in 1333 for errors which he later recanted.
***
Via Daily Mail UK
0 comments:
Post a Comment