As Catholics we are clearly sailing in uncharted waters. We are living in very interesting times. We are experiencing a Papacy that has never been seen before. So far, in praxis, Francis is one of the most unorthodox popes in the history of the Church. He is living outside of the papal residency, he is conducting casual interviews with liberal news outlets and is trying to shift the dialogue of the Church away from hot button issues to paint theologically, with much broader strokes.
There is no denying the pope’s popularity with the general public and the press. He has won over the hearts of the populous. There is also no denying that the Church’s internal structure was in need of reform, considering the recent problems plaguing the Vatican. So where will all this lead...
We know for certain that the pope will never “change” any of the Church’s moral teachings. Abortion will always be considered a grave intrinsic evil; Same-Sex “Marriage” will always be considered sinful; and the priesthood will always be male. Like many other Dogmas of the Church, these are unchangeable Truths. They cannot be altered because they are Truths based on Biblical and Traditional Christian doctrine. If there are those who disagree with the Church’s teachings, and believe that this pope is going to start teaching and promoting their beliefs, they will be sadly disappointed. No one knows what is in the heart of another, and I will never assert to know exactly what is in the heart and mind of Pope Francis, but allow me, as one of his priests, to provide some analysis...
No one would dispute that the Catholic Church is losing ground in the number of practicing members. This should not be so, considering in the arena of ideas She represents which is the fullness of Truth. Her message is one that is in desperate need of being heard, but is being shouted down by contemporary institutions of authority like academia, the media and other liberal outlets who occupy the world of science and technology. We live in a world that has become less and less Christ-Centered and more and more secular. What I believe Pope Francis may be doing is confronting the world head on by trying to influence the culture from within. In this way he is really radically imitating Christ. When Christ walked among us, he painted with broad brush strokes too. He left the nitty, gritty theological details to his
disciples like Paul and the Fathers of the Church that would follow. The goal of the pope seems to be like Christ’s, to meet people where they’re at, and bring them into the fold. Once they are in the fold, the hope is that they will be so enamored by the voice of the Shepherd, they will listen to His Voice, see how green the pastures are and not want to leave.
Will this strategy work? It did for Christ. Christ Himself never specifically denounced Abortion, but His Church did, in the very first document ever published by the Christian Faithful, The Didiche, which was written before the Gospels. Christ
Himself never condemned homosexual acts directly, but His Church did, when St. Paul wrote about it being an intrinsic evil in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. Christ never said directly He was instituting an all male priesthood, but the fact that the priesthood He established was instituted at the Last Supper, and all males attended, and the fact that the 12 Apostles were all male, and His priesthood is based on the male Levitical priesthood, He didn’t need to say it specifically. It was spoken not in words, but codified by his actions. My real hope is that the pope’s emphasis on forgiveness, love and mercy, will have a huge influx of Catholics and non believers coming to the practice of the Faith, and many souls who previously didn’t believe, will be converted and start believing. Through the pope’s witness, teachings and popularity, those who convert will be treated to an authentic experience of Christ that is genuine and encompasses the totality of the Faith. The Catholic faith challenges us to love the poor and live a life of uncomplicated Gospel simplicity, while maintaining the denunciation of: homosexual acts, the aborting of babies in the womb, and women’s ordination to the priesthood. If the pope ever changes these teachings of the Church, I will move into my mother’s condo in Smithfield, change one of her spare rooms into a chapel and celebrate Mass privately, living out my days in quiet contemplative solitude. But if I were my mother, I wouldn’t count on having a roommate any time soon.