In June I had a phone call from a regular reader of Position Papers with a (friendly) complaint: “Why don’t you address the problem of Pope Francis?” he asked. By problem he was referring of course to things like the ambiguity in Amoris Laetitia regarding the admission of divorced and remarried Catholics to the Eucharist, the “Who am I to judge” comment regarding a practising homosexual, and his sympathy for apparently heterodox members of the hierarchy. We had an interesting conversation at the end of which I promised that I would dedicate an editorial to this question … so here it is.
Yes, I will admit that some things the Holy Father says are disconcerting. For example, I was hurt by the infamous “breeding like rabbits” comment (perhaps more so being the eleventh of twelve children). As a priest who hears confessions, I was left perplexed by the Pope’s remarks about not turning the confessional into a “torture-chamber”. I would have thought empty confessionals was the more pressing problem (and by empty I mean the priest’s side of the confession box). And I’m sure most of us have heard that “Who am I to judge?” remark quoted in defence of morally relativist positions.
And yet we shouldn’t make more of such remarks than is warranted. If I’m being honest, I know what the Holy Father was driving at when he made those remarks: it is true that large families are not obligatory for Catholics, that priests should be gentle in confession, and that nobody can judge the conscience of another person. As Catholics we have to hear the Pope’s words with a filial, loving attitude. There are however Catholic websites are far from filial, and which appear almost obsessive in their desire to put the worst spin on the Pope’s every word. I’ve given up reading those websites.
But what about the Pope’s apparent ambiguity on the question of admission of divorced and remarried Catholics to Holy Communion? The treatment of this matter in the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia – mostly contained in one footnote – is very confusing. (That said, the rest of Amoris Laetitia is very good, and parts of it absolutely wonderful.) At the same time the clear and perennial practice of the Church is that nobody in a state of mortal sin may receive Holy Communion. There seems to be a contradiction here. Resolving that apparent contradiction is – as they say – above my pay-grade; that is something for the theologians to work out. Meanwhile I stick with the perennial practice of the Church.
Pope Francis’ blunt and imprecise manner of communicating can be disconcerting, confusing even, but normally it doesn’t amount to more than that. Pope Francis has much of the firebrand reformer about him, and that gives a directness and punchiness to his teaching. And even if on occasion his teaching lacks doctrinal clarity, the Pope is the Pope … and I am a Papist. I’m no less a Papist with Francis than with St John Paul II or Benedict. And I’m happy to leave all the rest in the hands of God.