Archive for October, 2015
From Legalism to Mercy?
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Voice of the Faithful on October 29, 2015
“The frame of reference now is no longer the Code of Canon Law. The frame of reference is now going to be, ‘What does the Gospel really say here?'” — That’s one response from a Q&A conducted by David Gibson with Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl of Washington DC. The interview, published by the Religion News Service, finds Wuerl emphasizing mercy and pastoral responses as the mode of operation for the future, in accordance with what Pope Francis has requested. You can read the full interview in Gibson’s blog.
Global women religious leader asks them to do synod’s unfinished work / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Religious Women, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful, Women in Catholic Church on October 26, 2015
The leader of the umbrella group for some 600,000 global Catholic women religious has said that in the wake of this month’s Synod of Bishops the women are called to carry forth the pastoral work that the official church is sometimes not able to do.
“Maltese Sr. Carmen Sammut — who participated in the Oct. 4-25 Synod as one of 32 women who took part in non-voting roles alongside the 270 prelate-members — said the women religious should engage with people church institutions may not even know need help.
“‘I think that we should not give up our role at the frontiers of the church,’ said Sammut, who heads the International Union of Superiors General (UISG).”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Synod offers striking softening to remarried, proposing individual discernment / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 26, 2015
A worldwide gathering of some 270 Catholic bishops has recommended softening the church’s practice towards those who have divorced and remarried, saying such persons should discern decisions about their spiritual lives individually in concert with the guidance of priests.
“Pope Francis also closed the meeting with a strong renewal of his continual emphasis of the boundless nature of divine mercy, saying: ‘The Church’s first duty is not to hand down condemnations or anathemas, but to proclaim God’s mercy.’
“Although the final document from the Oct. 4-25 Synod of Bishops says discernment for remarried persons can ‘never overlook the demands of truth and love in the Gospel,’ it seems to significantly move decision-making for how they can participate in the church to private conversations in dioceses around the world.”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope Francis creates Vatican office combining laity, family, life issues / Catholic News Agency
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 23, 2015
Pope Francis announced Thursday (Oct. 22) to the Synod on the Family that he has chosen to establish a new office in the Roman Curia that will deal with issues of laity, family, and life, as part of his reform of the curia. ‘I have decided to establish a new Dicastery with competency for Laity, Family and Life, that will replace the Pontifical Council for the Laity and the Pontifical Council for the Family,’ Pope Francis said Oct. 22, according to a communique from the Holy See press office.”
By Catholic News Agency — Click here to read the rest of this story.
No Communion for the divorced and remarried, as women take back-row seats at Family Synod
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful, Women, Women in Catholic Church, Women in the Church on October 23, 2015
Drafting committee cardinal: Synod will not provide Communion path for remarried
One of the prelates responsible for drafting the final document from the ongoing Synod of Bishops has said he does not anticipate that it will propose changes in the Catholic church’s practices towards the divorced and remarried. Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias — one of ten prelates who co-drafted the document after three-weeks of intense deliberations among some 270 bishops at the Oct. 4-25 Synod — said in particular that one specific proposal that might have allowed the remarried to take Communion would likely not be mentioned.” By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter
Women fear their voices will be sidelined in synod’s final report
The rows of seats in the synod hall, where Catholic bishops are meeting to discuss family issues, are filled with bishops and cardinals — all male. To find any women, look to the back of the room. The women’s distance from the heart of the synod hall reflects fears raised by women’s groups that their participation is a mere token on the Vatican’s part.” By Rosie Scammell, Religion News Service, on Cruxnow.com
While all eyes are on bishops in Rome, the Australian Church takes stock of abuse
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Clergy Sexual Abuse, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican on October 22, 2015
In Rome —
Pope Francis’ plans for inclusiveness divide bishops
Pope Francis had encouraged bishops from more than 120 countries to speak freely when they gathered at the Vatican nearly three weeks ago for a broad discussion of family matters to guide the world’s 1.2 billion Roman Catholics. And speak freely, they have.
“The result has been the most momentous, and contentious, meeting of bishops in the 50 years since the Second Vatican Council, which brought the church into the modern era. The meeting has exposed deep fault lines between traditionalists focused on shoring up doctrine, and those who want the church to be more open to Catholics who are divorced, gay, single parents or cohabiting …
“‘This is a pivotal moment of this pontificate,’ said Roberto Rusconi, who teaches the history of Christianity at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, a state school. Pope Francis is sounding out the world’s bishops ‘to better understand whether they are going to follow his line or not.’”
By Laurie Goodstein and Elisabetta Povoledo, The New York Times
In Australia —
Sullivan: Church abuse history ‘shameful, corrosive, cimplicity’
The Church has described its history regarding child abuse in Australia as “shameful, corrosive and complicit” and says it now expects its liability exposure to be potentially $1 billion on top of payments already made.
The CEO of the Truth justice and Healing Council, Francis Sullivan, said in a speech in Canberra on Tuesday (Oct. 20) night the Church’s history was ‘littered with examples of cover-ups and crimes and of Church leaders failing in one of the very basic tenets of their calling.’
By CathNews.com
Why Pope Francis’s fight in Rome is about more than sex and marriage / The Washington Post
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Future of the Church, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 21, 2015
At Pope Francis’s closed-door meeting in Rome this month, top clergy are intensely debating whether the church should bend more to the messy realities of modern families. On the ground, however, it already has.
“Questions on the agenda at the rare, high-level meeting that ends this weekend include whether those who divorce and remarry outside the church can receive Communion, and whether there is a place in Catholic life for same-sex couples. Changing Catholicism’s stance towards such things could begin to unravel the unity of the world’s largest church, say opponents who see the debate in Rome as directly tied to the future of Catholicism. But in many parts of the world – the West in particular – the church has for years quietly been making changes to engage with Catholic families who are transforming in ways that mirror the rest of the society.”
By Michelle Boorstein, The Washington Post — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope’s family synod: No changes, but everything has changed
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 20, 2015
It’s now quite certain that Pope Francis’ big summit on family issues won’t endorse any changes to church doctrine on the church’s teaching about homosexuality or whether civilly remarried Catholics can receive Communion.
“And yet, it seems, everything has changed.
“From the crucial role African bishops have played in the debate, to calls to remove ‘intrinsically disordered’ from the church’s language on gays, to the freedom bishops now enjoy to speak their minds on once-taboo issues, Francis’ synod on the family has at the very least shaken up the church for years to come.
“And if Francis has his way, there’s more ahead.”
By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Questions remain about Synod of Bishops’ closing document / Cruxnow.com
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 20, 2015
As the Oct. 4-25 Synod of Bishops on the family nears its end, two features of the process seem especially striking. One is how much the bishops have left to do; the other is how much uncertainty still surrounds exactly what they’re doing.
“The final result is to be a document to be presented to Pope Francis. It’s designed to be based on a working document distributed before the synod, but there’s been enough dissatisfaction with that earlier text that it’s possible the 10-member drafting committee could essentially start from scratch.”
By John L. Allen, Jr., Cruxnow.com — Click here to read the rest of this article.
U.S. sister-auditor: Synod shows cultural divide between bishops, laypeople / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 20, 2015
The discussions at the ongoing Synod of Bishops have shown a clear difference in mindsets between the prelates considering issues of family life and ordinary Catholics looking to the gathering in hopes for changes in church pastoral practice, one of the non-voting participants in the event has said.
“U.S. Sacred Heart of Mary Sr. Maureen Kelleher — who is taking part in the Oct. 4-25 synod as one of 32 women serving in non-voting roles alongside the 270 prelate-members — said there is a clear cultural divide between bishops’ and laypersons’ points of view.”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
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