10
POPE FRANCIS
October 8, 2013
T
he Valley Catholic
Pope says focus on morality can obscure Gospel message
By Francis X. Rocca
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In a lengthy
and wide-ranging interview with one of
his Jesuit confreres, Pope Francis spoke
with characteristic frankness about the
perils of overemphasizing Catholic
teaching on sexual and medical ethics;
the reasons for his deliberate and
consultative governing style; and his
highest priority for the Church today.
‘The proposal of the Gospel
must be more simple,
profound, radiant.’
The pope’s remarks appeared in an
interview with Jesuit Father Antonio
Spadaro, editor of the Italian journal
La Civilta Cattolica. The interview, conducted in August, was the basis for
a 12,000-word article published Sept.
19 in the U.S. magazine America, and
simultaneously in other Jesuit publications in other languages. According
to the editor of America, Jesuit Father
Matt Malone, Pope Francis personally
reviewed the article and approved its
publication.
‘The thing the Church needs most today is the ability to
heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful.’
“We cannot insist only on issues
related to abortion, gay marriage and
the use of contraceptive methods,” the
pope said in the interview, noting that
he had been “reprimanded” for failing
to speak often about those topics.
“It is not necessary to talk about
these issues all the time. The dogmatic
and moral teachings of the Church are
not all equivalent,” the pope added.
“The Church’s pastoral ministry cannot
be obsessed with the transmission of a
disjointed multitude of doctrines to be
imposed insistently.
“Proclamation in a missionary
style focuses on the essentials, on the
necessary things,” he said. “We have
to find a new balance; otherwise even
the moral edifice of the Church is likely
to fall like a house of cards, losing the
freshness and fragrance of the Gospel.
The proposal of the Gospel must be
more simple, profound, radiant. It is
from this proposition that the moral
consequences then flow.”
The pope reaffirmed one of his major themes: the need for mercy rather
than judgment when approaching sin.
“The thing the Church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to
warm the hearts of the faithful. It needs
nearness, proximity,” he said.
“The Church sometimes has locked
itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is
the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has
saved you,” the pope said.
“The confessional is not a torture
chamber,” he said, “but the place in
which the Lord’s mercy motivates us
to do better.
‘The Church sometimes has
locked itself up in small
things, in small-minded rules.’
“Those who today always look for
disciplinarian solutions, those who
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