St. Corbinian’s Bear is on fire over the coming climate change encyclical:
The Bear is not claiming to diagnose the Pope. Yet, think back on his papacy, and the way Francis bounces from one scandal to another like a pinball, seemingly unaware of the damage he causes and unable to stop himself. Recall how he seems to consider the papacy as his own personal belonging. That is not humility. Even his acts of “humility” often seem to feature the imposition of his will upon tradition.
What about criticism of those who don’t agree with him? Here is a lengthy collection of his insults. “Rosary counter,” and “self-absorbed, Promethean neo-Pelagian” are just the start. (Who can forget “Bat Christian?”)
Now here we are waiting on a papal encyclical based on the controversial topic of climate change. Once again, Pope Francis can bask in the spotlight. As the Bear pointed out in his last article, Catholics are required to give “religious assent,” i.e. agreement, to such a document. How this is going to work out in practice the Bear has no idea, but it doesn’t matter. On the possibly fraudulent or misguided science of climate change, “Roma locuta est, causa finita est.”
The Church works when grownups are in charge. Frankly, we could add when people who do not exhibit symptoms of mental illness are in charge. Should there be an odd-ball, the sheep can only be unsettled and mistrustful. Even worse, what does this say about the Church? We are expected to swallow an encyclical on dubious science because we believe the Pope has divine assistance to get it right.
The Pope expects assent to his climate change encyclical. The faithful expect a Pope who is not incompetent. We seem to be at an impasse.
Go here to read the rest. When those who love the Church and are loyal to her, have to write these type of comments about a pope, something is very, very wrong at the Vatican.
I suppose we will handle it the same way we did when Pope Benedict dealt with climate change in 2011.
http://catholicclimatecovenant.org/catholic-teachings/vatican-messages/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-501316/The-Pope-condemns-climate-change-prophets-doom.html
Kabam. I love it!
Galileo II ?
As long as topical questions are all the rage, perhaps the Pope could give us his pensees on the Kardashians.
Too bad that Donald McClarey’s response to Julie cannot be designated with a “like.” Clerics need to focus on the Gospel of conversion and repentance, and stop with the eco-wacko nit-wit nonsense of enviro-nazism. Holiness and righteous, not eco-awareness, are what we need.
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2nd Peter 3
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10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 11 Seeing that these things are thus all to be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy living and godliness, 12 looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 13 But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
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To all you eco-wackos out there who place goddess Gaia above the Creator, your goddess is going to go down in flames.
The Church has the office of teaching, and the matter of that teaching is the body of doctrine, which the Apostles left behind them as her perpetual possession. “Religious submission of intellect and will” is required to this teaching of the Magisterium. Neither popes nor councils can claim our assent on matters of fact, unconnected with doctrine.
Thus, the Third Ecumenical Council, the Council of Ephesus, cited in support of its definition a letter which they ascribe to Pope St Julius, the friend of Athanasius; it is still extant and is an extract from a writing of Timotheus, the Apollinarian, if not of Apollinaris himself. This is a salutary reminder of another point: that councils (and popes) are “not infallible in the reasons by which they are led, or on which they rely, in making their definition, nor in matters which relate to persons, nor to physical matters which have no necessary connexion with dogma.” (Perrone, Præl. Theol. t. 2)
The Church teaches us about God who makes the world go, not about how the world goes.
Yes, Julie, Pope Benedict urged care and concern for the environment. He was careful to do so in a way that didn’t invoke the highest level of papal teaching authority aside from infallible definitions.
Benedict was and is a careful, precise and subtle thinker. He weighed his words carefully, and always in the full context of Catholic teaching. For some reason, people think such features of intellect were automatically passed on to his successor.
Despite the considerable and building evidence to the contrary.
These Chicken Little enviromentalnuts ought to read and put faith in what God told Noah. “All the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, night and day, shall not cease. ” Genesis 8:22.
Encyclicals are comparatively modern, dating back to Pope Benedict XIV (1740-1758).
Earlier papal documents are legislative or judicial in character and seldom enter into the grounds or motives of the Pope’s decision. They are, after all, the commands of a sovereign, not arguments or exhortations.
Consider one of the most famous bulls ever promulgated “Cum Occasione” of May 31, 1653, intended by Pope Innocent X to resolve the Jansenist controversy. Omitting formal parts, it consists of five propositions, to which notes of censure are attached, as follows:-
1.” Some of God’s precepts are impossible to the just, who wish and strive to keep them, according to the present powers which they have; the grace, by which they are made possible, is also wanting” – Declared and condemned as rash, impious, blasphemous, condemned by anathema, and heretical.
2. “In the state of fallen nature one never resists interior grace” – Declared and condemned as heretical.
3. “In order to merit or demerit in the state of fallen nature, freedom from necessity is not required in man, but freedom from external compulsion is sufficient” – Declared and condemned as heretical.
4. “The Semi-Pelagians admitted the necessity of a prevenient interior grace for each act, even for the beginning of faith; and in this they were heretics, because they wished this grace to be such that the human will could either resist or obey” – Declared and condemned as false and heretical.
5. “It is Semi- Pelagian to say that Christ died or shed His blood for all men without exception” – Declared and condemned as false, rash, scandalous, and understood in this sense, that Christ died for the salvation of the predestined, impious, blasphemous, contumelious, dishonouring to divine kindness [divinae pietati derogantem], and heretical.
That is the whole substance of it; certain propositions are condemned, without discussion or explanation.
It is a style of papal teaching I find rather appealing.
Apologies- I linked to the article and read it. According to the Bear- the Pope possesses a Narcisstic Personality.
I don’t think he does. Someone with this personality is vicious and ill- intentioned and manipulative. And very aware of their actions.
The more I think about it, the more I get the sense that Pope Francis is extremely insecure in his role. I think the demands are bigger than he is capable of. I don’t think he has bad intentions for the Church. I just don’t think he knows how to handle things in the current climate of Vatican in-fighting, intense social media, a world that is increasingly faithless to the point where I feel uncomfortable to declare my Catholicism at work or amongst non-Catholics (yes I know this is not a good thing- but it is just too difficult).
All these things make an insecure person more out-of-control- hence the Pope doesn’t know where he is going. I’m sure we have all felt like this one time in our life- I know I feel this currently in my life.
And all this combined with the fact that he may have manipulative and ill-intentioned advisors (not all- Pell is an example of the exception to the rule), and an equally manipulative media- and you have a difficult situation thrust into the hands of a well-meaning but insecure Pontiff.
I know God works in mysterious ways and the positives aspects of Pope Francis being- ie. a common touch- has led many to return to the Church.
Pray for the Pope. It is an enormously difficult job.
I guess, it is better to wait and see what is in the encyclical before scaring ourselves to death. If there are flaws then deal with them point by point.
We are currently in a time when the devil is running rampant. From the indivual to the larger global scene. We need God right now. I just don’t know how much longer we can endure.