Publication of the Pope's response to the five cardinal questions

On the afternoon of October 2, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published Pope Francis's response to five questions raised by five cardinals regarding the Church's stance on the issue of blessings for Catholics. same-sex couples, priestly ordination of women, etc

G. Tran Duc Anh, OP | RVA

The five cardinals are Walter Brandmuller, German, 94 years old, former Director of the Historical Institute of the Holy See, American Cardinal Raymond Burke, 75 years old, former President of the Supreme Court of the Holy See, Cardinal Juan Sandoval , 90 years old, Mexican, Cardinal Robert Sarah, 78 years old, Equatorial Guinea, former Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Sacramental Discipline, finally Cardinal Joseph Tran Nhat Quan, Don Bosco, 91 years old, Former Bishop of the Diocese of Hong Kong.

Five cardinals sent a questionnaire to the Pope on July 10 but did not receive a response from the Pope. They rewrote the question and sent it to the Holy Father on August 21 this year, but this time there was no response, so they published the questionnaire on the morning of October 2. On the same afternoon, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published the Pope's response, dated July 11 but not previously published.

Five questions related to the presentation of God's revelation, the blessing of same-sex couples, companionship or union, considered by the Pope to be the essence of the Church, the issue of priestly ordination of women, Finally, the essential prerequisite for forgiveness in the confessional is repentance. Many times, the Pope emphasized the need to always forgive in this See without mentioning the above mentioned prerequisite. He said: “of course repentance is necessary, but we are not the owners, but only humble administrators of the sacraments, nurturing the faithful.”

The concern of the five cardinals was the tendency to interpret God's revelation according to prevailing cultural and historical contexts. The Pope emphasized the progress in the interpretation of revelation. For example, in the past slavery was accepted, but now it is no longer so. The interpretation of revelation is deepened. The principle here is that salvation is offered to everyone.

Regarding the marriage wishes for homosexual couples, the Pope does not deny it, but calls for the discernment and wisdom of the pastor, how to avoid misunderstanding that it is a kind of marriage, considered equal. with the sacrament of marriage. "The person asks for blessings, expressing his request for God's help to live a better life." But the Pope denied that the Bishops' Conference, or the diocesan bishop, would issue regulations on this matter.

Regarding the priestly ordination of women, the Pope does not confirm, neither agrees nor denies. He emphasized the common priesthood of all baptized believers, the equality of this priesthood with the ministerial priesthood. In this area, the Apostolic Letter of Pope John Paul II, in 1994, solemnly affirmed that the Church does not have the right to ordain women to the priesthood. Pope Francis commented that Pope John Paul II did not declare from the Throne, further study is needed on this issue.