Cardinal Burke: No change in divorce, annulments

[McCall1981]

catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=22763&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CatholicWorldNewsFeatureStories+(Catholic+World+News+(on+CatholicCulture.org

Cardinal Burke rebuts ‘outrageous’ claim that Cardinal Kasper speaks for Pope

Catholic World News - September 30, 2014

Cardinal Raymond Burke strongly defended his criticism of the “Kasper proposal,” and said it was “outrageous” for Cardinal Walter Kasper to suggest that such criticism was actually aimed at Pope Francis, during a teleconference with reporters on September 30.

“I find it amazing that the cardinal [Kasper] claims that he speaks for the Pope,” Cardinal Burke said. “The Pope doesn’t have laryngitis.”

Cardinal Burke joined several other participants in a teleconference on preparations for the Synod of Bishops. The teleconference was arranged by Ignatius Press, which will release four books on October 1 presenting arguments against the Kasper proposal and in defense of Church teaching on marriage.

Cardinal Burke said that he finds the books—and particularly Remaining in the Truth of Christ, to which he contributed—an “effective response” to Cardinal Kasper’s proposal that the Church might allow divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist. These works, the American cardinal said, reflect the “firm conviction of the authors and the firm conviction of the Church” that the Catholic understanding of the indissolubility of marriage is based on the clear words of Jesus Christ and cannot be altered. Saying that Cardinal Kasper “erred” in his proposal, Cardinal Burke said that the new works were “a positive contribution to get the discussion back on the right track.”

Father Joseph Fessio, SJ, the publisher of Ignatius Press, said that he wondered whether Pope Francis has encouraged discussion of the Kasper proposal in order to focus attention on the question of marriage and thus to reaffirm the Church’s teaching. He questioned whether “the Holy Father shrewdly tried to stir up a hornets’ nest” in preparation for the Synod’s discussions.

James Hitchcock, a theologian and author who participated in the teleconference, said that one difficulty created by the debate leading into the Synod, and by the media coverage of that debate, has been the tendency to fixate on what he called “bottom-line theology.” He used that term, Hitchcock explained, to describe an urge to ignore deeper theological arguments and report exclusively on whether the Church would change her teaching.

Hitchcock declined, however, to blame the media for this tendency. He observed that vigorous debates were common in Church history. Reflecting on the debates of earlier Church councils, he said: “Had there been mass media at Trent, had there been mass media at Nicea, I think you would have seen the same thing.” Cardinal Burke agreed: “That there are discussions, that there are disagreements, this is nothing new in the Church.”

Responding to Cardinal Kasper’s claim that his proposal involves a change in Church discipline rather than doctrine, Cardinal Burke said that this was a “very deceptive line of argument.” He said: “There can’t be in the Church a discipline that is not at the service of doctrine.”

In the case of marriage, the cardinal explained, the constant Church teaching on the indissolubility of marriage is a matter of established doctrine. In order to uphold that doctrine, he continued, it is essential to determine, in cases of marital breakdown, whether a real marriage existed. Church tribunals, he observed, are designed to sift the evidence and arrive at the truth. Without a rigorous test of the evidence, the truth could not clearly be established and the Church’s defense of marriage would be weakened.

 

[Sirach2]

The link in the OP is not the same wording as the text that followed. Should the link be replaced by Catholic World News?

 

[Megan7]

catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=22763&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CatholicWorldNewsFeatureStories+(Catholic+World+News+(on+CatholicCulture.org

Cardinal Burke rebuts ‘outrageous’ claim that Cardinal Kasper speaks for Pope

Catholic World News - September 30, 2014

Cardinal Raymond Burke strongly defended his criticism of the “Kasper proposal,” and said it was “outrageous” for Cardinal Walter Kasper to suggest that such criticism was actually aimed at Pope Francis, during a teleconference with reporters on September 30.

“I find it amazing that the cardinal [Kasper] claims that he speaks for the Pope,” Cardinal Burke said. “The Pope doesn’t have laryngitis.”

Cardinal Burke joined several other participants in a teleconference on preparations for the Synod of Bishops. The teleconference was arranged by Ignatius Press, which will release four books on October 1 presenting arguments against the Kasper proposal and in defense of Church teaching on marriage.

Cardinal Burke said that he finds the books—and particularly Remaining in the Truth of Christ, to which he contributed—an “effective response” to Cardinal Kasper’s proposal that the Church might allow divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist. These works, the American cardinal said, reflect the “firm conviction of the authors and the firm conviction of the Church” that the Catholic understanding of the indissolubility of marriage is based on the clear words of Jesus Christ and cannot be altered. Saying that Cardinal Kasper “erred” in his proposal, Cardinal Burke said that the new works were “a positive contribution to get the discussion back on the right track.”

Father Joseph Fessio, SJ, the publisher of Ignatius Press, said that he wondered whether Pope Francis has encouraged discussion of the Kasper proposal in order to focus attention on the question of marriage and thus to reaffirm the Church’s teaching. He questioned whether “the Holy Father shrewdly tried to stir up a hornets’ nest” in preparation for the Synod’s discussions.

James Hitchcock, a theologian and author who participated in the teleconference, said that one difficulty created by the debate leading into the Synod, and by the media coverage of that debate, has been the tendency to fixate on what he called “bottom-line theology.” He used that term, Hitchcock explained, to describe an urge to ignore deeper theological arguments and report exclusively on whether the Church would change her teaching.

Hitchcock declined, however, to blame the media for this tendency. He observed that vigorous debates were common in Church history. Reflecting on the debates of earlier Church councils, he said: “Had there been mass media at Trent, had there been mass media at Nicea, I think you would have seen the same thing.” Cardinal Burke agreed: “That there are discussions, that there are disagreements, this is nothing new in the Church.”

Responding to Cardinal Kasper’s claim that his proposal involves a change in Church discipline rather than doctrine, Cardinal Burke said that this was a “very deceptive line of argument.” He said: “There can’t be in the Church a discipline that is not at the service of doctrine.”

In the case of marriage, the cardinal explained, the constant Church teaching on the indissolubility of marriage is a matter of established doctrine. In order to uphold that doctrine, he continued, it is essential to determine, in cases of marital breakdown, whether a real marriage existed. Church tribunals, he observed, are designed to sift the evidence and arrive at the truth. Without a rigorous test of the evidence, the truth could not clearly be established and the Church’s defense of marriage would be weakened.

Thanks McCall. God bless you.

 

[MarcoPolo]

While I agree that there has historically been debate over various doctrines over the years, such as at Nicea or Trent, the media has contributed to the public confusion and ignorance of the bases for Catholic doctrines, and often uses words that do not even make sense in the context of Catholic doctrines (for example, saying the Church has a “ban” on gay ‘marriage’ or on female ‘priests’.)

 

[FollowChrist34]

Yes, thanks for the post. I am so glad Cardinal Burke is out there doing his job. I honestly don’t mind that the claws are out. This has been the case throughout the history of the Church. If you care about something, you fight for it. We are talking about Sacred Scripture and the doctrine of the Church here. This is not something to be lukewarm about. But I worry about the fallout from this Synod.

 

[anthony022071]

ncregister.com/daily-news/cardinal-burke-the-truths-of-the-faith-have-not-changed

Reporter: Many are criticizing the relatio for its lack of Catholic teaching and the effect it will have on Catholics and non-Catholics? Are these concerns valid?

Burke: Yes, the concerns are valid. The document lacks a proper foundation in the sacred Scriptures and the perennial and rich teaching of the Church regarding holy matrimony. It also does not reflect a proper theological anthropology, with its reference to the natural law. The effect which the document has already had upon Catholics, non-Catholics and people of good will has been disastrous. The document, not without reason, gives the impression that the Catholic Church is abandoning the apostolic faith regarding marriage.

Reporter: What is your general assessment of the synod so far?

Burke: To me, there has been a tremendous lack of clarity in the discussions that are taking place, and I am particularly concerned about what I am reading in the secular media.
I read the transcript of a transmission on RAI [Italian state television] this past Tuesday night, I think, that was viewed by some 5.7 million Italians. The synod was depicted as opening the door to holy Communion for the divorced and remarried, as if this was all that the synod was about or what the synod was principally addressing and as if there was a consensus that those in irregular unions should be admitted to receive the sacraments of penance and the holy Eucharist.

Reporter: It’s being spun in that direction?

Burke: Yes, and this didn’t begin just at the time of the synod, but has been going on at least since the consistory on Feb. 20-21 of this year, when Cardinal Walter Kasper gave his discourse and began to give interviews and speeches to sustain his position. His book was published in five languages.
The idea has built up that this synod is being convoked really — to put it plainly — to change the Catholic Church’s teaching on marriage. That is a betrayal of the Catholic faith and a betrayal of our mission to the world.
The Catholic Church is one of the few institutions left in the world that upholds and teaches the truth about marriage, even if there have been these failures in some tribunals to uphold it. Now, if we no longer teach the truth about marriage, why are we Catholic? >>>

<<< Reporter: One reported discussion was about changing the language of some terms such as “living in sin,” “contraceptive mentality” and “intrinsically disordered.” It was said there was a “great desire” to alter the language and make it more “inclusive,” but there was no criticism of this reported, which many found surprising.

Burke: I was not able to say so publicly, but I have quoted John Paul II’s Evangelium Vitae, when he says we have to call things by their proper name. He properly called abortion murder, which it is. And here, now, some want to say cohabitation is not living in sin. Well, what is fornication or adultery? And the same thing with regard to same-sex relations, which have come up. Some do not want to talk about disordered acts. Well, what is a homosexual act? It is disordered. And how am I being kind — if you are beset by this inclination and do these acts — how am I being charitable to you by calling the acts by some other name or by giving the impression that there are good aspects to the acts?
That is the other thing. Some are saying that we need to find the good aspects of de facto unions and homosexual unions. What are the good aspects of unchaste acts? There cannot be.

Reporter: On this issue of doctrine and pastoral practice: Synod participants, according to the reports coming from the Vatican, keep stressing that doctrine cannot be changed but pastoral practice and discipline can. What is your view of this?

Burke: This is a false dichotomy. Some keep repeating it and repeating it. It has never been the case in the Catholic Church that she rightly countenanced a difference between her discipline and her doctrine, because all the discipline we have is at the service of the doctrine, to safeguard it and promote it. To say that we are just going to change some disciplinary rules and doctrine will remain the same, first of all, is false, and, secondly, what will your Catholic in the pew, so to speak, think when something contrary to doctrine is permitted in practice? They will think: “Well, the Church has obviously changed its teaching on divorce and the indissolubility of marriage.” It is not a pretty picture. >>>

 

[Megan7]

ncregister.com/daily-news/cardinal-burke-the-truths-of-the-faith-have-not-changed

Reporter: Many are criticizing the relatio for its lack of Catholic teaching and the effect it will have on Catholics and non-Catholics? Are these concerns valid?

Burke: Yes, the concerns are valid. The document lacks a proper foundation in the sacred Scriptures and the perennial and rich teaching of the Church regarding holy matrimony. It also does not reflect a proper theological anthropology, with its reference to the natural law. The effect which the document has already had upon Catholics, non-Catholics and people of good will has been disastrous. The document, not without reason, gives the impression that the Catholic Church is abandoning the apostolic faith regarding marriage.

Reporter: What is your general assessment of the synod so far?

Burke: To me, there has been a tremendous lack of clarity in the discussions that are taking place, and I am particularly concerned about what I am reading in the secular media.
I read the transcript of a transmission on RAI [Italian state television] this past Tuesday night, I think, that was viewed by some 5.7 million Italians. The synod was depicted as opening the door to holy Communion for the divorced and remarried, as if this was all that the synod was about or what the synod was principally addressing and as if there was a consensus that those in irregular unions should be admitted to receive the sacraments of penance and the holy Eucharist.

Reporter: It’s being spun in that direction?

Burke: Yes, and this didn’t begin just at the time of the synod, but has been going on at least since the consistory on Feb. 20-21 of this year, when Cardinal Walter Kasper gave his discourse and began to give interviews and speeches to sustain his position. His book was published in five languages.
The idea has built up that this synod is being convoked really — to put it plainly — to change the Catholic Church’s teaching on marriage. That is a betrayal of the Catholic faith and a betrayal of our mission to the world.
The Catholic Church is one of the few institutions left in the world that upholds and teaches the truth about marriage, even if there have been these failures in some tribunals to uphold it. Now, if we no longer teach the truth about marriage, why are we Catholic? >>>

<<< Reporter: One reported discussion was about changing the language of some terms such as “living in sin,” “contraceptive mentality” and “intrinsically disordered.” It was said there was a “great desire” to alter the language and make it more “inclusive,” but there was no criticism of this reported, which many found surprising.

Burke: I was not able to say so publicly, but I have quoted John Paul II’s Evangelium Vitae, when he says we have to call things by their proper name. He properly called abortion murder, which it is. And here, now, some want to say cohabitation is not living in sin. Well, what is fornication or adultery? And the same thing with regard to same-sex relations, which have come up. Some do not want to talk about disordered acts. Well, what is a homosexual act? It is disordered. And how am I being kind — if you are beset by this inclination and do these acts — how am I being charitable to you by calling the acts by some other name or by giving the impression that there are good aspects to the acts?
That is the other thing. Some are saying that we need to find the good aspects of de facto unions and homosexual unions. What are the good aspects of unchaste acts? There cannot be.

Reporter: On this issue of doctrine and pastoral practice: Synod participants, according to the reports coming from the Vatican, keep stressing that doctrine cannot be changed but pastoral practice and discipline can. What is your view of this?

Burke: This is a false dichotomy. Some keep repeating it and repeating it. It has never been the case in the Catholic Church that she rightly countenanced a difference between her discipline and her doctrine, because all the discipline we have is at the service of the doctrine, to safeguard it and promote it. To say that we are just going to change some disciplinary rules and doctrine will remain the same, first of all, is false, and, secondly, what will your Catholic in the pew, so to speak, think when something contrary to doctrine is permitted in practice? They will think: “Well, the Church has obviously changed its teaching on divorce and the indissolubility of marriage.” It is not a pretty picture. >>>

Thank you for the link:thumbsup: God bless you. Pax.

 

[anthony022071]

breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/10/12/Cardinal-Raymond-Burke-Changing-Church-Language-is-Neither-Possible-nor-Desirable

INTERVIEW: CARDINAL RAYMOND BURKE–CHANGING CHURCH LANGUAGE IS ‘NEITHER POSSIBLE NOR DESIRABLE’

“If the Church wishes to be clear in her teaching,” a change in ecclesial language “is neither possible nor desirable,” Cardinal Raymond Burke told Breitbart in an interview on Sunday.
Cardinal Burke, a canon lawyer, is the equivalent of the Chief Justice for the Vatican, and heads up the Church’s highest court.
Burke’s remarks came on the heels of a push from several bishops toward just such a change. The Vatican summit on marriage and family life, in which Cardinal Burke is participating, has witnessed a drive toward “gentler” language from Church leaders.
The bishops have said that certain expressions, such as “living in sin,” “intrinsically disordered,” and “contraceptive mentality” are offensive to people today and should be substituted for more pastoral expressions.
Burke criticized the use of euphemisms in moral discourse instead of calling things by their proper name. “Clear language is, in fact, charitable,” he said.
“I have always found this to be the case in my pastoral work,” he noted.
When a person reacts negatively to certain language like “living in sin,” the cardinal said, “it is a sign that he does not want to face the reality of his situation in life and wants the Church somehow to tell him that it is, after all, not problematic.”
The Cardinal also expressed his thought that the synod may be wasting too much time discussing “settled issues.”
Overemphasis on these settled questions, the Cardinal suggested, is taking precious time from more important topics that the synod fathers should be addressing, especially regarding how to help young people prepare for a lasting marriage.
Burke believes that “far greater attention” should be given to “the ways in which the Church can assist the faithful to know and to live the truth about marriage.”
I think, he said, “of the decades of vacuous or inadequate catechesis of children and youth,” which have left young people “with a completely inadequate or even false understanding of the vocation to marriage.”
“I also think that far greater attention needs to be given to the essential connection between the Sacred Liturgy and holiness of life in marriage and in the family,” he said.
The idea of admitting those in irregular unions to the sacraments or of simplifying the annulment process are topics “which should have been excluded from discussion from the beginning,” because they have already been thoroughly discussed in the past,” Burke said.

 

[Megan7]

breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/10/12/Cardinal-Raymond-Burke-Changing-Church-Language-is-Neither-Possible-nor-Desirable

INTERVIEW: CARDINAL RAYMOND BURKE–CHANGING CHURCH LANGUAGE IS ‘NEITHER POSSIBLE NOR DESIRABLE’

“If the Church wishes to be clear in her teaching,” a change in ecclesial language “is neither possible nor desirable,” Cardinal Raymond Burke told Breitbart in an interview on Sunday.

Cardinal Burke, a canon lawyer, is the equivalent of the Chief Justice for the Vatican, and heads up the Church’s highest court.
Burke’s remarks came on the heels of a push from several bishops toward just such a change. The Vatican summit on marriage and family life, in which Cardinal Burke is participating, has witnessed a drive toward “gentler” language from Church leaders.
The bishops have said that certain expressions, such as “living in sin,” “intrinsically disordered,” and “contraceptive mentality” are offensive to people today and should be substituted for more pastoral expressions.
Burke criticized the use of euphemisms in moral discourse instead of calling things by their proper name. “Clear language is, in fact, charitable,” he said.
“I have always found this to be the case in my pastoral work,” he noted.
When a person reacts negatively to certain language like “living in sin,” the cardinal said, “it is a sign that he does not want to face the reality of his situation in life and wants the Church somehow to tell him that it is, after all, not problematic.”
The Cardinal also expressed his thought that the synod may be wasting too much time discussing “settled issues.”
Overemphasis on these settled questions, the Cardinal suggested, is taking precious time from more important topics that the synod fathers should be addressing, especially regarding how to help young people prepare for a lasting marriage.
Burke believes that “far greater attention” should be given to “the ways in which the Church can assist the faithful to know and to live the truth about marriage.”
I think, he said, “of the decades of vacuous or inadequate catechesis of children and youth,” which have left young people “with a completely inadequate or even false understanding of the vocation to marriage.”
“I also think that far greater attention needs to be given to the essential connection between the Sacred Liturgy and holiness of life in marriage and in the family,” he said.
The idea of admitting those in irregular unions to the sacraments or of simplifying the annulment process are topics “which should have been excluded from discussion from the beginning,” because they have already been thoroughly discussed in the past,” Burke said.

Thank you:thumbsup: Pax.

God bless Cardinal Burke