Cardinal Cupich says "discern truth" - WHAT?

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oppositeman13

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I was reading a news article that was making some points by Cardinal Burke about communion for the remarried and came across this statement made this past June:

Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich said in a recent interview that Amoris Laetitia is a call for Catholics to graduate from “an adolescent spirituality into an adult spirituality” where they will be able to use their “freedom of conscience” to “discern truth” in their life.

What? I thought here we go again with denying God’s absolute truth and replacing it with situation ethics where a person determines right or wrong, sin or not, based on their particular circumstances.

To think that a Cardinal would think this way astounded me. I would think he would know that our Church has spoken decisively about the dangers of such thinking.

For one thing in denying the absolute truth of scripture, it elevates man above God. I believe God paints in black and white and doesn’t mix them to create “gray area” - which is a human concept to rationalize sin.

Cardinal Cupich doesn’t seem to understand what discernment is. In the article Cardinal Burke explains it by saying discernment does not decide what is right or wrong.

There is a larger point I want to address - why isn’t Pope Francis correcting Cardinal Cupich?

It seems to me, hopefully I am wrong, that Pope Francis agrees with him. Confusing times to say the least. I can’t imagine the Holy Spirit has anything to do with all this.

here is the article: https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/d...h-teaching-on-communion-for-divorced-and-rema
 
The cardinal’s statements on this issue continue to do significant harm.

And, sadly, there is the not so thinly veiled arrogance that people who agree with him are “adults” and sophisticated, and those who adhere to traditional Catholic moral theology are adolescents.
 
You read Cardinal Burke’s comments on this issue, and you find clarity and fidelity to the constant teaching of the Church since the words of…Christ.

You read Cardinal Cupich’s thoughts on this issue, and you get vague remarks about “discerning truth” (whatever that means) and the aforementioned canard about how sophisticated we all are since Amoris Laetitia.

In any case, Burke is right. If you are divorced and remarried, you may only receive Communion if you are abstaining from sexual relations.
 
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First, I think it important to listen to the Church, not Life Site News who is constantly baiting Catholics over all sorts of issues. If upholding Truth is important, then this thread should not have even been started. There is a sense in which both Cardinals are correct, sort of. What Cardinal Burke is describing is the discipline of the Church, based on doctrine, but not necessarily the only possible discipline. Cardinal Cupich is simply formulating the Christianity taught by St. Paul. If I were to say that all things are permissible, you would write me off as a kook. Yet that is exactly what the Bible says. More to the point, Paul taught that the Christianity of discernment, what Cardinal Cupich is presenting is the more spiritually mature way of seeing the faith, as opposed to a faith based on rules.
 
I will perfectly honest, I am quite happy to be a rule follower as a nearly Catholic and leave the discerning with my conscience until I am indeed mature in the faith. In fact I kind of hope that was the point being made - that as spiritual youngsters like me, we need clear guidance and rules, and this helps to form a good Catholic conscience. Then, when we are more mature, armed with that good Catholic conscience, we are more able to discern truth in tricky situations.

But this is all my uneducated understanding.
 
Cardinal Cupich knows exactly what he’s doing, as do all the church prelates and non-prelates who are taking Amoris Laetitia as a green light to sanction what they want: a world where everyone more or less decides for themselves what is appropriate on this issue. And so we hear of gray areas and discernment and vague this and ambiguous that…and, of course, about how merciful and mature this all is, as opposed to those mean Pharisees who liked Benedict more than Francis.

It’s nauseating how transparent the whole game really is.

Church teaching is never complicated on mortal issues. Divorced and remarried Catholics cannot receive Communion unless they abstain from sexual relations with their new “spouse.”
 
Would you tell us how entering into a deeper relationship with God is nauseating?
 
Because that’s not what this is about. That’s the innocuous, nice sounding language that is used to cloak the real issue: changing the Church’s perennial teaching, not by overt change, but by creeping incrementalism and the assurance that whatever the teaching is, your conscience can just rationalize anything.

The pope and the bishops are the guardians of Tradition. Cardinal Cupich’s comments on Amoris Laetitia have not safeguarded Tradition. They have created…and deliberately so…an ambiguous area of “gray” that allows people to ignore the Church’s perennial teaching.
 
As Cardinal Burke clearly and unambiguously noted, “discernment” does not decide what is right and what is wrong.
 
I see you can read and write and have a computer. That helps…
What is discernment then,Vadne?
 
oppositeman13 said:
It seems to me, hopefully I am wrong, that Pope Francis agrees with him. Confusing times to say the least. I can’t imagine the Holy Spirit has anything to do with all this.
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This is the conclusion I make when I look at the facts. I remember reading in an article that Pope Francis chose to make Cupich a Cardinal because he wanted to fill the Curia with liberals in order to achieve his agenda. We must pray for an end to this crisis of Faith. May the Holy Spirit give us another Athanasius.
 
This pope has been remarkable for his repeated calls for free speech and open discourse…and his packing his Vatican offices with people who think exactly the way he does.
 
Still no answer…
Wasn t life in black and white?
Isn t life an Excel chart where everything fits into a pidgeon hole?
What does discernment imply?
 
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Vadne said:
This pope has been remarkable for his repeated calls for free speech and open discourse…and his packing his Vatican offices with people who think exactly the way he does.
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I’ve had the same thoughts. Fr Z discussed the culture of fear that exists in the Vatican. Apparently Vatican officials feel insecure and worry for their positions because Francis has a very autocratic management style. In other words, they can’t criticise or disagree with the papal agenda. I don’t have evidence for this but the internet is buzzing with similar information. I find it interesting and it helps me understand why things are happening the way they are.
 
If you are going to throw a Cardinal under the bus at least look up why.
Walk the walk.Since it is you who says he doesn t " understand". Explain it.
 
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The few friends I have in Rome tell the same story as Father Z’s…anyone who dares to question anything worries for their job.

Historians of the future may be fascinated by all this. Ratzinger had a reputation as an autocrat before his papacy; in office, he was incredibly mild-mannered. Bergoglio’s papacy has been marked by autocratic tendencies. Most revealing on this = the Christmas addresses to the Curia, where he has displayed a real fondness for attack. Some might call that simply bad manners at a Christmas gathering.

All that said, the whole Amoris Laetitia controversy could be put to rest if the pope would simply answer the dubia formally presented to him by four of his cardinals. Considering he has no problem whatsoever giving more interviews than any pope in history…you would think this would not be such a huge issue for him.
 
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A Cardinal. No less.
He doesn t " understand",but we can explain to him…
Because Cardinal takes a quick course in the internet and that is it.
Behind a screen… He is out there giving his face and his time and his life. For free.
 
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Vadne said:
Historians of the future may be fascinated by all this. Ratzinger had a reputation as an autocrat before his papacy; in office, he was incredibly mild-mannered. Bergoglio’s papacy has been marked by autocratic tendencies. Most revealing on this = the Christmas addresses to the Curia, where he has displayed a real fondness for attack. Some might call that simply bad manners at a Christmas gathering.
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I agree. I’m fascinated by the media response to Francis. They persecuted Benedict but he was actually mild-mannered and showed mercy. Yet, Francis is loved by the world but has a reputation for harsh words to his staff etc.

I pray that he answers his Cardinals and grants them the papal audience they’ve long wanted. He has time to meet with many people but Cardinal Burke can’t seem to secure a meeting.

I love Francis our Pope but I have to admit that he caused a crisis in my Faith a few months back, around the time of the synod. Since that time, I’ve decided to pray more and trust in the Holy Spirit.
 
the reason I posted this was that I believe you don’t discern truth. Truth is given to us by God. Playing “word gymnastics” (turning, twisting, and flipping) cannot change truth and just leads to confusion.
 
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