Catholic Answers Focus: Is Francis a bad Pope?

[pnewton]

he reminds me of Peter his intentions are good but his mouth keeps getting him in trouble.

LOL. I was just thinking of poor St. Pete on another thread. If he were alive today, he would be sure be a colorful social figure, probably the king of memes.

 

[EugeneCharles]

Huh. Do you think that the Mass was never translated into the vernacular before the 1960s?

I didn’t notice this reply, sorry for the late response.

I was informed that the Mass had been translated before the 1960s and since the 1st Mass could have been in Hebrew or Aramaic. The Eastern Orthodox uses their own. And the Mass was translated during the Reformation. Chinese were permitted to use their own language during the Mass. My point here is the Traditional Tridentine Rite of Mass was improved and the way each word was spoken had been simpler yet understandable removing the possible language barriers.

 

[WanderingPilgrim]

I think it’s unfortunate that any time someone posts anything negative about Pope Francis, even if it’s fair criticism, they are typically reported and censored by mods. Or if it’s on reddit, you are downvoted into oblivion. It’s as though one can’t be a faithful Catholic and be critical of the leadership, or lack thereof, by our leaders. It’s quite preposterous. I am feeling much peace becoming a Byzantine Catholic because I can pray for the Holy Father and respect his office, and at the same time every thing he says or does has absolutely no effect on me or my church, unless and until he declares something dogmatically binding. Might be a cowardly position to take, but I just can’t handle it anymore, spiritually speaking. It’s far too draining.

 

[MarysLurker]

I think it’s unfortunate that any time someone posts anything negative about Pope Francis, even if it’s fair criticism, they are typically reported and censored by mods

Not here, so long as you exercise basic decency and respect, like Catholic Answers did in the talk. Now if someone starts getting personal with the Pope (or anyone else), that would be cause for moderation here or on any other forum.

 

[Diaconia]

There are two [overlapping] issues that so often come with criticism of the Supreme Pontiff.

1 - So often the criticism includes (or invariably leads to) ad hominem attacks on the Pope himself. Or his pastoral approach, or the fact that he was a Jesuit. Or that he comes from a land infested with Liberation Theology, etc.
2 - Much of the criticism of the Pope is “armchair-pontificating” by people who are relying on misinformation, sloppy translation work, or outright falsehoods of what the Pope actually said / taught / wrote.

The hyper-partisanship of the United States bleeds through into the Church as well. An election year makes this doubly so. The pandemic has so many people on edge, grumpy, and frustrated. This amplifies the effect all the more. As a result, at the present time, there’s even more scrutiny and judgement upon the Pope, and, transitively, upon the hierarchy in general.

We need more prayer for the Pope, not more criticism. He prays for you, every day, multiple times a day; do the same for him.

We also pray for the most holy universal Pontiff, Francis, Pope of Rome,
Fr. Deacon Christopher

 

[christofirst]

Much of the criticism of the Pope is “armchair-pontificating” by people who are relying on misinformation, sloppy translation work, or outright falsehoods of what the Pope actually said / taught / wrote.

On the other hand, it often seems to me that when the Pope says something with which we disagree, that challenges our personal worldview, some of us are too quick to just dismiss it as a “bad translation” when it is in fact an accurate translation, a challenging teaching that the Pope actually intends for us to receive and accept.

I agree he needs our prayers!

 

[WanderingPilgrim]

Thank you Father Deacon Christopher (and others). That makes sense.

On a personal note, might I ask what Eastern Church you belong to?

 

[godisgood77]

I feel like Pope Francis is a very good Pope… know some disagree, but the vast majority of Catholics has a favorable or very favorable view of him.

 

[on_the_hill]

Thanks, IanM.

How do you guys feel about Beethoven…

He’s God’s kapellmeister

 

[Diaconia]

I am a bi-ritual deacon with both Western and Eastern faculties.

I serve the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the Chicago Eparchy of the USA.

I remain a sinner,
Fr. Deacon Christopher

 

[WanderingPilgrim]

“Fr. Deacon” gave you away lol

 

[Diaconia]

Yes, I sign responses that way when the question I am asked relates to things Eastern; or when the questioner is an Eastern Catholic.

If the post doesn’t involve Eastern thought or praxis, I just sign Deacon Christopher.

 

[WanderingPilgrim]

You should stick with Father Deacon as it may raise awareness of Eastern traditions. It’s an uphill battle gaining recognition in the larger latin world for all the Eastern communities. It could be a small way to help introduce more Roman Catholics to the universal Catholic Church? Just a thought. You know your own business though and I’m not trying to dictate anything at you!

 

[phil3]

We need more prayer for the Pope, not more criticism. He prays for you, every day, multiple times a day ; do the same for him.

I pray for him often, but since his is critical of my way of life I feel justified that I can be critical of his views on my way of life.

 

[Jen7]

Curious what way of life this is that he’s critical about. I only hear him criticize “traditionalists.”

 

[Julius_Caesar]

I only hear him criticize “traditionalists.”

There you have it.