Letter accusing Pope Francis of heresy

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A number of well known theologians recently sent an open letter to Pope Francis accusing him of heresy. While I don’t consider it my place currently to make judgements on the orthodoxy of the Pope, there was one very disturbing idea in the letter. It seems to propose deposing Pope Francis if he doesn’t clarify certain ideas. I have been considering requesting these theologians and LifeSite News (which seems to support it) to clarify that they do not consider deposing the Pope a possibility. I have never done something like this before, so does anyone have advice?
 
Or maybe the problem is that he sometimes speaks metaphorically, or in a context in which what he says is correct, but I know you will never acknowledge that :roll_eyes:
 
EZweber said:
I have been considering requesting these theologians and LifeSite News (which seems to support it) to clarify that they do not consider deposing the Pope a possibility. I have never done something like this before, so does anyone have advice?
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My advice is to ignore them, forget about them, and be at peace.
 
As a convert of almost 11 years, I can attest that Pope Francis is very different from Pope
Emeritus XVI who I thought highly of. They are very different and I have to admit Pope Francis had made some statements which have left me scratching my head.
I watched two movies about Pope Francis on
Netflix. One was sort of a biography of Pope Francis as a young man and his life until he was elected Pope. I believe it was called
“Call me Francis” . It was interesting, especially life in Argentina during political
upheaval. The other was a documentary that
was shown in theatres called “Pope Francis,
A Man of His Word”. When it was made, I had wondered if the purpose might be for damage
control.
My impression of Pope Francis improved after watching both shows. He is a man.
He is an older man. I am 67 and it amazes me the schedules these Popes keep and the
energy they have. Whether he wanted to be
Pope or not, he has perservered doing what
Popes do. I once asked our priest if he would ever want to be Pope and without blinking, loudly proclaimed “No!” .

I am disappointed he has not answered the
dubia(s) and I don’t have an answer why he has not.

However, he is the man elected to lead the
Catholic church now through these difficult
times.
 
he hasn’t answered it because he doen’st have to. amoris laetitia cannot be interpreted any other way then following tradition. the bishops who giv eit different interpretations already had their own agenda in mind.

also, eternal condemnation does not equate to eternal damnation, amoris laetitia was addressing pastors accompanying souls
 
That’s misleading. Pope Francis explicitly affirmed the interpretation of the Argentine bishops… and it’s precisely that interpretation these critics take issue with.

I am not such a critic. I don’t presume to know better than the Pope. But the charges they make in this regard are a true point of controversy.
 
Beryllos said:
My advice is to ignore them, forget about them, and be at peace.
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The question is, can good be done here? I am specifically thinking about the heretical idea that the Pope can be deposed. I believe that LifeSite News is deeply concerned about being orthodox and the entire basis of the letter is to defend orthodoxy. There are strong historical and traditional arguments for the orthodox position and I believe that at least the majority of the theologians would submit to the teaching authority of the Church.
 
Orthodoxy is the true body of doctrine as taught by the Catholic Church.
 
Maybe he doesn’t have to, but as the head of the Catholic Church I would think he would want to clarify the concerns they have so the Bishops can shepherd and teach the priests and people within their diocese.
 
EZweber said:
Orthodoxy is the true body of doctrine as taught by the Catholic Church.
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Not to go after you too much, but that is an extremely vague answer. You are also talking about a man who has substantial power to define what is Catholic orthodoxy. That said, what has he really changed?
 
OK, so we have two talking heads with a maximum investment of two microphones, headsets and cameras plus some editing software and opinions. They clearly have spent hours and hours of video grinding their ax with the Pope just by the titles of the videos.

This is the major problem in society, we are being run by conspiracy theories and half truths. It seems that people have forgotten that the fundamental point of a modern representative government is that you lose some you win some. If you don’t like what you see today, wait your turn. Jamming what you want in no matter the corners cut, lack of decorum, and poor prescient set are what kills this.

If you are a faithful Catholic then you must not question this Pope’s authority. If you find him too liberal, don’t forget the easily 35 years of committed conservatism that proceeded it. If God chooses the Pope, then you need to be willing to wait your turn. Undermining this one damages future Papal authority and the system you so dearly cherish.
 
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Frankly, I think the biggest issue is that Francis can be a little vague at times. I don’t think he’s an unintelligent man, but he doesn’t have the razor sharp intellect of his immediate predecessors, in particular Benedict XVI. Frankly, I think the nitpicking has just become toxic. While I’m no expert on Catholic theology, I’ve read nothing that Francis has said that seems the least bit heretical.
 
SeraficLeo said:
Never heard of them.
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Fr. Aidan Nichols is a signatory of the letter. His book The Shape of Catholic Theology was one I read when I was becoming Catholic 15 years ago. It was a fantastic read, and he is a very big deal in terms of Catholic theology. Nichols is a household name among intellectuals within the church. I was frankly surprised to see him sign on to the letter.
 
Yeah… I’m sure he didn’t make the decision lightly, but still! Heresy?! 🤦‍♂️
 
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niceatheist said:
he doesn’t have the razor sharp intellect of his immediate predecessors
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Actually at times reading Pope Francis it becomes obvious, at least to me, that a razor sharp intellect is not only something that he has, but in spades. I think it’s a personal and perhaps pastoral choice he consciously makes to avoid putting things on an academic or intellectual plain. It seems to me he sometimes appears to put the emphasis on the spirit, attitude or mentality that will result from his preaching, rather than focusing on, e.g., the most accurate or concise verbiage: the end-goal seems to be rather a spirit or an attitude that is fostered by, e.g., a text or document, the words or definitions being only means to that more important (perhaps for him or so it seems to me) end or goal, in particular a spirit of charity or service, especially selfless service.

To make an analogy with the Lectio Divina that Pope Benedict XVI emphasized for reading, interpreting and above all applying the word of God, which forgive me is going to be lengthy but I strongly believe Pope Francis’s teaching style or method might make a lot more sense if one considers it:
Verbum Domini
  1. …methods for a faith-filled and fruitful approach to sacred Scripture. Yet the greatest attention was paid to lectio divina…[296] … It opens with the reading ( lectio ) of a text, which leads to a desire to understand its true content: what does the biblical text say in itself? Without this, there is always a risk that the text will become a pretext for never moving beyond our own ideas. Next comes meditation ( meditatio ), which asks: what does the biblical text say to us? Here, each person, individually but also as a member of the community, must let himself or herself be moved and challenged. Following this comes prayer ( oratio ), which asks the question: what do we say to the Lord in response to his word? Prayer… is the primary way by which the word transforms us. Finally, lectio divina concludes with contemplation ( contemplatio ), during which we take up… his own way of seeing and judging reality, and ask ourselves what conversion of mind, heart and life is the Lord asking of us? … Contemplation aims at creating within us a truly wise and discerning vision of reality… forming within us “the mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16)… We do well also to remember that the process of lectio divina is not concluded until it arrives at action ( actio ), which moves the believer to make his or her life a gift for others in charity.
Now that is Pope Benedict XVI: notice that the whole procedure is for not if it does not result in actio; and if the word of God is itself directed toward this end, then I don’t think one could reasonably accuse Pope Francis of foul-play if his own preaching method follows this.
 
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