Pope Benedict: Halt Cafeteria Catholicism!

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Pope Benedict Stresses Necessity to Halt Cafeteria Catholicism

lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jul/05070504.html

VATICAN, July 5, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - On Sunday Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the necessity of Catholics to accept the whole of the faith. “Dear brothers and sisters how necessary it is today at the dawn of the third millennium for the entire Catholic community to proclaim, teach and witness to the entire truth of Catholic faith, doctrine and morals in a unanimous and harmonious manner!,” he stressed.

http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/images/2005/Beendict XVI.jpgHis comments came as he spoke of the recently completed abbreviated Catechism known as the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Compendium, in addition to proclaiming the church’s popular teachings on the necessity of caring for the poor and the striving for peace, teaches the truth on the grave evils of abortion and of sexual practices unbecoming humanity such as adultery and homosexuality.

Pope Benedict noted that the completion of the Compendium happened by “Divine Providence” to coincide “with the opening of the cause for beatification of our beloved Pope John Paul II.”

John Paul II also stressed the need for Catholics to maintain the fullness of the Church’s teachings and not pick and choose the teachings as they saw fit. Speaking to the Bishops of the United States at Queen of Angels Seminary in Los Angeles on September 16, 1987, Pope John Paul II stated: "It is sometimes reported that a large number of Catholics today do not adhere to the teaching of the Catholic Church on a number of questions, notably sexual and conjugal morality, divorce and remarriage. Some are reported as not accepting the clear position on abortion. It has to be noted that there is a tendency on the part of some Catholics to be selective in their adherence to the Church’s moral teaching. It is sometimes claimed that dissent from the magisterium is totally compatible with being a ‘good Catholic,’ and poses no obstacle to the reception of the Sacraments. This is a grave error that challenges the teaching of the Bishops in the United States and elsewhere. "

In related news, the election of a German Pope seems to have boosted the faith in Germany. Cardinal Karl Lehmann, the Archbishop of Mainz, has reported that in his diocese during the period from May to June more people returned to the practice of the faith than in the whole of 2004.

See Pope Benedict’s full address (in Italian):
[vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/ang…](http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jul/<a%20href=http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/b...005/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20050703_it.html>http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/ang…)
 
Ani Ibi said:
Pope Benedict Stresses Necessity to Halt Cafeteria Catholicism

lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jul/05070504.html

VATICAN, July 5, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - On Sunday Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the necessity of Catholics to accept the whole of the faith. “Dear brothers and sisters how necessary it is today at the dawn of the third millennium for the entire Catholic community to proclaim, teach and witness to the entire truth of Catholic faith, doctrine and morals in a unanimous and harmonious manner!,” he stressed.

http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/images/2005/Beendict XVI.jpgHis comments came as he spoke of the recently completed abbreviated Catechism known as the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Compendium, in addition to proclaiming the church’s popular teachings on the necessity of caring for the poor and the striving for peace, teaches the truth on the grave evils of abortion and of sexual practices unbecoming humanity such as adultery and homosexuality.

Pope Benedict noted that the completion of the Compendium happened by “Divine Providence” to coincide “with the opening of the cause for beatification of our beloved Pope John Paul II.”

John Paul II also stressed the need for Catholics to maintain the fullness of the Church’s teachings and not pick and choose the teachings as they saw fit. Speaking to the Bishops of the United States at Queen of Angels Seminary in Los Angeles on September 16, 1987, Pope John Paul II stated: "It is sometimes reported that a large number of Catholics today do not adhere to the teaching of the Catholic Church on a number of questions, notably sexual and conjugal morality, divorce and remarriage. Some are reported as not accepting the clear position on abortion. It has to be noted that there is a tendency on the part of some Catholics to be selective in their adherence to the Church’s moral teaching. It is sometimes claimed that dissent from the magisterium is totally compatible with being a ‘good Catholic,’ and poses no obstacle to the reception of the Sacraments. This is a grave error that challenges the teaching of the Bishops in the United States and elsewhere. "

In related news, the election of a German Pope seems to have boosted the faith in Germany. Cardinal Karl Lehmann, the Archbishop of Mainz, has reported that in his diocese during the period from May to June more people returned to the practice of the faith than in the whole of 2004.

See Pope Benedict’s full address (in Italian):
[[vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/ang…](http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/angelus/2005/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20050703_it.html)](http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/jul/<a%20href=http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/b...005/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20050703_it.html>http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/ang…)
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…here is the moral dilemma…I assent through Obedience to what The Church proclaims and teaches, although I may have real questions on the issue … purely as an example… if I say am asked “Do you believe you must go to Confession at least once a year at Easter or within the appointed time” and I say “Yes I do” (true) am I morally correct in not stating my whole position ie. I have serious questions on the issue although I do believe The Church and obey because I hold Obedience to be superior in this instance. Just a question

Barb
 
"It is sometimes reported that a large number of Catholics today do not adhere to the teaching of the Catholic Church on a number of questions, notably sexual and conjugal morality, divorce and remarriage. Some are reported as not accepting the clear position on abortion. It has to be noted that there is a tendency on the part of some Catholics to be selective in their adherence to the Church’s moral teaching. It is sometimes claimed that dissent from the magisterium is totally compatible with being a ‘good Catholic,’ and poses no obstacle to the reception of the Sacraments. This is a grave error that challenges the teaching of the Bishops in the United States and elsewhere. "
 
Positive but we want changes in bishops and archbishops, for example in Spain
 
Quite a meaningless statement as it is impossible to detect (except in a few politicians and other public figures) and very difficult to remedy. One’s true beliefs are totally between the person and God.
 
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Brad:
I love the truth.
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Me too, and …I don’t think anything our dear Holy Father says is meaningless. You’re right about God knowing though, however, God also knows if one is listening to His representative on earth or not too.
 
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ByzantineCatho:
God bless our dear Pope! 👍
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Welcome my fellow Byzantine Catholic!

As the Vicar of Christ, you LISTEN to him!
If you don’t, repent or Get out of the Way!
We may lose some Catholics, but were they Catholic to begin with?

Sorry to seem blunt but this IS Christ’s Church. This is a Lordship. In this kind of setup, one is submissive to a ruler. NO ONE trumps Christ!
 
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allhers:
Me too, and …I don’t think anything our dear Holy Father says is meaningless. You’re right about God knowing though, however, God also knows if one is listening to His representative on earth or not too.
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God also knows if one is obedient because obedience is a virtue and an evangelical counsel … and if one has serious and honest with absolute integrity questions that dont seem to have answers.

I put obedience to a far superior wisdom than mine (The Church) as always prime…while still trying to resolve questions on some matters and if one asks them one is accused of all sorts of manner of things … until one decides to say nothing…well more or less without a persecution complex!
]
I think we should be able to question and look for answers without personal accusations…and on any subject whatsoever!..otherwise people ask questions of us and we dont have answers and impoverish ourselves in the call to evangelize. A thousand difficulties with an issue cannot add up to one sing le doubt!

Barb
 
Barb,

May God Bless You.

I totally understand what you are saying.
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BarbaraTherese:
…here is the moral dilemma…I assent through Obedience to what The Church proclaims and teaches, although I may have real questions on the issue.
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BarbaraTherese:
I put obedience to a far superior wisdom than mine (The Church) as always prime…while still trying to resolve questions on some matters and if one asks them one is accused of all sorts of manner of things … until one decides to say nothing.
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I was at this exact place when I made the decision to fully enter the Church.

In my time I have come to fully assent to all the Church Teaches, well almost fully. There are still a couple of nagging points but I do not talk about them as the Church Teaches the Truth and I am working to understand that Truth and to form myself.
 
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BarbaraTherese:
God also knows if one is obedient because obedience is a virtue and an evangelical counsel … and if one has serious and honest with absolute integrity questions that dont seem to have answers.

I put obedience to a far superior wisdom than mine (The Church) as always prime…while still trying to resolve questions on some matters and if one asks them one is accused of all sorts of manner of things … until one decides to say nothing…well more or less without a persecution complex!
]
I think we should be able to question and look for answers without personal accusations…and on any subject whatsoever!..otherwise people ask questions of us and we dont have answers and impoverish ourselves in the call to evangelize. A thousand difficulties with an issue cannot add up to one sing le doubt!
Barb
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I think you’re doing fine. I don’t think that honest struggles with your faith in any way makes you a dissenter. I think that you have a love for God and Church that will bring you to the fullness of Truth. This occurs in God’s time-- not anyone else’s.

Obedience is probably the wisest way to get there-- because it goes hand in hand with building up a trust in God in Church. Sometimes trust and faith is the only way we can bridge the gap between what we know and what we believe.

Acting in honest obedience, and asking God for clarity (a strong prayer life with sacraments) will open your eyes to the good fruits that you are cultivating. As this happens, it makes sense that your eyes would also become open to the (sometimes subtle) bad fruits that occur when we stumble over our pride.

Because we all do that. No matter where we are on whatever spectrum-- we all sin and stumble. The grace is knowing it and letting that grace help us to get back on track.

Peace
 
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ByzCath:
I was at this exact place when I made the decision to fully enter the Church.

In my time I have come to fully assent to all the Church Teaches, well almost fully. There are still a couple of nagging points but I do not talk about them as the Church Teaches the Truth and I am working to understand that Truth and to form myself.
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When you went full assent, is it because you were convinced to do so by people who thought you should Just Get Out of the Church if you don’t?

Alan
 
shannon e:
I think you’re doing fine. I don’t think that honest struggles with your faith in any way makes you a dissenter. I think that you have a love for God and Church that will bring you to the fullness of Truth. This occurs in God’s time-- not anyone else’s.
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Dear shannon e,

I think you are right on target.

The biggest problem is that people tend to get pretty judgmental of others’ attitudes, and therefore the question because in any given case, “are you being honest with your struggles or not?”

I venture to guess that even those who openly dissent may be sinning when they do so, but we tend to look for that key that tells us what the attitude is, so that we can judge them.

Why do we want to judge them? So we can justify anger, frustration, and a desire to see them cut off from the Body of Christ to “keep it pure” from this type of sinner.

Why do we have all the anger and frustration toward CCs? Because we seem to think they are going to hurt the Church somehow, I guess. Maybe those who despise CCs forgot to remember what they keep telling us, that the Church is strong enough the gates of hell will never prevail against her.

Now we have the pope saying:
BXVI:
It is sometimes claimed that dissent from the magisterium is totally compatible with being a ‘good Catholic,’ and poses no obstacle to the reception of the Sacraments. This is a grave error that challenges the teaching of the Bishops in the United States and elsewhere. "
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Gosh, I wish I could see a larger context of this comment. It sounds like the Holy Father has said something that, though true, is going to fuel the anti-CC antibodies in the Body of Christ to continue to attack and try to pressure CCs to “shape up or ship out.” Such as the case with mindless lemmings; because the pope says a certain thing is a problem, out come the sword to find out whose ears we need to chop off or for that matter who do we have to get rid of?

What do I make of the “good Catholic” comment? Here’s why I want to see a bigger context. What sins, may I ask, may one commit and still be a “good Catholic?” Is the Holy Father saying that someone who says they assent but then sins anyway is more “good” than someone who admits they do not assent to a teaching? Surely not, but it’s always hard to tell from just an excerpt from a speech.

How are we to judge which Catholics are “good” and which ones we should vilify? What is more dangerous, a few Catholics who voice their issues, or the huge silent majority of Catholics who never admit to any issues because they keep their mouths shut and keep their dissent to themselves, and don’t give the Church their pharmacy records.

To me, this quote from the Holy Father, at least taken out of context, is not particularly helpful.

I don’t know. I don’t even know what I believe anymore. Maybe I do assent to the Church teachings, I don’t know. The fact that I allow myself to think she may not be infallible, I suppose, makes me a “bad” Catholic. Would the Holy Father prefer I leave his Church? Telling me I’m a bad boy only furthers the emotional stake and makes me more resistant to openness because such assertions do little to witness to Truth other than make Truth look too weak to stand on its own merit. As long as I know I am getting pressure and evil thoughts from those around me because of the way they think I think, then I cannot make an honestly free decision to choose the Church teachings if I wanted to.

Hopefully the whole speech puts it in a better context; reporters tend to pick out the “juicy” parts. If BXVI is going to drive unity by turning his “faithful” against his “less faithful” by calling the ones “better Catholics” then the other, then I would be disappointed in him. That’s why I’m hoping this is just an excerpt. If this is actually his message, then I think he may be a holy man who knows the Church teachings, but can look forward to a poor prognosis with regard to the unity goal.

“Good Catholic.” Fooey. Please somebody tell me he didn’t just say that others who claim to be full assent are better Catholics than those of us who don’t claim so. That would seem to speak against the story of the Good Samaritan, the woman who washed Jesus’ feet, the pharisee and the tax collector, the story about the members of the Body of Christ telling each other “I don’t need you,” the further admonition that the less mentionable and more disgusting member (for example maybe us) should be treated with even greater dignity, His disciples washing their hands, and pretty much everything Christ taught about our attitudes toward one another…

In all these cases, Jesus condemned those who judged these sins more harshly than those who performed them. Hopefully this is not the direction the Holy Father plans to take.

Alan
 
I have an idea. I guess I don’t want to be called “not good” so from now on I will be a Fully Assenting Catholic, so I give up. Persuaded not by logic or leadership, but by desire to quit offending those who think I am not a Good Catholic despite the countless hours I’ve worked for her.

Until I claim otherwise, I hereby publicly claim that I believe the Church is singularly led by the Holy Spirit and she is infallible in faith and morals, and that anything I think of her that is negative is actually wrong. If I do have any opinions to the contrary, I will keep them to myself so as not to offend any “good” Catholics.

There. Problem solved. No more issues with CC. I’ll tell my dissenting friends how easy it is to get back into “good” standing with the Church. If they don’t come along, then I suppose I’ll have to tell them a thing or two – they can either join us in mental assent or get out and join the Protestants…

Alan
 
A month ago,
I was seriousely considering converting to Catholicsm.Its still in the back of my mind. But I didnt know as much about Catholicsm that I thought I did. A lot of theTraditions I didnt know about surfaced and I had a really hard time accepting them. One of my protestant friends suggested I just not do those traditions I’m notokay with.But then I read most of theCatechism to find out that itwas “all or nothing”. Now I’m just trying to better understand those traditions I wasnt okay with.
 
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april_hosen:
A month ago,
I was seriousely considering converting to Catholicsm.Its still in the back of my mind. But I didnt know as much about Catholicsm that I thought I did. A lot of theTraditions I didnt know about surfaced and I had a really hard time accepting them. One of my protestant friends suggested I just not do those traditions I’m notokay with.But then I read most of theCatechism to find out that itwas “all or nothing”. Now I’m just trying to better understand those traditions I wasnt okay with.
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That said, there are many “devotions” which different people have much different preferences on.

For example, there are as many ways to pray as there are Catholics. Some pray the rosary a lot, other prefer the Divine Office, some do contemplative prayer techniques, etc. Some pray to Mary and saints for intercession and others don’t so much. There still are a lot of “flavors” to choose from. What you cannot do is deny the truth of the teachings of the Church.

Once when I still considered myself a “cafeteria Catholic” I tried to make it a good thing, but stating that the Catholic Church is a veritable smorgasbord of devotions, from which we simply choose our preferences. Other friend rightly called me down on that, since “cafeteria Catholic” is a pejorative term and I should not use it to mean something good lest anybody become confused. 😛 Oh, well, I tried. My mind was cunning, but not cunning enough…

Alan
 
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AlanFromWichita:
Now we have the pope saying:

Gosh, I wish I could see a larger context of this comment. It sounds like the Holy Father has said something that, though true, is going to fuel the anti-CC antibodies in the Body of Christ to continue to attack and try to pressure CCs to “shape up or ship out.” Such as the case with mindless lemmings; because the pope says a certain thing is a problem, out come the sword to find out whose ears we need to chop off or for that matter who do we have to get rid of?

What do I make of the “good Catholic” comment? Here’s why I want to see a bigger context. What sins, may I ask, may one commit and still be a “good Catholic?” Is the Holy Father saying that someone who says they assent but then sins anyway is more “good” than someone who admits they do not assent to a teaching? Surely not, but it’s always hard to tell from just an excerpt from a speech.

How are we to judge which Catholics are “good” and which ones we should vilify? What is more dangerous, a few Catholics who voice their issues, or the huge silent majority of Catholics who never admit to any issues because they keep their mouths shut and keep their dissent to themselves, and don’t give the Church their pharmacy records.

To me, this quote from the Holy Father, at least taken out of context, is not particularly helpful.

I don’t know. I don’t even know what I believe anymore. Maybe I do assent to the Church teachings, I don’t know. The fact that I allow myself to think she may not be infallible, I suppose, makes me a “bad” Catholic. Would the Holy Father prefer I leave his Church? Telling me I’m a bad boy only furthers the emotional stake and makes me more resistant to openness because such assertions do little to witness to Truth other than make Truth look too weak to stand on its own merit. As long as I know I am getting pressure and evil thoughts from those around me because of the way they think I think, then I cannot make an honestly free decision to choose the Church teachings if I wanted to.

Hopefully the whole speech puts it in a better context; reporters tend to pick out the “juicy” parts. If BXVI is going to drive unity by turning his “faithful” against his “less faithful” by calling the ones “better Catholics” then the other, then I would be disappointed in him. That’s why I’m hoping this is just an excerpt. If this is actually his message, then I think he may be a holy man who knows the Church teachings, but can look forward to a poor prognosis with regard to the unity goal.

“Good Catholic.” Fooey. Please somebody tell me he didn’t just say that others who claim to be full assent are better Catholics than those of us who don’t claim so. That would seem to speak against the story of the Good Samaritan, the woman who washed Jesus’ feet, the pharisee and the tax collector, the story about the members of the Body of Christ telling each other “I don’t need you,” the further admonition that the less mentionable and more disgusting member (for example maybe us) should be treated with even greater dignity, His disciples washing their hands, and pretty much everything Christ taught about our attitudes toward one another…

In all these cases, Jesus condemned those who judged these sins more harshly than those who performed them. Hopefully this is not the direction the Holy Father plans to take.

Alan
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Alan, brother, you are taking what the Holy Father said in the wrong direction…he is not implying about ‘sin’ in this matter, but ‘dissent’ [from the magisterium]…This is what I was trying to imply in the “other” thread, but you know me, I can be rough around the edges sometimes, lol. He’s saying that some people claim that they don’t believe what the Church teaches [dissent], but still hold the view that they are a “good Catholic,” and that in actuality, the matter is more serious than these people (even the public in most cases) realize, and that it could make for a grave matter when receiving certain sacraments (ie. to partake of the Body and Blood unworthily).
Now sin, that’s a whole other story… 😉
 
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AlanFromWichita:
When you went full assent, is it because you were convinced to do so by people who thought you should Just Get Out of the Church if you don’t?

Alan
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Sorry I truly do not understand what you are saying here.

But let me add, that while there was a time that I did not agree fully with some aspects of what the Church taught, I did not voice that dissent. Even though I disagreed I gave assent of will. That is I followed the Church teachings.

We are free to disagree but we must give assent. We must not voice our disagreement.

Seems this is something that many must learn.

While I might have disagreed intellectually for a time, I was still fully Catholic, I was never a cafeteris Catholic or a Catholic INO as others are.
 
“Cafeteria Catholicism” works both ways. There are many overlly concerned with sexuality while they ignore the social teachings of the Church to help the poor & make peace.

I see few Catholics on the street helping the homeless & hungry,.or going into the ghettos to help single mothers, or visiting prisoners & the sick.

So again perhaps we should remove the plank from our own eye before seeking to remove the speck from someone else’s.

catholicworker.org/
 
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