A fascinating interview. While Rayond Arroyo, like any good journalist, tries to pin down the cardinal to a particular black or white point of view, the cardinal insisted on relating the synod as he experienced it rather than as the press would like to frame it, whether from a conservative or a liberal standpoint.
Cardinal Wuerl, I think, made a good case that the synod was not in fact about doctrine, and that doctrine will not change. He made some sense out of the admittedly (to me at least) confusing phraseology of some of the synod statements. It isn’t about admonishing the sinner or demanding compliance with doctrine. It is about bringing all people to Christ. And to do that, to get them to listen to you, you first need to listen to them, to understand their current situation. Only when the person knows you have understood them can you proceed to lead them to Christ.
At least that’s my take on what the cardinal said. Of course, I would like more clarity on doctrine because I’m pretty sure that doctrine is not well understood by many people. But I can at least understand that the emphasis is on personal evangelization.
