Re: Francis’s need for a clean-up crew: perhaps his approach could be likened to Christ’s in John 6. If his hearers believe his teaching to be true they will humbly wrestle with it, if not they will combatively oppose it. Perhaps he figures his hearers are already predisposed to either obedience or opposition and that by teaching what he believes is true he gives both “sides” what they most deeply need (guidance toward the heart of God in the first case, an opportunity for deeper reflection/conversion in the second.)
I'm so glad you incorporated Evangelii gaudium into this conversation - it's still my favorite of Francis' encyclicals and in my opinion it has aged very well.
One thing that many Catholics I know (and sometimes I myself) struggle with is the disconnect between what Francis says and the decisions he makes and how they will inevitably be perceived. It could be that Francis really does exist "above the fray" in such a way that he truly just does what he thinks is right and doesn't give any thought to the optics, but that's so hard to believe. It's hard to believe that after Traditiones custodes that he didn't know that his disciplinary actions against +Strickland and Cardinal Burke would be perceived by traditional/conservative Catholics as ideologically targeted, to name one example. If you read Francis, you get one impression; if you watch the news, you get another. Sometimes it feels like he needs a cleanup crew to come through and explain everything he's doing; that doesn't always seem like a helpful pastoral strategy. What do you think? Is this a mischaracterization?
As a side note, I'd love to get your thoughts on why he hasn't taken similar action against the German bishops when they have been flagrant in their dissent from Catholic teaching and in charging ahead without Rome's approval with their "Synodal Way." Do you think the progressive wing of the global church represents less of a threat to ecclesial unity than the traditionalist wing?
Thanks for the comment, and for cross-posting on your Substack!
On the first part, I guess it depends on what you mean by "ideologically targeted." I was trying to make the case that Francis implemented Traditiones Custodes and disciplined Strickland and Burke in part to hamper an ideology or movement in the Church that rejects key teachings of Vatican II, or at least in the latter cases, that rejects the implementation of the council through the synodal process, for example. So, I would say that is "ideological" in a neutral, or even good way, and you could contrast that with the idea that Francis going after Burke and Strickland as personal revenge for criticizing him. But if by "ideological" you mean unequally applying disciplinary measures based on his philosophical preferences, then maybe the jury is still out.
As far as a clean up crew, it's funny, in a post I wrote a few weeks ago on the philosopher Antonio Rosmini, I pointed out that this is nothing new--Pope John Paul II had a similar personality in that he liked to do what he thought was right and let others (usually Cardinal Ratzinger) clean up the mess later. The most famous example was the World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi in 1986, where he prayed together with leaders of other world religions. Francis is obviously a bit more off the cuff than JP2 when it comes to his remarks, like his recent comments on Hell, so I think that adds to it. But I think part of what I was trying to do in this article is to show that the gap between what he writes and how he acts publicly as some might think.
As far as the German Synodal Way, I've brought it up a few times in articles over the past few months. Francis has actually made several pointed criticisms, as have the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Secretariat of State, with most of the focus on the problems of a Synodal Council with jurisdictional authority over the bishops of Germany. I wouldn't sleep on that. I know others have noted that Francis does take his time and let things play out before taking disciplinary measures, so I imagine he is watching to see how things work out in Germany before taking some more definitive action, but I would not be surprised if he does do something further down the road if things continue as the Synodal Way leaders are proposing. But like I said in the article, I'm also interested to see how the Vatican responds, if at all, to the bishops who have issued rubrics for liturgical blessings of same-sex couples.
Re: Francis’s need for a clean-up crew: perhaps his approach could be likened to Christ’s in John 6. If his hearers believe his teaching to be true they will humbly wrestle with it, if not they will combatively oppose it. Perhaps he figures his hearers are already predisposed to either obedience or opposition and that by teaching what he believes is true he gives both “sides” what they most deeply need (guidance toward the heart of God in the first case, an opportunity for deeper reflection/conversion in the second.)
I'm so glad you incorporated Evangelii gaudium into this conversation - it's still my favorite of Francis' encyclicals and in my opinion it has aged very well.
One thing that many Catholics I know (and sometimes I myself) struggle with is the disconnect between what Francis says and the decisions he makes and how they will inevitably be perceived. It could be that Francis really does exist "above the fray" in such a way that he truly just does what he thinks is right and doesn't give any thought to the optics, but that's so hard to believe. It's hard to believe that after Traditiones custodes that he didn't know that his disciplinary actions against +Strickland and Cardinal Burke would be perceived by traditional/conservative Catholics as ideologically targeted, to name one example. If you read Francis, you get one impression; if you watch the news, you get another. Sometimes it feels like he needs a cleanup crew to come through and explain everything he's doing; that doesn't always seem like a helpful pastoral strategy. What do you think? Is this a mischaracterization?
As a side note, I'd love to get your thoughts on why he hasn't taken similar action against the German bishops when they have been flagrant in their dissent from Catholic teaching and in charging ahead without Rome's approval with their "Synodal Way." Do you think the progressive wing of the global church represents less of a threat to ecclesial unity than the traditionalist wing?
Thanks for the comment, and for cross-posting on your Substack!
On the first part, I guess it depends on what you mean by "ideologically targeted." I was trying to make the case that Francis implemented Traditiones Custodes and disciplined Strickland and Burke in part to hamper an ideology or movement in the Church that rejects key teachings of Vatican II, or at least in the latter cases, that rejects the implementation of the council through the synodal process, for example. So, I would say that is "ideological" in a neutral, or even good way, and you could contrast that with the idea that Francis going after Burke and Strickland as personal revenge for criticizing him. But if by "ideological" you mean unequally applying disciplinary measures based on his philosophical preferences, then maybe the jury is still out.
As far as a clean up crew, it's funny, in a post I wrote a few weeks ago on the philosopher Antonio Rosmini, I pointed out that this is nothing new--Pope John Paul II had a similar personality in that he liked to do what he thought was right and let others (usually Cardinal Ratzinger) clean up the mess later. The most famous example was the World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi in 1986, where he prayed together with leaders of other world religions. Francis is obviously a bit more off the cuff than JP2 when it comes to his remarks, like his recent comments on Hell, so I think that adds to it. But I think part of what I was trying to do in this article is to show that the gap between what he writes and how he acts publicly as some might think.
As far as the German Synodal Way, I've brought it up a few times in articles over the past few months. Francis has actually made several pointed criticisms, as have the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Secretariat of State, with most of the focus on the problems of a Synodal Council with jurisdictional authority over the bishops of Germany. I wouldn't sleep on that. I know others have noted that Francis does take his time and let things play out before taking disciplinary measures, so I imagine he is watching to see how things work out in Germany before taking some more definitive action, but I would not be surprised if he does do something further down the road if things continue as the Synodal Way leaders are proposing. But like I said in the article, I'm also interested to see how the Vatican responds, if at all, to the bishops who have issued rubrics for liturgical blessings of same-sex couples.