Horrifying: Francis claims Church lacks “privileged voice” in ethics, morals

Wow.  Via Eponymous Flower, one of the most disturbing statements emanating from Francis I’ve read to date.  Speaking before the Italian Committee on Bioethics recently, Pope Francis had this to say, according to Vatican Insider:

Francis said: “Everyone is aware of how sensitive the Church is to ethical issues but perhaps it is not clear to everyone that the Church does not lay claim to a privileged voice in this field; [Whaaa?!?!] in fact it is a source of great satisfaction for the Church when civic responsibility at different levels is able to reflect, discern and act according to a free and open way of thinking and inspired by integral human and social values. This mature civic responsibility is a sign that the seed of the Gospel – which has been revealed and entrusted to the Church – has produced fruits, successfully fostering the search for truth and good in complex human and ethical questions” [This last statement might seem to ameliorate the first a bit, but what is he saying?  He seems to be saying that “integral human and social values” are Gospel values, and they are, but that is such a reductive view of the Gospel, which is first and foremost about SALVATION. The first statement – that the Church does not lay claim to a privileged voice in ethical – or moral – matters is incredible, inexplicable, and indefensible.  Like “who am I to judge,” this can be used by enemies of the constant belief and practice of the Faith within the Church for many years to come.  How dare you speak out against abortion, or usury, or anything else?  The Church doesn’t have a privileged voice, after all.]

…….Pope Francis said in a meeting with the Italian Committee for Bioethics today, highlighting the risk of utility and profit being the only reference points for developments in science and biological and medical technologies. He urged this advisory body of the Italian government, headed by Francesco Paolo Casavola, a Catholic, to look further into environmental degradation, “disability and the marginalisation of vulnerable individuals”. [Purely humanistic concerns.  But what about the state’s role in fostering good morals and even an environment conducive to the salvation of souls, something so many previous Pope’s have highlighted?] He asked them in other words to tackle the challenge of countering today’s “throwaway culture” which “takes on many forms, including treating human embryos as disposable material, as well as sick and elderly people approaching the end”. The Pope also asked them to harmonise standards and norms in the biological and medical fields.

Francis seems increasingly to exist in a world I might call fantastic, or something like a fantasy-land. At a time when the Christian influence on the culture, especially in the post-Christian West, is falling away more rapidly than at anytime in recorded history, he points at integral human and social values in bioethics – a highly morally troubled field, to be kind – as evidence of Gospel influence?  Yes, tilting one’s head sideways and ignoring a great deal of contrary evidence, there is a bit of truth to that, but implying that modern-day progressive humanist values as strongly Gospel-inspired is simply incredible.

 

I guess more concerning – more obviously substantial – is his correlation of humanism with the Gospel. Again, that is true, to a point, but there are no distinctions made, no rebuke against the grave errors that inhabit the mind of many “ethicists” (this is the same profession, after all, that has told us that post-birth abortion “aka murder” of children up to five is perfectly acceptable), no demarcating a clear line of distinction between the positive humanism of Jesus Christ and the profoundly negative, materialist, soul-destroying humanism of the modern-day progressive outlook.

And on top of it all, the statement that the Church has no privileged voice when it comes to public ethics!  No wonder he looks down upon those praying outside abortion mills as interloping busy bodies!  No wonder he opposed the effort of tens of thousands of Italian Catholics to stop their nation from accepting the lie of pseudo-sodo-marriage!  Little wonder he lists “environmental degradation” as one of the most grave evils to combat!

This is well beyond even anything that Pope Paul VI was willing to advocate, heretofore far and away the most secular-minded, progressive pope in history.  It is the veritable opposite of what virtually every single other predecessor of his in his vital office has ever decreed, such as Pope Leo XIII stating: “The Church of Christ is the true and sole teacher of virtue and guardian of morals.”  However, this kind of declaration is in line with how a secular left-leaning individual views the Church. In fact, it is entirely in context with what we have seen of this entire agenda to remake the Church into what Francis somehow claims to loathe – just another worldly, money-funneling, occasionally-do-some-good NGO.

I’m quite surprised this comment hasn’t received far more attention than it has, because it’s really shocking.  Have we already become inured to such declarations?  That’s a potential follow-on effect of this pontificate, that it reshape the views of even those doubtful, or openly opposed, to its course in ways they themselves don’t quite realize.  Thus the revolution embodied -and, according to many of his collaborators, intended – by this pontificate can become deeply ingrained in the Catholic psyche, affecting the sensus fidei of millions for years or decades to come  And as I said, this can even trickle down to those who have grave concerns.

Feature or bug?