The “Spirit” of the Pope's Return from Rio | James V. Schall, SJ

The
“Spirit” of the Pope's Return from Rio | James
V. Schall, SJ | CWR

Reminiscent of the
immediate post-conciliar era, we're seeing a battle between the
“spirit” and the actual words of Francis

“Pope
Adopts a Milder Tone toward Gays and Women”
— Headline,
San Francisco Chronicle July 30, 2013.

“Shift
in Tone on Gays Thrills Local Catholics”
— Headline,
San Francisco Chronicle, July 31, 2013.

“Stunning
Remarks on Gays: Pope: ‘Who Am I to Judge?’”
— Headline,
San Jose Mercury-News, July 30, 2013.

I.

In the
struggle between illusion and reality, illusion (even delusion) often
gains the upper hand. Images can overshadow an idea thought to be
fixed. The above three headlines are taken from local papers suddenly
paying careful attention to remarks of the Holy Father. Though none
of the editorials or news columns actually said that the Church had
changed its teaching on homosexuality, the unavoidable impression
from the headlines and the articles was that finally the stubborn old
Church was on its way to doing so. This reaction was what these
varied writers made of the Pope’s remarks on homosexuality, the
ones that they thought most important from the papal trip to Brazil.

Judging
by the local press, very little went on at World Youth Day in Rio
until the Pope’s interview with the Press on his return flight to
Rome. Then, like a clap of thunder, the news arrived that the Church
had suddenly changed. Instead of opposing gays, the Pope was
welcoming them. A new day had dawned. The San Jose Mercury-News
editorial affirmed: “What a heartening declaration from the Roman
Catholic pontiff. We hope it helps open the minds of some vocal
Christians opposed to gay rights.” The Chronicle editorial,
entitled “Reboot for Catholicism,” continued: “While he (the
Pope) hasn’t gone as far as many liberal-minded Catholics would
like, he’s clearly aiming to move the church in the direction of
both modernity and radical empathy—the very direction it needs to
go after so many years of scandal and turmoil.” We have little
doubt about “how far liberal-minded Catholics” and others would
like to see the Church go in this area—to full-scale acceptance of
the gay life and all it implies.

All the
things that the Holy Father said to the millions of youth in Rio
about belief, prayer, concern for the poor, humility, and other basic
Catholic themes paled by contrast to the remarks about gays. The
casual reader of these newspaper accounts could not help but thinking
that some radical change of Church doctrine had taken place on the
flight back to Rome, one almost the equivalent of denying the
validity of the Incarnation.

In
context, as even the headlines in Huffpost Gay Voices (July
31) noticed: “Pope Francis Against Gay Marriage, Gay Adoption.”
What changed, evidently, was not the doctrine but the “mood” or
perception of it. The Pope specifically said: “No overt homosexual
activities” are possible or moral. From now on, however, as a
friend suggested, we are in for a period not unlike the post-Vatican
II era. We then saw a war of words between “the spirit” and the
“meaning” of the Council. Now it will be between the “spirit”
and the wording of WYD Rio, Return Flight.

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