Cardinal Müller: Latest Vatican Guidance on Divorce-Remarried Communion Represents a ‘Rupture’ With Church Teaching

[Michie]

The former prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith published his concerns in an open letter Oct. 13.

Eight years after a footnote in one of Pope Francis’ signature documents appeared to open the door for divorced-and-remarried Catholics to receive Communion while remaining sexually active, a new round of public conflicts over its doctrinal legitimacy has exposed just how unsettled the issue remains at the highest levels of the Church.

The latest salvo came last week from a
former chief of doctrine at the Vatican, German Cardinal Gerhard Müller, after the Pope and his new prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF), Cardinal Víctor Fernández, the purported ghostwriter of much of Amoris Laetitia(The Joy of Love), on Oct. 3 released their joint response to a formal set of questions, or dubia, on the topic submitted by Czech Cardinal Dominik Duka. Their responsa doubles down on the 2016 apostolic exhortation’s groundbreaking implications.

Cardinal Müller responded on Oct. 13 by releasing his own analysis of the Vatican’s responsa, calling it a “rupture” with the clear teachings of Pope St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. He said it also stands at odds with the Church’s established doctrines about grave sin and the licit reception of the Eucharist.

The main point of contention raised by this document, according to the cardinal, is the criterion for admission to the sacraments for divorced-and-remarried people. The Vatican’s response stated, indeed, that the bishops should develop Amoris Laetitia-based criteria in their dioceses that “can help priests in the accompaniment and discernment of divorced people living in a new union.” It added that the Pope’s letter of approval of the guidelines issued by the bishops of Buenos Aires’ pastoral region for the interpretation of the apostolic exhortation, in 2016, were “authentic magisterium.”

Continued below.

Cardinal Müller: Latest Vatican Guidance on Divorce-Remarried Communion Represents a ‘Rupture’ With Church Teaching

The former prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith published his concerns in an open letter Oct. 13.

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[Wolseley]

I used to worry about stuff like this. I remember how upset I got back in 2002 after the news of the sexual molestation cases committed by clergy broke.

But now? Now, I just shrug. I don't know whether it's because I'm 20 years older and tired of the drama, or whether the firestorm of dealing with the PTSD and all the fallout from it has burned me out, or whether it's simply because I have come to understand that there isn't a cotton-pickin' thing I can do about it anyway; but I have more or less adopted the stance of Pope John XXIII: "It's Your Church, Lord. I'm going to bed."

It's not just the Church, either. It seems like every stable anchor we've all grown up with is exploding, crashing, and burning: our sexual beliefs; our election system; our government; our institutions of higher learning; our societal mores; marriage; our economy; our understanding of our own history; it's all going up in flames. I can't fret about it any more. All I do is shrug, pray, and await the blessed day when I finally croak and get my reprieve off this rotten little planet.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

"Eight years after a footnote in one of Pope Francis’ signature documents appeared to open the door for divorced-and-remarried Catholics to receive Communion while remaining sexually active, "

This is false. Pope Francis didn't open the door for divorced and remarried Catholics, and was specific about
the issue.

Pope Francis merely called for pastoral guidance for couples who were remarried, when annulment of the first marriage
would not be possible because of lack of documentation necessary. Such people married in China or some other
areas of the world where their first marriage could not be proven to be valid. The remarriage could be blessed and
approved in the Church.