- Feb 5, 2002
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There is a legitimate doctrinal pluralism, but how can the Church distinguish legitimate from illegitimate ways of expressing the faith without distinguishing truth and falsity?
In the recent Letter of Pope Francisto the new Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, I was particularly struck by two points made by Francis about the mission of the Dicastery: one, to promote theological knowledge rather than pursuing possible doctrinal errors; two, he cites from Evangelii Gaudium (40) that the Church “‘grow in her interpretation of the revealed word and in her understanding of truth’ without this implying the imposition of a single way of expressing it.”
For the sake of fairness to Francis, in the February 14, 2022, Apostolic Letter Fidem Servare, he spoke of the DDF’s task being that of the “promotion and protection of the doctrine of faith and morals.” In addition, he says that in this regard the DDF must examine “writings and opinions which appear problematic for the correct faith, encouraging dialogue with their authors and proposing suitable remedies.”
These additional points from Fidem Servare are absent from Francis’ Letter because, in the latter, he explicitly distances himself from defending the faith from error. Yes, there is a legitimate doctrinal pluralism, but how can the DDF distinguish legitimate from illegitimate ways of expressing the faith without distinguishing truth and falsity, which will involve defending the faith from doctrinal errors? It can’t!
Continued below.
crisismagazine.com
In the recent Letter of Pope Francisto the new Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, I was particularly struck by two points made by Francis about the mission of the Dicastery: one, to promote theological knowledge rather than pursuing possible doctrinal errors; two, he cites from Evangelii Gaudium (40) that the Church “‘grow
For the sake of fairness to Francis, in the February 14, 2022, Apostolic Letter Fidem Servare, he spoke of the DDF’s task being that of the “promotion and protection of the doctrine of faith and morals.” In addition, he says that in this regard the DDF must examine “writings and opinions which appear problematic for the correct faith, encouraging dialogue with their authors and proposing suitable remedies.”
These additional points from Fidem Servare are absent from Francis’ Letter because, in the latter, he explicitly distances himself from defending the faith from error. Yes, there is a legitimate doctrinal pluralism, but how can the DDF distinguish legitimate from illegitimate ways of expressing the faith without distinguishing truth and falsity, which will involve defending the faith from doctrinal errors? It can’t!
Continued below.
Pope Francis’ View of Truth
There is a legitimate doctrinal pluralism, but how can the Church distinguish legitimate from illegitimate ways of expressing the faith without distinguishing truth and falsity?
crisismagazine.com
