Pope Implies Jesus Tolerated Divorce for the Sake of Mercy

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This morning Pope Francis gave a homily at Casa Santa Marta where he appeared to claim that Jesus approved of the Mosaic Law on divorce on the grounds of mercy. Or, as Francis put it, Jesus enunciated the "official" truth while then going above it or beyond it in order to engage in accompaniment, integration and discernment.

This is of course the very opposite of what is described in Matthew 19 and Mark 10. It is the Pharisees who attempt to use the Mosaic Law to justify divorce. And it is Jesus who rebukes them for it.

The Pope is fond of accusing his enemies of "casuistry" but it is he who consistently engages in it. This twisting of one of the most famous exchanges in the New Testament is striking in its attempt to mislead.

From the homily:

“But Jesus,” Pope Francis continued, “so merciful, He is so great, that he never, never, never, closes the door to sinners.” And so He does not limit Himself to proclaiming the truth of God, but goes on to ask the Pharisees what Moses had established in the Law. And when the Pharisees responded that Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce, Jesus replied that this was permitted “because of the hardness of your hearts.” That is, the Pope explained, Jesus always distinguished between the truth and “human weakness” without “twisting words.” 

In the world in which we live, with this culture of the provisional, this reality of sin is so strong. But Jesus, recalling Moses, tells us: “But there is hardness of heart, there is sin, something can be done: forgiveness, understanding, accompaniment, integration, discernment of these cases… But always… But the truth is never sold. And Jesus is capable of stating this very great truth, and at the same time being so understanding with sinners, with the weak.

Happy Feast of the Holy Family! Pope Claims Jesus Had to Beg Forgiveness From His Parents

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Yes, this accurately describes the reality. If you have a problem with it, take it up with Francis.

Jesus asked God the Father to forgive others. He never asked anyone to forgive Him.

Well, okay, he asked Mary Magdalen to forgive Him, but that was only a movie.

To be serious, there is a simple and obvious reason why Jesus never asked anyone to forgive Him: He never committed a sin.

That's because, while fully man, he was also fully God, and God doesn't commit sins, even, you know, small ones.

Incredibly, the Pope (the Pope!) doesn't seem to understand or believe this. In his homily for the feast of the Holy Family he claimed (emphasis in red):

At the end of that pilgrimage, Jesus returned to Nazareth and was obedient to his parents (cf. Lk 2:51). This image also contains a beautiful teaching about our families. A pilgrimage does not end when we arrive at our destination, but when we return home and resume our everyday lives, putting into practice the spiritual fruits of our experience. We know what Jesus did on that occasion. Instead of returning home with his family, he stayed in Jerusalem, in the Temple, causing great distress to Mary and Joseph who were unable to find him. For this little “escapade”, Jesus probably had to beg forgiveness of his parents. The Gospel doesn’t say this, but I believe that we can presume it. Mary’s question, moreover, contains a certain reproach, revealing the concern and anguish which she and Joseph felt.

Now, of course, if we believe the Bible account, we know what really happened. Jesus didn't beg forgiveness when His parents finally found Him. Instead:

When they saw Him, they were astonished; and His mother said to Him, "Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You." And He said to them, "Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father's house?" But they did not understand the statement which He had made to them.…

In my view, that's one of the most memorable passages in the New Testament. Through a window of 2,000 years you can feel the concern, and then the astonishment, of Mary and Joseph. They were worried about their son, as any parents would be. Interestingly, though, while they get an answer they didn't expect--"I was in My Father's House"--an answer that in the mouth of any other child would have been interpreted as obnoxious at the least, they do not reproach Him or box his ears, etc. Rather, Luke records them as being merely puzzled. I think they were also awed. They knew their son was heaven sent, even if they did not yet know He was God.  

But back to the Pope. He makes statements that no knowledgable and faithful Christian would ever make. He either doesn't know his Christian teachings or he disagrees with them.

I do not think any more that he believes that Jesus was the Son of God.

Is the Pope Catholic? Well, he was baptized, obviously, and he was confirmed as a Catholic and then as a priest. So. in that sense, of course he's a Catholic. On the other hand, in terms of subscribing to Catholic teachings, the evidence suggests that the answer would be no.

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A word on sources. This homily is taken from the Official Vatican Network. But I was directed to it by Novus Ordo Watch. The funny/unfunny blog title picture is from their post. Novus Ordo Watch is a sedevacantist group. I am not a sedevacantist, and there's about as much chance of me ever becoming one as there is of me opening up a brothel in Tangiers or becoming a Sufi . . . or being elected President of the United States. If you have read many of my posts, you will also see that I disagree with the Novus guys on a great many matters.

But you know what? Aside from falsely (in my view) believing that the Pope is NOT the Pope, they've been more right and less wrong about Pope matters than the majority of Catholic bloggers. Give them some credit, unless you're one of those people who has an inordinate fear of what other people think.

Pray for them. And pray for all of us.

Ship of Fools Reviews the Last Supper

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2882: Upper room, Mount Zion, Kingdom of Judea and Samaria

Mystery Worshipper: Synagogue Shopper (official Ship of Fools reviewer).

The church: The upper room of an anonymous residence just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, Kingdom of Judea and Samaria.

Denomination: Jewish.

The building: An unremarkable building in near suburban Jerusalem. Not poor but not showy or upperclass either.

The church: As implied, it wasn't a church per se. The room itself was spacious, longer than one would think from looking at the outside of the building. It was sparsely decorated but well cleaned and kept. I particularly noticed the restored lighting fixtures.

The neighborhood: Basic mud and stone architecture. The area itself has a strong Essene presence. I find them annoying but not dangerous.

The cast: A Rabbi (I didn't get his name) and a small group of parishioners, all male.

The date & time: April 1, 33 (Passover), 9.00pm.

What was the name of the service?
The Pasch.

How full was the building?
I would estimate 10-20. The room was fairly large but only had seating for that many.

Did anyone welcome you personally?
No. I was there because I overheard men talking of a Passover meal, and having no other place to go, decided to attend. First I followed a man carrying a pitcher of water. Then, upon entering an unmarked building I gave a sort of password to the butler and was directed to an upstairs room. When I entered, I saw a table set for the Passover meal with all of the seats already taken. I was glared at by a number of the parishioners, as if it were a "private" service or something. But the Rabbi made a sign that it was permitted. I took a seat in the corner and tried to be unobtrusive. Throughout the service a few of the parishioners kept occasionally glaring. In other words, it was pretty unwelcoming.

Was your pew comfortable?
The chair in the corner was not very comfortable. No.

How would you describe the pre-service atmosphere?
Not very prayerful. People were talking amongst themselves and making sure they had the right silverware and so forth.

What were the exact opening words of the service?
"Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine."

What books did the congregation use during the service?

None, as far as I could tell.

What musical instruments were played?
None. The atmosphere was quiet and sombre. I couldn’t put my finger on it at the time, but on reflection there seemed to be a significant lack of joy in the place.

Did anything distract you?

Well, I was quite hungry at the time so I was distracted by the sight of the food laid out for the regular parishioners. And then of course I was distracted by observing them eating it. But due to the hostile glares, I didn't feel comfortable going up to the table. 

Was the worship stiff-upper-lip, happy clappy, or what?
I guess I'd say, "or what." It was neither stiff not happy clappy. On the one hand the atmosphere was somewhat informal and everyone including the Rabbi seemed to know each other. On the other hand, everyone except the Rabbi seemed a bit stressed out and depressed.

Exactly how long was the sermon?
15 minutes.

On a scale of 1-10, how good was the preacher?
5 – That's a tough one. Much of the Rabbi's sermon was quite moving, but there were some elements to the service that were very bizarre. For example, at one point, the Rabbi got up from his position, picked up a rag and bowl and actually started washing his parishioners' feet! There appeared to be some argument about this from one of the parishioners, but then everyone got up and began doing it, madly washing feet and then in turn having them washed. I had never seen anything like it at my regular synagogue. The other weird thing was that towards the end, the Rabbi actually instructed his parishioners to purchase weapons! Without missing a beat, two of them started waving swords around--in the middle of the service! Thinking I had gotten mixed up in some politics or something, I hid in my corner. However, after all that, and for reasons I can't quite put my finger on, I have to admit there was something about that Rabbi I really liked.

In a nutshell, what was the sermon about?
Well, I gather it was sort of a farewell sermon due to the Rabbi being transferred or something (he looked too young to retire). But the whole thing was a bit mysterious as to where he was going and why, and I think many of the parishioners didn't understand it either. I decided this was the main reason why everyone was sombre.

Which part of the service was like being in heaven?
The Rabbi asked his parishioners to love one another as they loved him, and as he in turn loved them. In addition, as he was pouring the Passover wine and breaking the Passover bread, he said that the wine was his blood and the bread was his body. I won't claim this wasn't initially off-putting and confusing. And I'm still not sure what he meant exactly. But I do have to say that the more I think about it, the more it seems that something very important was being communicated.

And which part was like being in... er... the other place?
So, I've seen Rabbis publicly reprimand people for talking and whispering during synagogue, and frankly, I think that's rude on the Rabbi's part. It's certainly not welcoming or inclusive. But this Rabbi did something I have never seen. Right in the middle of the sermon he accused his parishioners of harboring the intention to betray him! First it seemed to be directed against just one parishioner but then he accused another! Unbelievable! This was so offensive that one of the parishioners got up and left right then and there, never to return. Of course I surmised that the Rabbi was being transferred because he was a paranoid. 

What happened when you hung around after the service looking lost?
After singing a hymn, everyone filed out quickly and I was left alone in the room. I shouted for the butler but I think he had gone to sleep.

How would you describe the after-service coffee?
There was no coffee.

How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
2 – It was certainly an experience, I'll tell you that. I'm giving it a low rating partly because I don't think services are held there on a regular basis.

Did the service make you feel glad to be a Christian?
What's a Christian?

What one thing will you remember about all this in seven days' time?
The restored lighting fixtures.

For further reading, see here, here and especially here. This is for Fr. Blake, from an idea by Liam Ronan.