It is clear to my mind, from everything Pope Francis has said and done so far, that the holy Pontiff has significant changes in mind for the Church. Now the most likely timing for him to promulgate those changes will be the Synod of Bishops meeting beginning October 4th of 2015. Pope Francis has been building up to the Synod of Bishops meeting in 2015 for over a year. He held an Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in October of 2014. It was only the third extraordinary Synod of Bishops ever held. The 2015 meeting is the 14th Ordinary General Assembly. So the use of the Extraordinary meeting to prepare for the Ordinary one indicates he is placing great import on this 2015 event.
A word of caution: In the Catholic Church, a change to discipline or a new definition of doctrine is not effective or binding until it is promulgated. For a doctrine, the teaching usually needs to be published in a document of the Pope or the Holy See. For discipline, the change needs to be implemented in Canon Law, or set forth in a published document of the Pope or the Holy See. No matter how clear it may seem that the Pope is about to teach or rule on doctrine or discipline, nothing is binding until he actually teaches or rules.
Can. 7 A law is established when it is promulgated.
The topic of the Synod of Bishops is “The Vocation and Mission of the Family in the Church and Contemporary World”. This subject area is so broad that Pope Francis could make a wide range of changes to discipline and issue new definitions of doctrine in many areas of theology, while easily relating these rulings and teachings to the topic at hand. The ideas of vocation, mission, family, the Church, and the world cover or relate in some way to almost every part of the Faith.
What is the Pope able to teach or rule at the Synod? The Pope is the head of the Church on earth; he is the representative of Christ. He holds the two “keys” of Saint Peter: the teaching authority and the temporal authority. These two types of authority govern doctrine and discipline, respectively. At any time, he can change his mind and decide not to issue a document, or not to change an aspect of discipline. So we cannot be certain what will happen in October of 2015. But if you follow the news on the Pope, I think you might agree with me that the Pope desires to teach new doctrines and to make substantial changes in discipline. And he seems unwilling to wait much longer.
Pope Francis is the Roman Pontiff of the Catholic Church. It is a dogmatic fact that Francis is a valid Pope. And no Pope can ever fall into apostasy, heresy, or schism, for the Church is indefectible. His teachings at the Synod might seem like new ideas or innovations to his critics. But I believe that he will teach the truth from Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture, truths always found at least implicitly in Divine Revelation. No matter how “new” a teaching of any Pope might seem, it is always a teaching of Jesus Christ, based on the Sacred Deposit of Faith (Tradition and Scripture).
As for discipline, the Pope has the authority to make whatever changes he wishes. A discipline is not a teaching. And although good discipline is related to doctrine, it is absurd to try to conflate an apparent error or imprudent decision of discipline into a denial of doctrine. If you do not like a decision of the Pope on discipline, you are free to disagree. But if you then claim that a supposedly unwise discipline is equivalent to heresy, and that the Pope has fallen away from the true Faith, you are sadly mistaken. No Pope can fall into heresy. And discipline is not doctrine. But if you insist on rejecting the Pope, then it is you who has fallen away from the Faith. Each Pope is the Vicar of Christ, and you are not.
Below is a list of the doctrines and disciplines which I believe are likely to be promulgated in October of 2015. I am NOT saying that Pope Francis will issue all of these teachings and rulings at that time. In all likelihood, the teachings and rulings at the Synod will be a subset of this list. It is also likely that the Pope will offer some teachings and rulings not found on the list, things which I did not anticipate.
** Note well that these proposed possible teachings and rulings are my own speculation as to what the Pope might teach and rule in the future. In my opinion, these teachings are in complete accord with the teachings of Tradition, Scripture, and the Magisterium, and, in my opinion, these changes to discipline are compatible with the practice of the Catholic Faith. But at this point in time, you might disagree.
On Matters of Doctrine:
1. Pope Francis might teach that the Church has the authority to ordain women to the diaconate. The Magisterium has already infallibly taught that the Church lacks the authority to ordain women as priests and bishops, but the question of ordination to the diaconate is still open.
2. Pope Francis might teach that non-Catholic Christians can be saved without converting to Catholicism.
3. Pope Francis might teach that non-Christian believers can be saved without converting to Christianity.
4. Pope Francis might teach that non-believers (atheists, agnostics) can be saved without converting to belief in God.
In my understanding of salvation theology, the above three points are already implied by past magisterial teachings. But many conservatives and traditionalists disagree; they greatly narrow the possibility of salvation outside of Catholicism and outside of Christianity. I believe they are mistaken, and I expect the Magisterium to clarify Church teaching on this subject.
5. Pope Francis might teach that the non-infallible teachings of the Church can err to a limited extent, though never to such an extent as to lead the faithful away from the path of salvation.
6. Pope Francis might teach that some faithful dissent from non-infallible teachings is possible, to a limited extent.
The above two points are not new; there are a few magisterial documents supporting these ideas. However, a strong statement from the Magisterium on this subject would be controversial.
7. Pope Francis will likely reiterate the Church’s teaching that the use of contraception is always gravely immoral.
8. Pope Francis will likely reiterate the Church’s teaching that direct abortion is always gravely immoral.
9. Pope Francis might clarify Church teaching on Natural Family Planning, and propose a new push to teach Catholic couples about NFP.
A Synod on the subject of the Family cannot ignore the topics of abortion and contraception. Pope Francis is liberal but orthodox. He is not going to change the teaching of the Church on morality, as some liberals hope that he might.
10. I hope that Pope Francis will take this opportunity to reiterate the Church’s teaching against simony, including (by extension) the charging of fees, under various excuses, for baptism preparation, the baptism ceremony, and especially weddings.
11. Pope Francis might respond to those critics who are already intimating that they might accuse him of heresy. His likely response would be to teach that no Pope can ever fall into apostasy, heresy, or schism.
12. Pope Francis might choose to exercise Papal Infallibility to teach some new definition of doctrine, on one or more of the above points, or on some other point that I have not anticipated.
Some commentators expect liberal Popes, Cardinals, and Bishops to be less “dogmatic” and more “pastoral”. But I believe that liberal Church leaders are no less likely to exercise their proper authority. And I notice that Pope Francis has exercised his authority as Pope to make various changes in discipline, including reforms to the Vatican curia. He will not shy away from issuing authoritative teachings and rulings.
On Matters of Discipline:
1. Pope Francis might permit divorced and remarried Catholics might be permitted to receive Communion on a good conscience basis.
2. Pope Francis might open up new paths for divorced Catholics to obtain annulments, bypassing the Marriage Tribunals in many cases. For example, after a preliminary examination of the case, he could permit only the signatures of the couple and the parish pastor on a document to declare an annulment.
3. Pope Francis might rule that various “marginalized” Catholics to be permitted to receive Communion on a good conscience basis, perhaps including: divorced and remarried Catholics (absent an annulment), gay “married” Catholics, cohabitating Catholics, and other persons guilty of objective mortal sin. The basis for this ruling would be the distinction between objective mortal sin and actual mortal sin.
4. Canon 915 presently reads: “Those upon whom the penalty of excommunication or interdict has been imposed or declared, and others who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin, are not to be admitted to Holy Communion.” This canon is likely to be changed or nullified by the Pope at the Synod. It is not compatible with his view on who should be permitted to receive Communion.
5. Pope Francis might permit flexibility in liturgical form. Priests might be permitted to make minor changes ad hoc to the form of the Mass, without permission from anyone. He might also place restrictions on the Latin form of the Mass.
6. Pope Francis might grant broad permission for married men to become priests in the Latin Rite. (There have long been some married priests in the Latin Rite, so this is a change of discipline, not doctrine.)
7. Pope Francis might permit or require dioceses and parishes to baptize and educate the children of gay couples and other persons not living in full accord with Catholic moral teachings. He might forbid Catholic schools from refusing to hire or admit as students such persons.
8. Pope Francis might grant a broad forgiveness from various Church penalties, ranging from interdicts to excommunications.
9. If Pope Francis teaches that women can be ordained to the diaconate, he will also make the necessary accompanying changes to discipline and Canon law. If he so teaches, he will also plan to begin ordaining women deacons in the near future. (I think this will begin in January of 2016.)
10. Pope Francis might change the rules and laws of the Church for priests and others accused of child abuse. I would expect these changes to be aimed at greater protection for children, with harsher treatment of accused perpetrators and the opening of Church records to law enforcement and the courts.
11. Pope Francis might decide to appoint some women Cardinals, who would be non-ordained (lay persons) at first, and perhaps latter ordained to the diaconate.
12. I expect more than a few changes to Canon Law may accompany the promulgation of changes to discipline at the Synod.
And now a Question:
If the Pope teaches or rules in accord with some of the above points, how will you react? Which points are of greatest concern to you, and which do you find entirely unacceptable?
by
Ronald L. Conte Jr.
Roman Catholic theologian and
translator of the Catholic Public Domain Version of the Bible.
Please take a look at this list of my books and booklets, and see if any topic interests you.
the reproach of Christ 
I was thinking the same thing myself when pope Francis was elected, that this is God’s way of trying to bring liberals back into the church. Next, probably a conservative Pope for similar reasons.
Of course there is no problem with doctrine because he is the Pope. I will accept whatever he decides on discipline but I worry he might make an imprudent decision. The Catholic laity at this time is so poorly educated that I would worry about numbers 3 and 11 on your list. Concerning number 3, I worry that if the laity sees people living in such manifestly objective mortal sin receiving communion, they might justify themselves receiving communion when they are in actual mortal sin. I also worry about number 11 as it would blur the lines between the proper roles between men and women.
Whatever happens I believe you are right Ron, the church is headed toward a schism.
I will accept them. As the disciples told Jesus, to whom else can we go.
Thank you.
I don’t buy the idea, like some posters above have suggested, that these possible changes are meant to head the church down a slippery slope; that somehow, these changes are meant to appease a certain fringe (liberal) in the church, and that these changes, if not interpreted correctly, will lead to further loosening of doctrine and discipline. Not so. These possible changes are meant to make the faithful deepen some aspects of our faith. I also abhor a strong conservative reflex that makes them out to be the custodians of orthodoxy when really, as Ron aptly points out, this is really a function of their “conservative catholic sub-culture” which seems to overtake, even, the authority of Peter himself.
Quick clarification, since I cannot edit my post… the words about spiritual leprosy are in quotes. It might be inferred that those were your words, but I didn’t mean to imply that. I put them in quotes to emphasize their metaphorical nature.
My biggest concern would not be to any of those changes directly, because as you’ve pointed out there isn’t really anything revolutionary there, just clarification of some points, and changes to discipline to be more opening and welcoming of marginalized Catholics; instead, my biggest concern regards how those changes are communicated and implemented. People are different. People’s brain perceive and process differently. There are many Catholics whose faith is strengthened by the longstanding traditions (lower-case t) of our Church. They experience joy in obedience to the laws of God as expressed through the Magisterium and the Pope. Extreme changes are going to shock them strongly, perhaps (spiritually) fatally, especially if they perceive, based on the way these changes in teaching would be articulated in the mainstream secular press, and by some of those within the church who are already skeptical or opposed to the Pope Francis’ papacy has proceeded thus far. People are going to hear “Pope Francis is throwing out two millenia of valid church teachings to kowtow to the secular world”. Voice like yours, who make it clear that these teachings are largely in line with current teachings, and are mainly tweaks to help “heal spiritual lepers and bring them closer to Christ”, will be lost in the wailing and gnashing of teeth. Of course, you have been saying this as well… you believe this has been prophesied and will lead to the Great Apostasy. My biggest concern is that you’re exactly right on this point. My second biggest concern is that this is going to lead the secular universalists to push the church for more, faster changes. Women priests, married bishops, gay sacramental marriage, and the like. My third biggest concern is the effect on ecumenicalism. This is going to make it much harder for the Catholic Church to reconcile its differences with our brethren in the schismatic Eastern Orthodox churches.
I guess of the changes you site, the one I like the least would be added restrictions on the Latin Mass. For some people, that is the way they feeling the closest to God and feel the joy of his presence. All the other changes seem to be aimed at reaching the marginalized, but this change seems to be out of place…it will actually make some Catholics feel more marginalized. The Catholic Church is a communion of churches in communion with the Pope. The Western chuch is the largest, but there are, what, over a dozen Eastern Churchs that are in full communion and each have their own Liturgical Rite. I don’t understand the desire to restrict all the Catholics in the West to a single Rite.
@William Merlock
You make some good points. But no matter what any Pope says or does, some persons will distort it or misapply it. As for the great apostasy, the foundation is already laid. Most Catholics (liberal and conservative) do not accept the Church as their teacher. I find that some conservatives (not all) take the conservative Catholic subculture as their teacher, in place of the Church. Then there are those liberals who radically reinterpret Church teaching, to make it conform to their own ideas and desires. So no matter what any Pope does, the great apostasy will occur.
My question is, why is there seemingly so much concern over what constitutes a trial to marginal Catholics, liberal Catholics, non-Catholics and Catholics living in sin, and so little concern over what constitutes a trial to conservative and traditional Catholics?
This is truly a question. The liberal undertone is that life is “easy” for conservatives. Surely, it’s “easy” if, in fact, they know sound doctrine. But oh, the implementation!!!
On the other hand, what of the person raised into a radically liberal, divorced, or even “gay” household, who cannot fathom, say, what a good marriage should look like, and who have made commitments that they cannot in good conscience undo. I was in this type of situation. All they see from conservatives is condemnation, and they perceive only how they can never fit into the ideal, so why would they bother to seek out the Church?
I was a baptized, confirmed, yet fallen away Catholic, who had just been to confession. Waiting for permission to receive communion both irked me and was torturous for me, as I was in a trying situation that made me hungry for the Eucharist. (meanwhile my friend in RCIA was being instructed by liberal clerics that orthodox Catholic beliefs were optional).
Ron, I’m afraid some of the above innovations might arise great confusion even among non Catholics: for example if the Pope declared that it’s not necessary to convert to Christianity to be saved, then what would the Church be for? there would be no need to spread the Gospel and to believe Jesus is the Lord? The same problem with giving communion to people who are objectively not in a state of grace, how many sacrilegious communions there would be? How can the Church allow that? I think the intentions are good but the results risk to be harmful. Sorry for my English, I’m from Italy.
You cannot tell who is in a state of grace and who is not. Manifest objective mortal sin does not necessarily imply actual mortal sin (the only sin that can take away the state of grace). So the Communion is not necessarily sacrilegious. A Catholics who is not conscious of grave sin can receive Communion, generally speaking, even now.
In my opinion, most Catholics who receive Communion today should repent and go to Confession before receiving; they are committing objective mortal sins of contraception, sexual sins, and heresy. Why are some mortal sins acceptable and others not? I would restrict who can receive Communion much further than present-day practice.
But I believe that God is guiding the Pope to greatly loosen restrictions and rules, as a last-ditch effort to bring sinners to conversion before the tribulation begins. Then, under the next Pope, the rules will be much stricter. So it is the will and plan of God, and not merely a battle of liberal versus conservative.
The Magisterium already teaches that non-Christians can be saved by an implicit baptism of desire. It is already required belief. What is the Church for? The non-Christians are saved by the Church, implicitly, so She is still the sole Ark of salvation. Why be Catholic if non-Catholics can be saved? It is far easier to be saved as a Catholic than as a Protestant, Jew, or Muslim. And it is most difficult to be saved as an atheist, agnostic, or an adherent to a non-monotheistic religion. Catholics have the path of salvation that is level, wide, and well-lighted. The further you get from Catholicism, the more difficult it is to be saved.
I will react with surprise on some issues, but will accept them. Who am I to contradict the boss to put it colloquially.