This is part 2 of my article. Here is the link to part one.

I am replying to an article by Cardinal Gerhard Muller at First Things: The Church Is Not A Democracy (27 Oct 2023).

Muller: “Rest assured that even if a majority of the delegates were to “decide” on the “blessing” (blasphemous and contrary to Scripture itself) of homosexual couples, or the ordination of women as deacons or priests, even the authority of the pope would not be sufficient to introduce or condone such heretical teachings, or any other teachings that contradict the Word of God in Sacred Scripture, Apostolic Tradition, and the dogma of the Church. Christ commissioned Peter to strengthen his brethren in their faith in him, the Son of God, not to introduce doctrines and practices contrary to revelation. To teach contrary to the apostolic faith would automatically deprive the pope of his office. We must all pray and work courageously to spare the Church such an ordeal.”

The above quote assumes that a Roman Pontiff is capable of teaching heresy. The idea expressed by Muller is that Pope Francis might take the advice of the Synod on Synodality and use his papal authority to teach a heresy. Such a teaching would be directed to the universal Church, but would not be presented as infallible (in this hypothetical).

There are various opinions on whether the Roman Pontiff can teach or be personally guilty of heresy. However, I will argue these related points:

(1) It is the ancient constant teaching of Popes, Bishops, Fathers, Doctors, Saints and Councils that every Roman Pontiff has the charism of truth and never-failing faith.

(2) This papal charism prevents any Roman Pontiff from teaching or committing heresy, as the teaching of heresy is gravely contrary to truth, and the sin of heresy is gravely contrary to a never-failing faith.

(3) The hypothetical removal of a Roman Pontiff due to grave failures of faith (e.g. apostasy, heresy, schism, idolatry) can never actually happen, since every Roman Pontiff is protected from all such failures in faith by the charism of truth and never-failing faith. If a person teaches or commits heresy, their faith has failed to a grave extent; so a never-failing faith excludes heresy.

Let’s begin with the third point.

It is well-established that a valid Roman Pontiff cannot be removed from office by an Ecumenical Council, nor by any other person or body on earth. His Pontificate ends with either his death or his valid resignation. However, some claim that a Pope can automatically lose his validity and jurisdiction, but only by a grave offense against faith, such as committing heresy or teaching heresy.

Some commentators, in claiming that Pope Francis is not, or might not be, a valid Pope, cite his alleged grave sins (not handling abuse cases well; inappropriate choices for leadership positions; perceived sins of cooperating with so-called global elites; alleged interior malice against the Church; etc.). They tend to argue that such supposed offenses indicate he is not a valid Pope, rather than cause him to become an invalid Pope. But this argument is easily refuted in either case. For the most sinful Popes in Church history, widely and long accepted as valid, have never been said to have lost jurisdiction by personal sins. Pope Alexander VI is an example of a Pope with a history of grave sins (but who repented on his death bed and received Last Rites devoutly). No one doubts the validity of his Pontificate. So grave sins neither indicate, nor cause a person to be an invalid Pope.

Thus, the only proposal for loss of office by the Roman Pontiff, apart from death or resignation, is whether he loses his office by a grave failure of faith, such as apostasy, heresy, schism, idolatry.

So if it can be shown that Peter and his successors have the charism of never-failing faith, such that all grave failures of faith, whether in what they teach or what they believe, are prevented necessarily by the grace of God, then no Pope can lose his authority and become invalid, regardless of whether he is considered a better or worse Pope. His pontificate only ends by death or resignation.

Now we can consider the first and second points.

I have documented extensively the ancient and constant teaching of the Church on the papal charism of truth and never-failing faith. Here are the sources, proving this teaching is the perennial teaching of the Church. Such a teaching must be infallible under the ordinary universal magisterium, as it is the Church’s perennial teaching from Her earliest years to the present, and has been confirmed by the definitive teaching of two Ecumenical Councils (Constantinople III, the Letter of Pope Saint Agatho; Vatican I, Pastor Aeternus, ch. 4, n. 6-7).

Please note that the teaching of Doctor of the Church, Saint Robert Bellarmine on this topic is often misrepresented. He stated clearly his belief that Peter and his successors each have the gift of a never-failing faith.

Bellarmine: “The second privilege is that he, as the Pope, could never teach something against the faith, or that there would never be found one in his See who would teach against the true faith. From these privileges, we see that the first did not remain to his successors, but the second without a doubt did.” [Bellarmine, Robert. On the Roman Pontiff, vol. 2: Books III-V (De Controversiis) (p. 156). Mediatrix Press. Kindle Edition.]

Bellarmine: “It can be believed probably and piously that the supreme Pontiff is not only not able to err as Pontiff but that even as a particular person he is not able to be heretical, by pertinaciously believing something contrary to the faith.” [Bellarmine, Robert. On the Roman Pontiff (De Controversiis Book 1) . Mediatrix Press. Kindle Edition.]

See more from Bellarmine in my past posts

Ecumenical Councils also taught on the never-failing faith of the Roman Pontiff.

Lateran V: “It arises from the necessity of salvation that all the faithful of Christ are to be subject to the Roman Pontiff.”

Lateran V: “the person who abandons the teaching of the Roman pontiff cannot be within the Church….”

These teachings of the Fifth Ecumenical Council of the Lateran can only be true if the Pope has a never-failing faith, such that his teaching can never lead astray from the true faith or the true path of salvation. Since the faithful must be subject to the Roman Pontiff and never abandon his teaching, in order to remain in the Church, which is the Ark of Salvation, it must also be true that the teaching of the Roman Pontiff can never be heretical.

Constantinople III, Letter of Agatho, actio XVIII: “For this is the rule of the true faith, which this spiritual mother of your most tranquil empire, the Apostolic Church of Christ, has both in prosperity and in adversity always held and defended with energy; which, it will be proved, by the grace of Almighty God, has never erred from the path of the apostolic tradition, nor has she been depraved by yielding to heretical innovations, but from the beginning she has received the Christian faith from her founders, the princes of the Apostles of Christ, and remains undefiled unto the end, according to the divine promise of the Lord and Savior himself, which he uttered in the holy Gospels to the prince of his disciples: saying, ‘Peter, Peter, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he might sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee, that (thy) faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.’ Let your tranquil Clemency therefore consider, since it is the Lord and Savior of all, whose faith it is, that promised that Peter’s faith should not fail and exhorted him to strengthen his brethren, how it is known to all that the Apostolic pontiffs, the predecessors of my littleness, have always confidently done this very thing: of whom also our littleness, since I have received this ministry by divine designation, wishes to be the follower, although unequal to them and the least of all.”

Vatican I, interpreting Luke 22:32 — “This gift of truth and never-failing faith was therefore divinely conferred on Peter and his successors in this See so that they might discharge their exalted office for the salvation of all, and so that the whole flock of Christ might be kept away by them from the poisonous food of error and be nourished with the sustenance of heavenly doctrine. Thus the tendency to schism is removed and the whole Church is preserved in unity, and, resting on its foundation, can stand firm against the gates of Hell.”

There are also many teachings in the history of the Church stating that the Roman Pontiff, his Apostolic See, and the Roman Church can never succumb to heresy. See these quotations.

Conclusion

The charism of truth and never-failing faith is the infallible teaching of the ordinary universal Magisterium and of Ecumenical Councils. The Church has always interpreted Luke 22:32 such that Peter and each of his successors has the charism of a never-failing faith. By this never-failing faith, the Roman Pontiff confirms his brethren, the other Bishops, in the true faith. This is not merely a calling, from which a Pope might turn aside; it is a guarantee of the prayer and promise of Christ the Lord, accomplished by prevenient grace, which no one can refuse.

Therefore, no valid Pope can possibly ever be guilty of a grave failure of faith. This implies that no Pope can be removed from office for teaching or committing heresy, as it we have it from the promise of Christ and the infallible teaching of the Magisterium that such a grave failure of faith cannot occur in any Pope.

However, individual Cardinals and Bishops can fail gravely in faith by heresy or schism, and when they do, they automatically lose jurisdiction in the Church. So when a Cardinal or Bishop opposes a Roman Pontiff, accusing him of teaching heresy and claiming that he has lost his authority, we know by faith that the Pope cannot be guilty of heresy due to the gift of never-failing faith, and so it must instead be the papal accusers who have fallen away and lost all jurisdiction, not the Pope.

Ronald L Conte Jr