1. Correcting Prelates.
Because there are so many articles criticising and correcting Pope Francis, the Vatican is sending threatening signals; ‘Don’t criticise or correct the Pope…. or else. A few serious Catholic journalist had been fired from positions for doing so. Bishops had been suppressed or removed from their diocese for doing so. And priests doing so had been persecuted by their respective bishops.
Even a news headlined Pope Benedict saying; ‘do not criticise the Pope.’ Criticism, must be avoided. But ‘fraternal correction,’ which is an act of Charity, must always be done.
2. St. Thomas of Aquinas quoting St. Augustine.
The main act of repentance for the forgiveness of sin is for a soul to have mercy on his own soul by correcting his faults and sins. And St. Augustine adds; ‘show mercy not only to yourself, but also to him who being in the higher position among you, is therefore in greater danger.’
A negligent bishop or Pope commits greater sin by reason of his higher position. Who will have mercy on him, except those who will warn him of his sins? Fraternal correction is a work of mercy. Therefore even prelates ought to be corrected. They are neighbours that must, also, be loved.
3. True ‘mercy.’
To have true mercy on one’s soul, according to St. Augustine, is to find out your sins and correct those sins. That is showing true mercy on your soul because it will redound to the salvation of your soul. What greater act of mercy can one do to his own soul than by saving his soul. And how do you save your soul? By finding out what are your sins and correcting them. That is the main essence of ‘repentance.’
Oh, I forgot that in the Bishop’s Synod of 2012, the Bishops showed that they did not know what repentance was though Pope Benedict ordered them to discuss ‘repentance,’ in preparation for the ‘Year of Faith.’ No one can make an Act of Faith without first finishing their life of repentance.
The ‘mercy’ being preached today by Pope Francis does not have this important element of pitying oneself and pitying others by correcting their sins. The ‘mercy’ today preached by both Pope and Bishops is the opposite; ‘to tolerate all sins and if you cannot avoid other sins, just do it.’ That is hatred for oneself and hatred for others. It is like saying; ‘if you want to go to hell, go to hell.’ That is not correction; that is encouragement.
4. ‘Fraternal correction’, as an act of justice, must never be made by an inferior towards a superior. A layman, deacons, priest or bishop does not have the obligation of giving fraternal correction as an act of justice, to the Pope. But all are obliged to give even the Pope ‘fraternal correction’ out of Charity because we are obliged to love the Pope. And ‘fraternal correction,’ as shown above by St. Thomas and St. Augustine, is an act of Charity and love.
Fraternal correction which is an act of Charity is within the competency of everyone in respect of any person towards whom he is bound by Charity, provided there be something in that person which requires correction.
5. ‘It must be observed that if the Faith is endangered, a subject ought to rebuke his prelate even publicly. Hence St. Paul, who was Peter’s subject, rebuked him in public, on account of the imminent danger of scandal concerning Faith, and, as the gloss of St. Augustine says on Galatian 2:11, ‘Peter gave an example to superiors, that if at any time they should happen to stray from the straight path, they should not disdain to be reproved by their subjects.’ Take note Pope Francis.
Pope Francis and the cardinals and bishops on his side are causing great dangers to the Faith in that they are practically changing the Church from one instituted by Christ to a man-made church manufactured in Argentina. They are placing millions of Catholics in imminent danger because of their sin of scandal. The Pauls should rise up and correct Peter and his co-horts.
Pope Francis had made up his mind not to change the direction of his papacy. It begun with a complete violation of his papal vow made at his election. And as he himself announced, he will not resign but will continue and finish what he had started. …..to completely change the church from one being doing the Will of God to one that is made up according to the will of Bergoglio.
Considering the horde of Jesuits around him, how come not one is offering him the charitable gesture of ‘fraternal correction?’ Where are the Jesuit theologians like Hans Kung? Do the Jesuits have no love for God or their neighbour, the Pope? Why not a peep? Spadaro, Lombardi, Reese; no word from you? It is because of their silence that we are forced to speak. Otherwise, as St. Augustine wrote, our sins would be more grievous. Because we know there is something to be corrected. Maybe Pope Francis does not know he is showing signs of having no love for God nor for neighbour. No love for adulterers, no love for migrants, no love for aberosexuals, no love for Pentecostals or Evangelicals, no love for Scalfari nor the woman whose feet he kissed on Holy Week.
He, only, have a love for publicity seeing how he choreographs his TV appearances as reported by his lensmen.
6. St. Augustine’s plea.
St. Augustine almost cries for all, out of Charity, to render ‘fraternal correction’ to those above us; priests, bishops, cardinals and even the Pope. By holding a higher position they are in greater danger. One sinful action, one immoral announcement in a plane ride and that alone can bring down tons of hell’s coals on their head. Pray for them? No, no. The proper response is, out of
Charity, render them ‘fraternal correction.’
The Official Website of the Caryana Community