Pope Francis says all priests can forgive abortion

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http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/01/europe/pope-francis-abortion/index.html

Discuss

[Simfan34]

With sincere intent, honest contrition, and appropriate penance, all can be forgiven.

[Small L]

Good move. That article also did a good job of explaining things clearly and avoiding misinformation.

[PJ]

With sincere intent, honest contrition, and appropriate penance, all can be forgiven.

Yeah, Francis is simply looking at this from the above viewpoint, not becoming pro-choice or anything. As with nearly all statements made by Pope Francis, many non-Catholic liberals like to pretend it's some sort of massive left-wing shift in the Catholic Church, when it's simply what Catholic teaching has been for decades.

I'm not a worshipping Catholic, unlike the rest of my family, so I'm rather indifferent towards the man, but voted HP in protest of progressive revisionism about the man's beliefs.

[Famous Mortimer]

With sincere intent, honest contrition, and appropriate penance, all can be forgiven.

Yeah, Francis is simply looking at this from the above viewpoint, not becoming pro-choice or anything. As with nearly all statements made by Pope Francis, many non-Catholic liberals like to pretend it's some sort of massive left-wing shift in the Catholic Church, when it's simply what Catholic teaching has been for decades.

I'm not a worshipping Catholic, unlike the rest of my family, so I'm rather indifferent towards the man, but voted HP in protest of progressive revisionism about the man's beliefs.

I sympathize with your view. People rarely even believe me when I point out that Benedict said the same anti-capitalist stuff. With this though, I think this is a legitimate change in direction. Obviously it's not going to be good enough for some social liberals, who think abortion is great and not something you should ever feel bad about. I think this is about as far as the Catholic Church can go though. "Abortion is bad but...ugggh, let's change the subject" basically.

[PJ]

With sincere intent, honest contrition, and appropriate penance, all can be forgiven.

Yeah, Francis is simply looking at this from the above viewpoint, not becoming pro-choice or anything. As with nearly all statements made by Pope Francis, many non-Catholic liberals like to pretend it's some sort of massive left-wing shift in the Catholic Church, when it's simply what Catholic teaching has been for decades.

I'm not a worshipping Catholic, unlike the rest of my family, so I'm rather indifferent towards the man, but voted HP in protest of progressive revisionism about the man's beliefs.

I sympathize with your view. People rarely even believe me when I point out that Benedict said the same anti-capitalist stuff. With this though, I think this is a legitimate change in direction. Obviously it's not going to be good enough for some social liberals, who think abortion is great and not something you should ever feel bad about. I think this is about as far as the Catholic Church can go though. "Abortion is bad but...ugggh, let's change the subject" basically.

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This doesn't even change Catholic teaching. It's simply a continuance of what has essentially been the status quo by Francis. I'm not under the illusion that there is any chance of further shifts on abortion within Catholicism, but I wouldn't describe this as a shift either.

[TJ in Oregon]

This is essentially a bureaucracy clean-up decision.

In addition to being a sin, knowingly procuring an abortion is a canonical crime, meaning the person who does it is (debatably as some canon lawyers say it is only the abortion provider) automatically excommunicated. So in order to receive absolution, the excommunication must be lifted first (NOT as a matter of theology but because of the Church's discipline). Formally, this requires the local bishop to do. However, in the vast majority of the world the bishops have granted their priests to do this. So in most places, the part of this announcement concerning abortion doesn't change anything. Pope Francis has just made that permission universal rather than dependent on the local bishop.

My 2¢ here is that this whole predicament is an example of the Church's bureaucracy getting in the way of its mission and it is good that the Pope is working to fix that. These canon laws were originally written as an attempt to bring sinners back who had turned away and pretending otherwise. It is clear in this case that the Church law does not function toward that goal today and this was needed in whatever places weren't doing it anyway.

The other half of this story (which isn't in the article) is that Pope Francis is also granting priests in the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), which has a long, confusing, and irregular relationship with the Vatican, the authority to give absolution during the Year of Mercy. Some are hopeful that that particular divide can be healed in the coming years.

[Simfan34]

I'm disappointed to see the Holy Father take a soft line on the schismatics of the SSPX.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Good move. That article also did a good job of explaining things clearly and avoiding misinformation.

Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised by it.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

The ironic thing about the SSPX is that while Pius X was a staunch anti-modernist he wasn't an arch-traditionalist. He was a reformer and he was the most recent pope before Francis to have been primarily pastoral in his pre-papal career. Indeed, had he not chosen the name Francis, I could easily see Begoglio having chosen to be Pius XIII.

[TJ in Oregon]

I'm disappointed to see the Holy Father take a soft line on the schismatics of the SSPX.

Why? Do you want them giving out invalid absolutions as is the current situation? Wouldn't it be better if that particular problem were worked out rather than trying to nail them to the wall? Sure they've got some nutjobs in the SSPX, I'll grant you that, but there are also some well-meaning people who go there unknowingly too. Apart from their authority concerns, the SSPX pretty much believe in the teachings of the Catholic Church (and often a whole lot moreso than many of those who aren't in an irregular situation). Heck, if there was anything resembling mutual trust between them and the hierarchy, the schism would have been over by now. Why breed more? And more importantly what about the effect on the people who go to them for Confession?

Also, Pope Francis, when he was still in Buenos Aires, helped get the SSPX recognized by the Argentine government as being part of the Roman Catholic Church. There are a lot of people out there on the internet saying mean things (as always) but there isn't an reason to think Pope Francis hates the SSPX. If anything, I think he wants to help heal the schism.