Tag: Apostolic exhortation

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ATC 7 Querida Amazonia

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Querida Amazonia
https://www.deaconrudysnotes.org/

The Central Committee for German Catholics accused Pope Francis of a lack of courage for real reforms. Others from Latin America say the Pope’s document is demoralizing and painful. Still others say the Holy Spirit spared the Church from serious error. <1>

Welcome to the latest edition of All Things Catholic. I’m your host, Deacon Rudy Villarreal and I’m so happy be here with you today! Together we are going to explore what it means to be Catholic. Today we are going to build a little on our discussion last we “On Change” and briefly discuss Pope Francis’ post-synodal exhortation on the Amazon, “Querida Amazonia.” Bear with me tonight. I think I’m catching the cold my daughter had, but don’t worry! I claim healing by the most precious blood of Jesus.

Ok, so what the heck are all the people in the intro talking about? What are they talking about indeed!

In early February, the Holy Father issued an apostolic exhortation following the Synod on the Pan Amazon Region. It’s important to note that this podcast will not try to unpack the Synod or the exhortation. There are many, many great articles out there that try to sort all of that out. What I want to do is walk through the concept and some facts to help us all better understand the purpose of synods and how they help the Holy Father.

Before we get started, perhaps we should clarify some terminology. First, what’s a synod? As we discussed in the All Things Catholic episode “On Change,” a synod is an advisory committee formed to discuss specific questions or issues. Synods have been around for a significant part of church history but have been more widely used since the Second Vatican Council. Synods can be organized by a bishop to consider issues for a particular diocese.

But the popes have also called synods inviting bishops and others to discuss broader issues. Synods do not define doctrine and are not legislative. If a synod is called by a pope, then the pope will issue a document called an apostolic exhortation, which is another term we should address. How are exhortations prioritized? An exhortation is considered to be the third most important document a pope issues, behind apostolic constitutions and encyclicals. In general exhortations encourage a virtue or activity.

Why call a synod at all – ever? Well, synods, like a synod called by a pope, offer advice to the Holy Father. In order to do that, a synod will involve a lot of people across the church and perhaps from outside the church. There will be a lot of discussion and deliberation. But of course, another goal is to invite the Holy Spirit to guide the discussion to realize the will of the Father. The Jesuit term for this is “group discernment.” <2>

Discernment is a super important term for Catholics and one we will need to explore in more detail in a future episode, but the idea is that we discern as individuals, and we discern in groups. This is important because sometimes I encounter people who think the Pope sits on a throne and issues pronouncements and proclamations to suit his will. That is just not true.

Let’s apply these ideas to the Pan Amazon Synod. One of the things that made the synod so unique is that it was called to address the issues of an environmental region. That’s a first, I think, in the history of the church. But that explains why the Synod was comprised mainly of the bishops, clergy, consecrated religious, theologians and laity from countries making up the Amazon region.

Pope Francis announced the idea of the synod in 2017. Between then and the gathering in Rome in October 2019, the bishops held numerous listening and consultation sessions primarily in the countries that make up the Amazon. There were about 260 events were held in the Amazon attended by about 87,000 people. <3> That’s very important. No matter what you think about the Pan Amazon Synod or any synod, I think it’s important to know that the Church takes listening and consultation sessions seriously. The point is to make sure that the representatives who make up the synod referred to as the synod fathers truly understand the scope of the issues they will consider.

Why was the Pan Amazon Synod so controversial? There were three issues that drew quite a bit of attention: the environment, women deacons and married priests. Some bishops called foul because they correctly said issues like women deacons and married priests don’t just affect the Amazon, but the entire world. In other words, they claimed scope creep of gigantic proportions. Of course, the Synod was controversial to some extent in Latin America as well, not just for these three reasons, but also for the discussion around indigenous people and their lands.

What’s so interesting to me is the breath of concerns and disappointments expressed by people over the exhortation. Remember, a synod cannot change church teaching and is not legislative. So, at no point should anyone have believed that the Pope would announce sweeping changes based on the Synod. That would have been extraordinary.

Remember, exhortations often encourage virtue or a specific activity, and Querida Amazonia absolutely accomplishes those goals. Pope Francis calls the exploitation of the poor an “injustice and crime.” In calling for protections for the poor, the Pope is reinforcing a major them in Catholic Social Justice. Another virtue he encourages us to have is reverence and care for God’s creation.

The Pope also encourages greater theological creativity to address shortages of priests in Latin America. Now this is the part that has drawn significant reaction from around the world. But perhaps there are two other virtues between the lines of this exhortation: patience and prudence. In the meantime, it’s not business as usual. Remember the Pope is calling for creativity and that means the Amazon clergy and laity have a wonderful opportunity to present their bishops with creative suggestions to help meet the needs of Catholics in Latin America particularly remote parts of Latin America. So, hopefully we see from Querida Amazonia fits into the themes of synods and post synodal exhortations. It really meets the technical definition. But I think it’s an important thing to reflect on – how the Catholic Church processes change.

Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!

I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal and next time on All Things Catholic, in light of the Corona Virus, we’re going to discuss sensible precautions and the practice of spiritual communion.

You’re listening to All Things Catholic.

This episode was produced by deacon rudy’s notes. Our theme music was composed by Silent Partner. You can find all sorts of helpful information on the website at www.deaconrudysnotes.org. I’m your host, Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Join us again next time and don’t forget to watch for the weekend edition where we break open the Word. Peace!

Notes:
<1> Charles Pope, Msgr., “My Reaction to Querida Amazonia,” National Catholic Register, 16 February 2020. https://m.ncregister.com/blog/msgr-pope/my-reaction-to-querida-amazonia, (accessed 20 February 2020).
<2> James Martin, SJ, “Five Takeaways from Querida Amazonia,” America, 12 February 2020, https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2020/02/12/five-takeaways-querida-amazonia (accessed 20 February 2020).
<3> Hannah Brockhaus, “The Amazon Synod, by the Numbers,” Catholic News Agency, 11 October 2019, https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/the-amazon-synod-by-the-numbers-11205 (accessed 20 October 2019).

References:

  1. Francis. Querida Amazonia: Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of the Holy Father Francis to the People of God and All Persons of Good Will. Vatican.va. http://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20200202_querida-amazonia.html, 2 February 2020, (accessed 8 March 2020).
  2. The Bible: A Study Bible freshly translated by Nicholas King. Buxhall, Suffolk UK: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
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On Gaudete et exsultate

Cover of the booklet Gaudete et Exsultate

My brothers and sisters, I have wonderful news! Pope Francis wrote us a letter. You can read it here for free or you can purchase a copy here! I enjoyed it and I highly recommend you read it!

So, what’s this all about?

Well, Pope Francis gets right to the heart of what it means to be a disciple: we are called to holiness. Wait, me holy? Yes! Keep reading.

What is holiness? To be holy doesn’t mean you need to wear a monastic habit and swoon in mystic rapture (96). Pope Francis tells us that holiness is faithfully living the life God created for you and for me. He warns us not to get stuck in a bland, mediocre existence or a life marked by hedonism and consumerism (1, 108).

But I cannot be holy! Look at me! Look at my life! Pope Francis reminds us that we are all sinners. In a 2013 interview with the editor of Civiltà Cattolica, he was asked, “Who is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?” After a rather pregnant pause, he replied, “I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.”

We are all sinners, but by the grace of God, we experience forgiveness and healing and yes, we can live a holy life. You see, the Easter story is the story of God who does not give up us despite everything we’ve gotten wrong, we get wrong and we will get wrong. The Easter story is about a God who stubbornly pursues us despite our sinfulness. Through the Incarnation, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, God restores creation – He sanctifies creation. Easter is a reminder that God looks at you and me and says, “yes!”

To understand how to be a Christian, how to be holy, Pope Francis tells us we needn’t look any further than the Gospel (63-94). In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives us the Beatitudes (Mt 5:3-12; Lk 6:20-23) which are a portrait of the Father whose love and mercy we are called to reflect in our own lives.

But how can I tell if I’m living a transformed life that emulates the Beatitudes? Jesus tells us that too. In Matthew 25 (vv. 31-46), Jesus gives us the metrics for living a holy life, what Pope Francis calls “the great criterion” (95). “for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me,” (rsv-ce vv. 35-36).

It is love that holds the power transform our lives into holy lives. It is love that transforms our piety into holy action. It is love that reflects the love of the Father and helps us to see Jesus reflected in the faces of those around us. Without a lived faith marked by love, we risk Jesus saying to us, “I never knew you,” (Mt 7:23).

Don’t panic! Keep it simple. Holiness can be found all around us and very often right next door. Pope Francis tells us that holiness is found in, “parents who raise their children with immense love, in those men and women who work hard to support their families, in the sick, in elderly religious who never lose their smile. In their daily perseverance I see the holiness of the Church militant. Very often it is a holiness found in our next-door neighbours, those who, living in our midst, reflect God’s presence,” (7).

But Pope Francis warns us about some of the great challenges that undermine our encounter with the risen Jesus – forces that strive to distract us and to prevent us from living lives transformed by God’s mercy. He tells about the two ancient and ever-present enemies of holiness – modern versions of the heresies of Pelagianism and Gnosticism, saying that these lead to “false forms of holiness” (35).

In the modern form of Gnosticism, he said people believe that faith is purely subjective and that the intellect is the supreme form of perfection. This can lead Catholics to think that “because we know something, or are able to explain it in certain terms, we are already saints,” (45).

In the modern form of Pelagianism, he said the common error is to believe that it is by our own effort that we achieve sanctity. This can lead Catholics to forget that everything in fact “depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who shows mercy,” (Rom. 9:16), (48).

The pope reminds us that “the Church has repeatedly taught that we are justified not by our own works or efforts, but by the grace of the Lord, who always takes the initiative,” (52).

He goes on to remind us that spiritual warfare is real. Jesus equips us powerful weapons for battle: faith-filled prayer, meditation on the word of God, the celebration of Mass, Eucharistic adoration, sacramental Reconciliation, works of charity, community life, and missionary outreach (162). But he warns us that worship and prayer alone or following certain ethical norms are not enough to give glory to God. He writes, “It is true that the primacy belongs to our relationship with God, but we cannot forget that the ultimate criterion on which our lives will be judged is what we have done for others,” (104).

To cultivate our spiritual growth, he encourages us to persevere with patience and meekness (112-121). He encourages us to experience joy and to face life with a good sense of humor (122-128). He encourages us to live our Christian lives boldly and passionately (129-139). He reminds us that we are not alone and that real growth in holiness happens within community (140-146). He also encourages us to develop an active prayer life in which we not only speak with the Lord, but we also listen (147-157).

What does he mean by developing a “spirit of prayer” (147)? He recommends we develop the Scriptural habit to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thes 5:16-18) and gives us examples from the lives of the saints. He goes on to say that through a prayerful study of Scripture we find Jesus in the Eucharist, “where the written word attains its greatest efficacy, for there the living Word is truly present,” (157).

Finally, he teaches us that our spiritual growth is aided by discernment – to understand whether something is coming from the Holy Spirit or from the devil (166). To put it simply, discernment is a prayerful and thoughtful spiritual exercise to determine whether something comes from God or from the devil (for more information see “Introduction to Discernment of Spirits”).

Am I blessed? Do I find consolation: courage, strength, inspiration, joy, peace (echoing St. Paul’s fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, (Gal 5:22-23))? Or do I feel desolation: anxiety, sadness, fear, restlessness, dryness or emptiness? To learn a little more about consolation and desolation, read my post “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord!”

With so many technological distractions consuming all of our time, it is more important than ever to develop the practice of discernment.

Central to discernment is a daily examination of conscience (169). An examination of conscience is not just about reflecting on my shortcomings today. That is important of course, but a daily examen is also about trying to see God’s presence in our lives. Pope Francis teaches us that, “Discernment, then, is not a solipsistic self-analysis or a form of egotistical introspection, but an authentic process of leaving ourselves behind in order to approach the mystery of God, who helps us to carry out the mission to which he has called us, for the good of our brothers and sisters,” (175).

Gaudete et exsultate is a powerful reminder that we are made for so more! We are all called to a life of holiness! Can we get there? Yes and no. On our own, we could never accomplish it. Only by the grace of God are we capable of such an undertaking in this increasingly secular world. As Jesus reminds us, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible,” (Mt 19:26).

So what are you waiting for?

Jesus, I trust in you!