In New Appointment, Pope Francis Criticizes “Immoral Methods” of Vatican Doctrine Office
Pope Francis with Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernández
Pope Francis’ latest curial appointment is perhaps one of his most significant appointments yet. On Saturday, news unexpectedly broke that the pope named Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernández as the new prefect for the Dicastery (formerly Congregation) for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF). Fernández does not have any reputation, positive or negative, on LGBTQ+ topics, the naming of this new official further signals that a more robust, honest conversation on gender and sexuality issues in the church may be on the way.
Any appointment to this office—known for a long time as the Inquisition—is notable given it has been the most powerful in the church for centuries before Francis’ reforms of the Roman Curia were made last year. The appointment of Archbishop Fernández is particularly notable, though, because of certain passages in the pope’s appointment letter, and also details from the prelate’s history.
Fernández, who will also become head of the Pontifical Biblical Commission and the International Theological Commission, presently leads the Archdiocese of La Plata, Argentina. According to America’s Gerald O’Connell, Fernández is known as the pope’s “trusted theologian” and ghostwriter, given the pair’s decades-long working relationship. Fernández was likely a primary author for two of Francis’ apostolic exhortations, Evangelii Gaudium and Amoris Laetitia. The latter document was written after the 2014-2015 Synod on the Family, inthe archbishop participated at the pope’s request. And Fernández is known to have aided then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio in matters involving the Latin American bishops’ conference, too. O’Connell explained further:
“[Fernández] is considered to be in harmony with the pope at both the pastoral and theological levels, and Francis’ choice of him is the clearest indication yet of the pope’s determination to continue on the path of theological and pastoral renewal of the Catholic church in the implementation of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.”
Perhaps more importantly, Pope Francis’ appointment letter reveals the pontiff’s desire for the DDF t0 shed its oppressive past, most recently felt under then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s crusade against forward-looking theologians and pastoral ministers. Instead, Francis writes to Fernández:
“The dicastery that you will preside over in other epochs came to use immoral methods. Those were times when more than promoting theological knowledge they chased after possible doctrinal errors. What I expect from you is something without doubt much different.”
The pope asked Fernández to still focus on safeguarding the faith, but framed this tak sas an act of dialogue and evangelization, not a quest to suppress or prohibit. To safeguard the faith today is to engage questions “‘posed by the progress of the sciences and the development of society.’ (Fidem Servare, n.2)” so they allow the church to be in conversation with “our present situation, which is in many ways unprecedented in the history of humanity.’ (LS 17).” Francis continues:
“Furthermore, you know that the church ‘needs to grow in her interpretation of the revealed word and in her understanding of truth’ (EG 40), without this implying imposing one way of expressing it. Because ‘differing currents of thought in philosophy, theology and pastoral practice, if open to being reconciled by the Spirit in respect and love, can enable the Church to grow.’ (EG 40). This harmonious growth helps to preserve the Christian doctrine more effectively than any mechanism of control.
“It is good that your task expresses that the church ‘encourages the charism of the theologians and their effort for theological research’ in a way that ‘is not content with a theology of the desk’ and with ‘a cold and harsh logic that seeks to dominate everything.’ (Gaudete et Exsultate, 39). It will be certain always that reality is superior to the idea. In this sense, we need a theology that is attentive to the fundamental criterion: consider ‘all theological notions that ultimately call into question the very omnipotence of God, and his mercy in particular, are inadequate.’ (International Theological Commission: The hope of salvation for infants who die without being baptized: n.2).
“This happens if ‘the message concentrates on the essentials, on what is most beautiful, most grand, most appealing and at the same time most necessary.’ (EG 35). You know well that there is a harmonious order in the truths of our message, where the greatest danger is produced when secondary questions end up overshadowing the central ones.”
Francis concludes his letter, noting that the DDF’s documents must “have an adequate theological support, that they are coherent with the rich soil (humus) of the perennial teaching of the Church and also receive the recent Magisterium.”
The pope’s letter is a bit dense, and yet it offers a revolutionary vision for the future of the church’s engagement with theology, particularly disputed topics. Christopher Lamb of The Tablet said the appointment “has set off an ecclesial earthquake. . .[and] announced a total overhaul in how the doctrine department does business.”
The immoral methods named by Francis have long been used to suppress a more LGBTQ-positive direction in the church. Those methods have included the suppression of LGBTQ+ ministry leaders, like Sr. Jeannine Gramick and Fr. Robert Nugent, investigations of LGBTQ-positive theologians, like Sr. Margaret Farley, RSM, and removal from ministry of LGBTQ+ allies, like Fr. Tony Flannery. According to Lamb, “anyone subject to one of their investigations will attest to the psychological and emotional toll that it takes.” The then-Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Ratzinger was also the church office that introduced the harmful language of “objectively disordered” about lesbian and gay people in its 1986 letter, which also led to the expulsion of Dignity chapters from Catholic property.
What likely changes now? Lamb quotes papal confidant Austen Ivereigh as saying the DDF is to function not by “policing and controlling orthodoxy, but rather opening up new paths of theological reflection, above all that arise from a synodal church.”
Archbishop Fernández’s leadership will likely not bring about a repudiation of existing teachings on gender and sexuality, but it could still do much good. A new direction for the DDF could allow space for theologians to engage publicly and critically with Catholic teaching in view of contemporary knowledge. A new direction could pause any formal teachings on gender identity from being dropped, allowing Catholics the necessary time to discern intentionally and slowly how the church should respond. A new direction could grant pastoral workers freedom to minister at the margins without fear of sanction.
At the very least, a new direction will prevent the “immoral methods” of the past from causing harm once again. Even better, a new direction could open the door for the Catholic Church to become—in teaching, as well as practice—an inclusive church ready to celebrate the glory of God revealed in LGBTQ+ people’s lives.
—Robert Shine (he/him), New Ways Ministry, July 3 , 2023
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National Catholic Reporter, “Pope appoints new head of Vatican doctrinal office to promote theologians“
Let us hope the New Head of the Dicastery will study deep into the teachings of Jesus Christ and try it with the ordinary faithful of the Church. The teachings must be based purely on the present-day developments of the sciences and the present world. People’s understanding of each and everything that affects them and the world changed drastically. The Church must become more of the ordinary faithful. We cannot force them to change or altogether drop their thinking or understanding. The LGBTQ itself is a new arrival, many are not ready to accept the idea completely. Someone must patiently persuade such people to accept. Let us hope the new man at the helm will see that. Someone smoothly brought things out to the world at large and accepted them without making much fuzz. Let us congratulate him and wish him success.
K J GEORGE
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Lifesite News quotes from an interview in the Italian newspaper, La Stampa: “According to the Argentinean theologian “there also needs to be reference to a context close to home, that is always positive in light of what is being considered or proposed. For example, it is no good opposing same-sex marriage because people tend to see us as a group of resentful, cruel, insensitive, over-the-top even, individuals. It is an entirely different thing to talk about the beauty of marriage and the harmony of differences that form part of an alliance between a man and woman. This positive context speaks for itself when it comes to showing that the use of the same term “marriage” to describe same-sex unions, in unsuitable.”
Progress. Welcome Tucho. If only my own family could now end their immoral doctrine of exclusion.
II have a favorite book by Matthew Fox, “The Pope’s War; Why Ratzinger’s Secret Crusade Has Imperiled The Church And How It Can Be Saved.” At the conclusion of the book there is an appendix titled the “The Wailing Wall of Silenced, Expelled, or Banished Theologians and Pastoral Leaders under Ratzinger.”
In the edition I have there are 92 names; #22 is Fr. Matthew Fox, O.P. #28 Fr. Robert Nugent and #29 Sister Jeannine Gramick. There are many other recognizable names on the list from those days after the Second Vatican Council.
I took this book with me on a retreat several years ago that I made and Fr. Matthew Fox was one of the directors. I asked him to sign his book for me. I mentioned to him I appreciated the appendix with that list of banished theological and pastoral leaders. He replied that the list was now well over a hundred. I looked at the book this morning to see what Matt Fox wrote. It read; “To Bob – To Life and Hope!” Matt Fox.
The hope still lives. I want to mention one other name from that list; #21 Fr. Karl Rahner and share a memory. It was my first year of theology studying for a small religious order. The professor was a young Benedictine priest back from his studies in Rome who was a Rahner scholar. The two semesters with him were the best theology I received in those four years. There were about sixty students in his class and at the conclusion of each semester he received a remarkable round of applause from the class. Perhaps in this new era of synodality under Pope Francis Fr. Karl Rahner will be rediscovered. My opinion is that Rahner would understand Pope Francis’ call for synodality and walking with other, a sense of how to find God in this modern world.