Monday 6 January 2014

Pastsoral Sensitivity is Endangering Souls

There are many difficulties facing families and individuals today, with many impacts upon children. Many rank and file clergy and laity, including our schools via the National Curriculum, have become politically correct and ‘pastorally sensitive’ But what does it mean to be pastorally sensitive? Certainly we don’t want to tell children of single-parent, cohabiting, re-married divorcees and homosexual households are condemned, but we need to find a pastorally sensitive way of helping children to value and promote family life as given by the Gospel and which we have a duty to proclaim.

‘Pastoral sensitivity’ is rightly a primary consideration in all areas of Church life and from all levels of the Church’s structure; without it there is only hardness of heart, which does not reflect the charity of God. However, what we have today seems to be a wicked distortion of true pastoral sensitivity, for even to say the Gospel prohibits acts such as contraception, cohabitation, IVF, homosexual activity etc, makes one liable to being labelled unpastoral. But such a label is based on an erroneous understanding of the Lord’s exhortation, “Do not judge” (Lk.6:37).

It seems to me that on the basis of “Do not judge” some Catholics refuse to censure the immoral acts the Church has always censured; refusing to censure contraception, cohabitation, homosexual activity etc. But they thereby betray souls by leaving them in the grip of evil practices (evil being absence of a good that ought to be present).

Our Lord’s exhortation that we not judge certainly refuses us permission to judge persons, "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned...” (Lk 6:37) and St Paul underlines this: “who are you to give a verdict on your neighbour?' (Rom 14:4). But refusal of permission to judge persons does not remove from us the responsibility of judging actions and situations: “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” (Jn. 7:24) or as St Paul puts it, “Test all things... Abstain from every form of evil” (1.Thess. 5:21-22)

It is disturbing to see Catholics -from the highest ranking prelates to the most humble of the laity- misreading “Do not judge” to the point where they give support to immoral acts which endanger souls. The support they give (either actively by promoting them or passively by refusing to condemn them) is to side with the father of lies who has used the philosophies of this world to blind them to the Truth (Christ). It seems that with many folk the Gospel is lost under the theories of such men as Freud, Jung, Rogers, Kinsey etc. Those clergy who adhere to such theories are not hard to equate with “rivals of Christ who came out of our own number but had never really belonged” (1.Jn. 2; 19); “who will not listen to sound doctrine but will follow their own desires and collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear.” (1.Tim.4:2). The world may justify immoral activities under the guise of “equality and justice for all”, but deluded Catholics are following the world by refusing to condemn under the title of “Do not judge”. Now the Church is by her nature at odds with the world: “If the world hates you, remember it hated me before you...My choice withdrew you from the world, therefore the world hates you” (Jn.15:18,19), so to be in agreement with the world is to disagree with Christ, and Catholics who refuse to fight against the world are being deceived into working for the devil, the prince of this world: “Now is the judgement of the world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out” (Jn.12v31). The devil’s (unwitting?) disciples are well-accepted by the world since “what they say is from the world, the world listens to them” (1 Jn.4:5).


Let us be clear: there is everything wrong with denouncing persons, but there is nothing wrong and everything right in the denunciation of acts. How then, do we make a pastorally sensitive response to those who are using contraception, who have had an abortion, co-habit or are actively homosexual? It is necessary to distinguish pastoral sensitivity from pastoral sentimentality: pastoral sentimentality is a feelings-centred approach which refuses to apply the Church’s teaching if it is going to bring emotional or social pain to the person or persons involved; pastoral sensitivity applies the Church’s teaching in a caring, understanding yet formative way so that the person or persons come to understand why the Church cannot approve of their actions but know they are valued as persons, for which reason we should be encouraging them to continue in the life of prayer, charity, and reception of the sacraments so as to be sustained in the struggle -and even the pain- of living the moral life. With children in schools it is a case of teaching what is true but letting them know that the Church realises it isn't always easy to live by the Gospel; that some people feel unable to live by it, and that the Church always tells such people to continue praying, living charitably and to coming to Mass so as to obtain God’s grace for change, since we know that God is merciful, never gives up on any of us, and can always heal our hearts.

11 comments:

  1. it's a hard road, Father, and pastoral sentimientality or worse indifference encourages more of the carnage that accompanies sin. if people could be made to understand that 'love', such an abused word and concept, is accepting responsibilty for others and onself. but we live in a world where governments are responsible for everything, and governments teach and legitamise the most appalling distortions of love and the family. for those who get tangled up in this mess of sin, clear speaking, clear action, and concerned catechesis is much needed. God made us Truth seekers, or at least needers. that's why the world is so miserable, with its happy nice lies. if only more priests preached that the natural law is simply the way things should be, and further, celibacy is not a sin of selfishness. as for children given in to the messy selfishness of unnatural 'families', kids aren't stupid they know they've been conned. I don't envy this pastoral task, but surely it must be rare?

    that said, Christ was never slow to rebuke sin, or mean on offering mercy to the sincere penitent. St Paul was a bit more rash. two or more lapses and bye bye...perhaps he simply had the gift of seeing that ultimately someone would always be more in love with their sin, than their Saviour.

    Our Lady, refuge of sinners, rescue us all from such a 'love'.

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    1. Thank you for the comment.
      I think you note three central points: governments are setting the moral scene by legitimising what the Gospel prohibits; Catechesis is needed, and people are still unhappy in lives based upon lies/errors.
      Sadly, with the break up of marriages being so high, and homosexual pairings now legitimised by the State, these family situations aren't so rare as they ought to be.
      God bless you and yours.

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  2. Thank you, Father.

    Perhaps we ought to be careful about "reception of the sacraments", it being likely in the current climate to be interpreted as approving sacrilegious communions?

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    1. Thank you for the comment.
      Indeed, reception of the sacraments is for those who leave sinful situations behind and seek God's help to remain free from such situations. Hopefully those priest or deacon involved makes it clear that receiving Holy Communion can only be permitted when the situation is left behind, which is why they should be encouraged to attend Mass but not to receive Holy Communion there.
      God bless you and yours.

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    2. It's the "can of worms opening" Pastoral Solution, that no doubt being a soft touch for adulterers will eventually allow practicing sodomites go up for their priestly blessing and accompany their adopted children in attending the First Holy Communion Breakfast. And the Catholics will just go along with it all.

      "...Holy Communion can only be permitted when the situation is left behind, which is why they should be encouraged to attend Mass but not to receive Holy Communion there."

      This is failing. OK, it very importantly prevents sacrilegious communions, but people living in irregular situations are going up every Sunday getting their "priestly blessing". They're being blessed for their sinning while the priest is holding the Blessed Sacrament in his hands. Perhaps these priest would like to bless these hardened mortal sinners with the Host - why not? People are deceived into thinking that the sinning is OK. My parish priest every Sunday, especially big Feast Days asks people to come up for their priestly blessing if they're living in irregular situations. I remember seeing divorced and remarrieds (aka adulterers) just remaining in the pew, everybody (and them too) knew it was their wilful choice to remain in a situation where they could not swallow the Blessed Sacrament. Sometimes a visual catechesis is better. They certainly aren't catechising now.

      One of the things I can't bear to see is Eucharistic Ministers go the Tabernacle and get the Hosts out during Communion time for reasons I won't elaborate here.

      What it all boils down to is the Blessed Sacrament, Communion. Familiarity breeds contempt.

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    3. Thank you for the comment, Damask Rose.
      You are right of course, the idea of a Pastoral 'Solution' is indeed a can of worms, since it usually means nothing more than ignoring the situation into which folk have fallen. Pastoral Sensitivity must not be of the same order; it cannot exclude informing folk why there situation is wrong; that their situation must be changed in response to God's love for them, and reminding them to refrain from Holy Communion until they have left the situation behind.

      I share your concerns about honouring the Blessed Sacrament and how we handle It, and while I am not sure familiarity breeds positive contempt, it certainly seems to breed an unrecognised flippancy which leads to a negligence that probably does not arise from invincible ignorance.

      On behalf of my brother priests I have to say we do not usually know whose relationships are irregular, especially since we are moved so regularly from parish to parish and cannot really get to know the parish families well, and that when we are aware it is very hard to turn someone away at the altar rail which may scandalise many souls who thus turn souls away from the Church. Sadly, nothing is simple in these days of pastoral sensitivity...

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  3. how does one treat a daughter who was a good catholic. got married young had a child then divorced with an annulment. Remarried had two more children. met a Muslim from the middle east. divorced her second husband. became a Muslim married her new man in an Islamic ceremony. so she has three children three husbands and now says she is a Moslem. The fathers duty is to rebuke the sinner, as taught by Christ. Additionally she is excluded from family events by the father. If she repents or shows some kind of regret at all the hurt she has caused her parents and siblings then I am only too happy to forgive.

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    1. Thank you for the comment.
      You ask a difficult set of questions. The daughter in question seems to have a quite solid belief in the existence of a deity but not in God as known through the Catholic Faith, since she seems to have abandoned Catholicism so easily. Her father does indeed have the duty to point out the error of her current thinking and show her how right the Catholic Faith is, but his duty would thus seem to be more or less done, with occasional reminders alone the way (without falling into constant badgering). I'm not sure we can counsel him to close the door completely by refusing her entry into all family events; it would perhaps depend upon the situation (a family wedding is different to a family funeral).
      God bless you and yours.

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    2. God bless you and yours Brandma. I have a sibling who's been married five times, with various children here and there, or, already gone to their reward. as far as I know the truth is a marriage that has been recognised as bound by Christ's Apostolic sons, is bound. the only way forward is chastity. but how responsible is one for all those adulterous relationships of all those who have been cast off?

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  4. It is extremely unpastoral to lead those in one's spiritual care into grave sin by commission or omission. Pastoral practice is always at the service of Church teaching on Faith and morals and oriented to the salvation of souls.

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    1. Thank you Lynda.
      I think it is not only unpastoral to lead souls into sin (or leave them there) but dangerous to the soul and to the preacher. You are right: Pastoral practice is always at the service of Church teaching on Faith and morals and oriented to the salvation of souls.
      God bless

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