Aug

9

Inherent Ambiguity of the Pope, Nice Move, and Come On!

August 9, 2007 |

Posted by michaelp · Filed Under Roman Catholicism 

The Pope recently spoke to the issue of the eternity of Hell. He said: “Christ came to tell us that he desires all of us in heaven and that hell, which isn’t spoken about much in our time, exists and is eternal for those who close their hearts to his love.”

Oh the ambiguity with which the supreme Bishop speaks. What? You did not see it? There is wiggle room, believe me. If need be, the Catholic Church can migrate to many positions on Hell and still claim the statement above.

I have often admired the authoritative statements from Rome for their intentional obscurity. Each generation has issues which create the need for clarification and further articulation. The issue of Hell is one hot topic today. Yes, it is eternal, but is it populated with people for eternity or is it populated with demons. Some would say that Hell is a temporary confinement for people, but was created for demons who will be cursed with an everlasting stay. The traditional stance is that Hell is eternal for all, demons and people. Which is it Pope?

 Of course you would say that the context presents the answer. It is people. While I would agree, I have seen this wiggle room technique for quite some time with regards to Rome. Take evolution for example. In 1996 Pope John Paul 2 had this to say:

“Today, almost half a century after the publication of the encyclical [Humani Generis], new knowledge has led to the recognition in the theory of evolution of more than a hypothesis. It is indeed remarkable that this theory has been progressively accepted by researchers, following a series of discoveries in various fields of knowledge. The convergence, neither sought nor fabricated, of the results of work that was conducted independently is in itself a significant argument in favor of this theory” (Message to the Pontifical Academy of the Sciences [Oct. 22, 1996] 4.” (emphasis mine)

“More than a hypothesis”? It is interesting to me that the primary defense of Catholics for the need of an infallible magisterial authority is so this authority could step in and make authoritative and clear pronouncements about controversial issues so that the church can remain unified in its belief. Well, I don’t know how you can get more controversial than the issue of evolution. Yet the authoritative and clear claim that comes from the divine deposit of knowledge is that evolution is “More than a hypothesis.” Come on! If you don’t know how to interpret the early chapters of Genesis, just say “I don’t know.” Haven’t you taken a course on apologetics? And if you don’t know, what good is your seat?

In the end, here is what I have to say to you: “Nice move!” You have managed to speak on the issues without really speaking to the issues. You have given yourself wiggle room just in case this proves to be another Galileo incident. You have learned well.

Wow! I am being rather out of character here. Glad I got my polemics off my chest. Now I will go back to Parchment and Pen and write nice things :)


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