Pope Francis & Church Unity

Last week, I mused on Pope Francis and the church document that recently came out about blessings (Fudicia supplicans). I mentioned some frustration about how the world has received this document and formed opinions based on headlines in the news. I think it has caused serious division amongst Catholics, many of whom have not read it. Some are very quick to criticize the Holy Father while others commend him for allowing blessings on same-sex unions (which he does not).

I think, during this time of Francis’s papacy, that we being called to strive for unity in the church. We need to stop differentiating between “liberal” & “conservative” Catholics. The point is that we are all Catholic. The word catholic means “universal,” and the fact that we are all baptized into Christ trumps any political views we might have. We confess one profession of faith, and the Church is fundamentally a union of all of us based on Christ as the head. Division comes from the devil. God calls us to be one with each other in Christ.

“All indeed profess to be followers of the Lord but differ in mind and go their different ways, as if Christ Himself were divided. Such division openly contradicts the will of Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages the holy cause of preaching the Gospel to every creature” (That They May Be One, 1).

Another hot topic in Catholic news has been the removal of Joseph Strickland from his office as bishop of Tyler, Texas. On his Twitter account, Strickland basically called Pope Francis a heretic. The pope hasn’t said or done anything to deserve such an accusation. Some may not agree with me, but I believe that Strickland has been destructive to the church. To me, his comments are calumny, or defamation of Pope Francis. Also, I think he has led his flock astray from union with the pope and has encouraged the slamming of the Holy Father.

What is needed is mercy and forgiveness; they are crucial to our Catholic faith. We must give one another, and the pope, the benefit of the doubt. Yes, mercy and forgiveness can be very difficult but without it, we cannot be united with the Body of Christ in heaven. If it is too difficult for one to forgive another person, they can at the very least ask God for the desire to forgive and the desire to be merciful.

“To believe in Christ means to desire unity; to desire unity means to desire the Church; to desire the Church means to desire the communion of grace which corresponds to the Father's plan from all eternity” (That they may be one, 9).