Sunday we had the Homilies of all Homilies. Our newly ordained Deacon gave a homily on the Social Teaching of the Church in light of the election around the corner and the importance of this election. He mentioned that life was sacred at all levels, not just from conception. I agree with this. But it was obvious that he had an agenda. He went on to talk about the need for the faithful Catholic to vote his conscience when it comes to the election. And that if after much prayer, studying the issue, and discussion , if you as a faithful Catholic disagreed with what the Church teaches (abortion) then you must vote your conscience. Okay, fine, I understand that not all Catholics will be voting for the candidate that is pro-life. They will look to the war as a “life issue”, even though there is a good argument to be made that abortion is the main issue on which to make your decision. But the main thing that troubles me is that I don’t think the pulpit is the place for our deacon to be discussing this. Especially, since I knew where he was heading in the future because of how our priest leans.

Oh my. I had to pray earnestly before receiving Holy Communion to help me forgive the Deacon. I had to fight back tears so as not to make a scene. This Church that I have come to BECAUSE of Authority and Eucharist, to have those that were born into her or who are in the Seminaries dissenting from the Magisterium and not appreciating the Church’s Authority just breaks my heart.

So I prayed for forgiveness “Help me to Love and forgive, Lord.” And then I received the Precious Body and Blood and Soul and Divinity from the Deacon’s hands. Afterwards I kneeled in prayer and thanksgiving and adoration. I even truly had forgiven our Deacon.

But then Father-right before dismissal-added his two cents. He said that he agreed with all that the Deacon said during the homily, but that he would only add one other thing regarding conscience. ANd that would be something that Cardinal Newman had said after the Pope’s infallibility doctrine was declared (I think that’s what he said). Cardinal Newman said (I’m paraphasing my priest), “I drink first to conscience and then to the Pope.” And then Father went on to talk about how we must examine our conscience because the Holy Spirit speaks to our conscience (I agree) and also because the Holy Spirit can impress upon the laity whether a teaching of the Church is true or not. Also, he never talked about how we need to have a PROPERLY FORMED conscience. The part he omitted was how we can use the Catechism, the Teaching of the Church and Scripture to help PROPERLY form our Conscience. Otherwise, our conscience can deceive us, but he never mentioned this. He just repeated that if our Conscience is going against the Church’s teaching, then we must go with our Conscience. And to illustrate this, he used the example of how 90% of Catholics disagree with the Church’s teaching on birth control. And so they practice birth control. And so it is acceptable and not a sin (nevermind the Church calls contraception intrinsically evil) because they are only following their conscience.

He said that during the 70’s he almost lost his position because of his stance on birth control and how he believed the Church was WRONG on this teaching. But praise be to the Blessed Mother, he did not lose his position. He then went on to say that since 90% of Catholics believe that birth control is wrong, that therefore the Church MUST BE WRONG ON THIS TEACHING. Can you believe that?!?!?!?!? A teaching of the Church is wrong, because the laity think it is. Nevermind that perhaps the reason the laity don’t like it is because it’s a hard teaching. Or perhaps the laity aren’t being taught why “no contraception”. Nevermind that the 90% of Catholics he is talking about are American Catholics, not Catholics of the whole world and of all time. But just because it’s unpopular does not make it wrong anyway. I would suggest that the opposite is true. Most likely, the more unpopular the teaching, the more likelihood it’s TRUE. After all, Our Lord didn’t come preaching things that were popular. His teachings were “hard teachings” as well. Turn the other cheek. Pick up your cross. Deny yourself. Even the Eucharist was a hard teaching and many disciples left him at that time. (See John 6)

Besides morality is not something one votes on. A thing is either moral or not! It doesn’t cease being moral. A thing is either True or Not. It doesn’t cease being TRUE just because we human beings change our mind on the thing.

Anyway, our priest thinks that this is a correct understanding of the “Sensus Fidelium”. I asked my spitfire members for help. Here is what one member replied with:

The Latin term you’re looking for is “sensus fidelium” – the “sense of the faithful”, if you will. The classic case is the definition of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX. It is crucial to understand, contra your pastor and deacon, sensus fidelium is meant as a gift given to the faithful as a whole not as individual people. To use an ancient definition, it would be the faith “held always and everywhere, and by everyone”. As such, to attempt to use sensus fidelium as an argument for individual dissent on a topic of faith or morals long held by the Church is at best a mistaken misappropriation of a term and at best an attempt to confuse the people by and intentional mis-statement of a somewhat complex (in action, if not definition) concept.

So I just had to get this off my chest. We ain’t leaving this parish. DH says no way. We are not Protestants anymore, he says. We stay and do our part. He says that if we leave this parish for the orthodox one down the street, what’s to keep that parish from having a liberal priest come in a few years down the road, and then we’re faced with the same problem. So, we will stay and do our part, he says.

Pray for me. I’m not gifted with eloquence of speech. I have to speak in RCIA (as a catechist) and the topic I have been asked to speak on is LIFE of all things, and the Church’s teaching on LIFE. So I know that Fr. will come to sit in on this class, and obviously we will have a disagreement. I’m not so good at disagreements or butting heads. I fear I will not act with as much charity as I should. I fear I will stumble the new catecumen who is in our RCIA class.

Sigh.