Ruth Institute Blog

According to the Catholic News Agency, “the Vatican is hosting a colloquium seeking to find ‘new and creative language to speak to people where they are.’ This is according to Helen Alvaré, professor of law at George Mason University, and communications liaison for the Humanum Colloquium, which will run from Nov. 17­-19 at the Vatican.”

I have a couple of predictions about this event. My predictions are based on the full title of the event, as well as my knowledge of the participants.

The full title of the event is: “An International Interreligious Colloquium on The Complementarity of Man and Woman.” Sexual complementarity is not a topic that marriage re-definers call attention to. Ever.

Here is my take on the participants:

1. Helen Alvare, the communications liaison referenced above, is simply an outstanding spokeswomen for the authentically Catholic view of marriage, family and human sexuality.

2. I am acquainted with many of the speakers. The line-up includes pro-marriage faith leaders from across the religious spectrum.

One of them, Ignacio Ibarzábal, is the Executive Director of Grupo Sólido, an Argentine pro-marriage organization founded by young adults. A number of their members have attended Ruth Institute events over the years. I have the highest respect for Ignacio and his group. Read more…

For purposes of this article, I set aside my Ph.D. degree: I am speaking strictly on the authority of my MOM degree.

Ok, everyone. I realize I have been out of the loop for a while. I have been trying to finish a book. And I had an unexpected family emergency to deal with.

But Mom’s home now. Time to shape up.

What have you kids been doing, talking about your Father like this? Just today on my Facebook feed, I found someone referring our Holy Father Pope Francis as a “world class smart ass!”  And this person evidently considers himself a good Catholic! A better Catholic than the Pope!

Some of you are hysterical over the Synod, as though the Holy Father were plotting to change Church doctrine. Haven’t you seen this report from the National Catholic Register? The four American bishops said at their press conference, “There must have been two synods, and the four of us must have happened to be at the wrong one.”

I don’t know what in the world you kids are thinking. You certainly realize that the Holy Father has no authority to change Church doctrine. And he knows it.

Some of you are upset because all the wrong people seem to like the Holy Father. I realize there is a battle to capture the symbolic value of the Papacy. The “Progressives” who want the whole Sexual Revolution, would love to claim the moral authority of the Papacy and the Catholic Church for their team. But do you realize that every time you repeat the liberal media talking points like this, you are scoring for the “Progressive” team? Read more…

Ok, everyone, listen up.  There is no longer any doubt: Pope Francis is definitely Catholic! And completely orthodox on sexual morality!  At the end of the Synod, he will beatify Pope Paul VI, author of Humanae Vitae.  This action leaves no doubt at all where the Holy Father stands.  He absolutely does not have to beatify Paul VI. His doing so will be a major-league thorn in the side to the self-styled “progressives” and “reformers.” He is “sealing the deal” on Church teaching on contraception by beatifying Paul VI.

Besides all that, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI attended the ceremony.  The liberal world loves to hate Benedict, and has tried to create a “narrative” which opposes the “good guy” Francis to the “bad guy” Benedict. Actually, they are on the same team.  They may be playing “good cop, bad cop” as a strategy, as parents must sometimes do with recalcitrant children.  But there is no doubt at all that these Holy Fathers are united.  

People, do not allow yourself to be triangulated by media games pitting Pope Emeritus against the current Pope.  Do not allow yourself to be sucked into the liberal spin machine vortex, by repeating their narrative.  They have enough outlets for telling their story, don’t you think?

Get behind Pope Francis. Spread this word as far as you can, in as positive a manner as you can. Church teaching is not changing. We still believe that human sexuality is a great gift from God, that it is deeply meaningful, and that we are not to demean that act by deliberately separating the unitive and the procreative aspects of the sexual act.

Thank the Father, Son and Holy Spirit that we will continue to witness to this beautiful truth, when all the world is teaching the opposite: “A good society must strive to separate sex from procreation and both from marriage. Sex has no intrinsic meaning, only the meaning we happen to assign to it. We ourselves are nothing but meaningless atoms, bumping into each other at random in the cosmos, for no particular reason at all.”

If you have a Facebook page, you are a member of the New Media. If you have a blog, you are a member of the New Media. Use your microphone to make it clear: the Catholic Church will not be changing its doctrine on sexual morality.  If Francis had plans to do so, there is simply no way he would even mention the prophetic voice of Paul VI, much less take steps to canonize him.

BTW, if you are not sure whether Paul VI was prophetic, read paragraph 17 of Humanae Vitae.  Think about the “one child” policy in China, and realize that Paul VI predicted this type of human rights abuse in 1968.

If this post is helpful to you, please “like” the And spread the word!

Take heart from this video interview with Cardinal Pell of Australia.  These 5 minutes will lower your blood-pressure if you are a supporter of the ancient Christian teachings on marriage, family and human sexuality.  Cardinal Pell is reacting to the “relatio post disceptationem” published midway through the Synod, the unofficial document touted by the media as some kind of sea change in Catholic teaching. He states at the beginning, “The Synod Fathers decided unanimously to publish the summaries of the various working groups,” because they believed the “relatio” was “tendentious” and “skewed.” The Synod Fathers wanted Catholics around the world to realize that there is no radical sea change in Catholic teaching.

According to Cardinal Pell, “We are not collapsing in a heap. We have no intention of following the radical elements in all the Christian churches and … going out of business.”

Listen to it all.  You can read the original “relatio” that started all this here.  You can read the documents of the working groups here.

H/T Father Z’s blog.