If non-infallible teaching can err to the extent of heresy, then our faith is in vain. We cannot live Catholicism solely by infallible teachings. And whether or not a teaching is infallible is also often a matter of dispute, especially among those who reject non-infallible teachings.
The solution to this problem is to put your faith in the Church, the Roman Pontiffs, and the body of Bishops. And do not let the accusers worry you. Do not read their long diatribes against the successor of Peter and against the successors of the Apostles. Forward in Faith.
Dei Filius: "Now, although the assent of faith is by no means a blind movement of the mind, yet no one can accept the Gospel preaching in the way that is necessary for achieving salvation without the inspiration and illumination of the Holy Spirit, who gives to all facility in accepting and believing the truth."
FAITH is a gift from God, and it is only possible with the grace of the Holy Spirit. So when a teaching seems difficult, the solution is not to accuse the Pope, or the Bishops, or the Ecumenical Council of going astray. The solution is not adherence to a conspiracy theory that claims evil has infiltrated the Church. Rather, the simple solution to difficult teachings is FAITH. Accept the grace of the Holy Spirit and accept the teaching.
But the papal accusers have perverted faith itself. For them, faith is adherence to a set of ideas which are like the platform of a political party. And if even a Pope or Council disagrees, they are treated like a political opponent. That is not faith. The Church is given the role by God to teach the truths of Divine Revelation (as well as natural law). She is also given the help of the Holy Spirit needed to fulfill that role steadfastly and well. No other persons or group or organization is more fit to teach the Faith than the Church, led by the Roman Pontiffs and the body of Bishops. For they alone have the particular help of the Holy Spirit to teach truth from Divine Revelation. Now it is true that the Spirit is seeking the salvation of all human persons, and that means He helps those who are members of other religions or no religion. But no critic of the Church and no group, not even a group within the Catholic Church, has the particular type of help from the Holy Spirit to teach revealed truths as is given to the successors of Peter and to the successors of the other Apostles.
The papal accusers have made harsh attacks on Pope Francis, further accusations against other recent Popes and against Vatican II, remarks that denigrate Vatican I, and vicious attacks on the Bishops, as if very few Bishops could be trusted to teach or lead at all. And what is left? The accusers want you to listen to them. That is the real reason they are so harsh in accusing the successors to the Apostles. They are jealous of the authority that the Apostles of today hold, and they wish that you would distrust the Pope and Bishops, and follow them instead.
But FAITH is directed at Divine Revelation. And none other than the one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church is entrusted with teaching from Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture. For only the Pope and the body of Bishops have the charisms (the divinely conferred abilities) to teach with the special assistance of the Holy Spirit.
Dei Filius: "And so faith in itself, even though it may not work through charity, is a gift of God, and its operation is a work belonging to the order of salvation, in that a person yields true obedience to God himself when he accepts and collaborates with his grace which he could have rejected."
When the Church, the Pope, or an Ecumenical Council issues a teaching, which seems wrong to your reason, accept it by faith. If you cannot do so, then pray and ask for the graces needed. Faith can operate without love and hope, the other two infused virtues. But for salvation, you must have all three. Be careful to avoid mortal sin. Make it a habit to confess regularly, and to practice charity toward others (including love of enemies). For love will assist you in being able to accept teachings which are difficult. In this way, you show true obedience, true love, and true worship to God, by believing the teachings of the Roman Pontiff, even when these are contrary to your own ideas or the ideas of your peers.
Dei Filius: "Therefore, by divine and Catholic faith all those things are to be believed which are contained in the Word of God, as found in Scripture and Tradition, and which are proposed by the Church as matters to be believed as divinely revealed, whether by Her solemn judgment, or in Her ordinary and universal Magisterium."
The solemn judgment of the Church occurs when She teaches through Papal Infallibility or through Conciliar Infallibility. And then the third way in which the Magisterium teaches infallibly is in Her ordinary and universal Magisterium. This occurs when the body of Bishops and the Roman Pontiff are in agreement on one position, definitively to be held. They teach, over time, expressing this teaching by their ordinary magisterium. And when this set of teachings is in agreement and becomes universal, then it is clear that the teaching is infallible. For the Roman Pontiffs and the body of Bishops cannot err when they are in agreement on a matter of faith and morals, which they propose to the faithful as definitively to be held. The reason they cannot err is that they teach with the authority of Christ and the ability of the Holy Spirit.
An Ecumenical Council teaches infallibly when deciding matters of faith or moral definitively. It is not necessary that the teaching be in the form of a list with attached anathemas. It is not necessary that certain wording be used. As long as the Council is issuing a solemn judgment on faith or morals to the whole Church, or, similarly, any kind of definitive teaching, it is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit to be free from all error. And that is because the Pope and the Bishops have the charism from God to teach in the Spirit, regardless of whether they as individuals are in the state of grace or not. It is the Spirit teaching. And this is just as Jesus taught us:
[John]
{16:12} I still have many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them now.
{16:13} But when the Spirit of truth has arrived, he will teach the whole truth to you. For he will not be speaking from himself. Instead, whatever he will hear, he will speak. And he will announce to you the things that are to come.
{16:14} He shall glorify me. For he will receive from what is mine, and he will announce it to you.
{16:15} All things whatsoever that the Father has are mine. For this reason, I said that he will receive from what is mine and that he will announce it to you.
So when the papal accusers ridicule the teaching of a Council, accuse a Council of teaching heresy, or claim that a Council's teaching should be rejected, nullified, or forgotten -- they are saying these things about the teaching of the Holy Spirit. And they are guilty of refusing the assent of faith that is the grave moral obligation of all Catholics for teachings which are of the solemn judgment of the Magisterium.
Refusal to give the assent called divine and catholic faith is the definition of heresy. Canon 751: "Heresy is the obstinate denial or obstinate doubt after the reception of baptism of some truth which is to be believed by divine and Catholic faith...." The teachings which are solemn judgments of Ecumenical Councils are to be believed with divine and catholic faith, that is to say, with the full assent of the faith that is an infused virtue.
As Catholics, we are not free to disagree with any teaching of an Ecumenical Council that we dislike, nor are we free to disagree with any teaching of the ordinary and universal Magisterium. So when the successive Popes and the body of Bishops teach one position on a matter of faith or morals, to be held definitively, obstinate disagreement is gravely immoral. And it is more sinful to add, to this sin of heresy, an accusation against the Church or the Pope or the Bishops, that they are teaching grave error.
The accusers of Pope Francis have not only accused him. They have accused the other recent Popes and Vatican II as well. For example, they reject the teaching of Pope Francis in Fratelli Tutti that freedom of religion is a fundamental human right. Yet this has been taught by an Ecumenical Council and by successive Popes and by the body of Bishops dispersed in the world. The teaching falls under both Conciliar Infallibility and the ordinary and universal Magisterium.
Vatican II, Dignitatis Humanae: "This Vatican Council declares that the human person has a right to religious freedom. This freedom means that all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others, within due limits. The council further declares that the right to religious freedom has its foundation in the very dignity of the human person as this dignity is known through the revealed word of God and by reason itself."
Notice the wording above: "This Vatican Council declares...the council further declares...." The wording indicates a definitive teaching, as does the fact that the teaching occupies the entirety of the document, titled: "Declaration on Religious Freedom, Dignitatis Humanae, On The Right of the Person and of Communities
to Social and Civil Freedom in Matters Religious." The teaching is infallible under Conciliar Infallibility. And since the successive Popes and the body of Bishops has continued to teach this doctrine, as one position definitively to be held, it is also infallible under the ordinary universal Magisterium.
Yet the papal accusers reject this teaching, and claim that it is heresy. This is not a non-infallible teaching, which would permit some limited degree of licit theological dissent. It is an infallible teaching. They are not free to disagree. They have a grave obligation to give the full assent of divine and catholic faith. Refusing to do so is the sin of heresy. And what is their response? They accuse the Popes, including Pope-Saints, and the Council of teaching heresy.
What is the definition of heresy? It is the obstinate refusal to believe the infallible teaching of the Roman Catholic Magisterium. By definition, the papal accusers are the ones committing heresy. Under no definition of heresy at all would an Ecumenical Council and several Popes and the body of Bishops be guilty of heresy for teaching something contrary to the ideas of a small group of self-exalting complainers. It is impossible for the Church to go astray or lead astray by teaching heresy, for the Church is indefectible. Those who accuse the Popes, Bishops, and Vatican II of heresy are also guilty of rejecting the dogma of the indefectibility of the Church.
Neither can it be said that the true Church is something other than the Roman Pontiffs and the body of Bishops. Heretics and schismatics often resort to the claim that the institutional Church has gone astray, and the true Church is a small remnant which is in opposition to the successive Popes and the body of Bishops. But Christ was very clear, the Church is founded on Peter and on his successors. The Church is called Apostolic because, by definition, the sole Ark of Salvation is that Church led by the successor of Peter (the Pope) and the successors of the other Apostles (the body of Bishops). A small group of Bishops with no Pope is not the Church.
Canon 751: "Heresy is the obstinate denial or obstinate doubt after the reception of baptism of some truth which is to be believed by divine and Catholic faith; apostasy is the total repudiation of the Christian faith; schism is the refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him."
Canon 1364 §1: "an apostate from the faith, a heretic, or a schismatic incurs a latae sententiae excommunication."
Those who accuse any valid Pope, or the body of Bishops, or any Ecumenical Council of heresy are themselves heretics. For they reject the dogma of the indefectibility of the Church. They are also schismatics for rejecting submission to the authority of the Roman Pontiffs (over both doctrine and discipline) and for refusing communion with the body of Bishops who obey the Pope. By accusing the Pope and Bishops of heresy, it is implied that they reject the Pope's authority and reject communion with the Bishops who support the teaching of the Pope. Thus, the penalty is automatic: it is excommunication (latae sententiae). The papal accusers are, in truth, automatically excommunicated for refusing to believe the teaching of Pope Francis (on freedom of religion and many other subjects) which have also been taught by Vatican II, or by the successive Popes and the body of Bishops dispersed in the world.
Dei Filius: "Since, then, without faith it is impossible to please God [Heb 11:6] and reach the fellowship of his sons and daughters, it follows that no one can ever achieve justification without it, neither can anyone attain eternal life unless he or she perseveres in it to the end."
Faith is required to please God and reach salvation. Love and hope are also required, for one must die in the state of grace to be saved, and that state always includes all three virtues. Does this mean that only believers or only Christians are saved? No, for non-Christian believers and non-believers can have implicit faith in Christ, in the Trinity, and in God, by having faith in the transcendent goods of this life that are of God, such as love of neighbor, mercy, justice, compassion for those who suffer, etc.
On the other hand, those who profess Catholicism, but who reject the teaching, or the very authority to teach, of the Popes, the Bishops, and the Councils are rejecting faith in Christ. One person can be saved by implicit faith in Christ, but another person can lose salvation by implicit rejection of Christ in the form of the rejection of the Roman Pontiff or an Ecumenical Council. (Non-Christians and non-believers can also lose salvation by implicitly rejecting Christ by an unrepentant actual mortal sin on some matter of morals rather than of faith. This might be the more common way for non-Christians or non-believers to lose salvation rather than by the simple rejection of Christianity or of belief in God.)
There are those today whose religion has become like a political party's platform. They believe a set of ideas, in accord with their own reason and approved by their peers. But they are living by reason, not by faith. They claim to profess the Catholic faith, but they do not accept any teaching from a Pope or Council unless it is in agreement with their own thinking. Some have little faith, and perhaps some others have no faith. Some lack the infused virtue of faith entirely. They do not please God. They are on the path to Hell. They call the Pope apostate, heretic, idolater. And yet that is what they are.
Other persons in that same group behave similarly, but retain little faith; they have not yet lost the virtue of faith. They may or may not be in the state of grace, retaining love and hope. They are the smoldering wick, the bruised reed. May they repent and return to the fullness of love, faith, and hope. "The bruised reed he will not break, and the smoldering wick he will not extinguish. He will lead forth judgment unto truth." (Is 42:3).
Dei Filius: "So that we could fulfill our duty of embracing the true faith and of persevering unwaveringly in it, God, through his only begotten Son, founded the Church, and he endowed his institution with clear notes to the end that she might be recognized by all as the guardian and teacher of the revealed word."
Catholics who love God and neighbor, and who put their faith in the teachings of the Church have the state of grace and are saved. The Church was founded by Christ to teach the truth, and so Christ sent the Holy Spirit on the Church at Pentecost to be with the Church forever. And Christ also gave the leaders of the Church the charisms (divine gifts) needed to teach the truth. The Pope and the Bishops have both the authority and the ability to teach the truth, in the Holy Spirit, on behalf of Christ, to the world. The Church does not go astray in Her teaching, for She has the help of God. In this way, Her teachings are protected from all grave error by God. She is the sole guardian and teacher of the Word of God. There is no other. So when the Popes and the Councils are accused of teaching heresy or other grave error, those who have true FAITH will reject these accusations.
Vatican I, Dei Filius: "So it comes about that, like a standard lifted up for the nations [Is 11:12], She both invites to Herself those who have not yet believed, and likewise assures Her sons and daughters that the faith they profess rests on the firmest of foundations."
The Church and the faith She teaches "rests on the firmest of foundations" because the Church cannot err gravely in Her teachings on faith and morals. When we put our faith in Her teachings, we rest secure. Ideas contrary to this teaching include the claim that the Church can teach heresy through a Roman Pontiff, through an Ecumenical Council, or through the body of Bishops teaching with the Roman Pontiff. How would the Church be a banner lifted up for all the nations of the world, to guide them to salvation, if She could teach grave error?
Dei Filius: "Consequently, the situation of those, who by the heavenly gift of faith have embraced the Catholic truth, is by no means the same as that of those who, led by human opinions, follow a false religion; for those who have accepted the faith under the guidance of the Church can never have any just cause for changing this faith or for calling it into question."
The papal accusers call into question the teachings of Popes and Councils, attempt to change the faith taught by the Pope and the Bishops, and worse. They reject it; call it heresy; and they openly obstinately oppose the authority of Popes, of the body of Bishops, and of Ecumenical Councils.
The papal accusers are following human opinions which are contrary to the teaching of the Popes and Councils. They therefore follow a false religion, one which claims to be the Catholic Faith. And though they will say the same about those who follow Pope Francis, the difference is that we follow the Bishop of Rome. We follow the Roman Pontiff accepted by the body of Bishops throughout the world as the head of the one true Church. And that Church is Apostolic; She can be identified as the one true Church because She has the successors of Peter and the successors of the other Apostles, the Bishops. But the papal accusers have few Bishops, and no Roman Pontiff. The true Church is clearly that which is led by the successive Roman Pontiffs, the body of Bishops, and the Ecumenical Councils. So those who accuse Popes, the body of Bishops, and Councils of grave error are the ones who follow a false religion.
We who follow the guidance of the Church "never have any just cause for changing this faith or for calling it into question" because the Church cannot teach grave error, not even in non-infallible teachings of the Roman Pontiffs. The indefectibility of the Church is what causes us to never have a just reason to change or call into question Her teachings.
In the next chapter of Dei Filius, the First Vatican Council speaks of the relation between faith and reason.
Dei Filius: "5. Even though faith is above reason, there can never be any real disagreement between faith and reason, since it is the same God who reveals the mysteries and infuses faith, and who has endowed the human mind with the light of reason.
"6. God cannot deny himself, nor can truth ever be in opposition to truth. The appearance of this kind of specious contradiction is chiefly due to the fact that either the dogmas of faith are not understood and explained in accordance with the mind of the Church, or unsound views are mistaken for the conclusions of reason.
"7. Therefore we define that every assertion contrary to the truth of enlightened faith is totally false."
So when the accusers of the Church claim that an Ecumenical Council has erred gravely, or that a Roman Pontiff has taught heresy, and then they begin to explain this claim, in an argument based on various reasonings, we are obliged to reject their reasoning. For it is a definition of the First Vatican Council that any assertion (or reasoning or argument, etc.) contrary to the truths of enlightened faith taught by the Church must be totally false. And this implies that the teachings of Popes and Councils cannot err gravely. If faith is above reason, who decides which truths are of faith? This cannot be decided by an argument of reason by those who accuse the Church of error, as that would place reason above faith, contrary to the above dogma. So it must be the Church who decides, judges, and defines. The arguments of those who accuse the Church are worthless. Faith is above reason, and the teachings of the Faith are from the Popes and the body of Bishops.
For God himself teaches through the Church. No matter how clear it might seem to reason that the Church has gravely erred, we are morally obligated to accept what the Church teaches and to reject the reasonings of others and even of our own minds. That is true faith. True Catholic faith is to believe what the Magisterium teaches, even when it contradicts our own understanding. And this is precisely where the papal accusers err. They put their own understanding above the teachings of the Popes, the body of Bishops, and the Ecumenical Councils. They do not accept any teaching of faith which contradicts their own reasonings. This is one of the most fundamental errors of their set of heresies.
to be continued…one more part in this series.
Ronald L Conte Jr
Hi Ron - I watched the Gordon/Lofton video discussion which you commented on in your blog. In the Livechat, someone asked a question, which was not answered by the hosts. Would you mind answering it for me, and also explaining the Latin terms which are being used?
“According to Ott, the Indefectibility of the Church is a Sententia Certa, not DeFide. If the death penalty is also a Sententia Certa, and it was changed, then can the Indefectibility of the Church also change?”
Thanks!