I wonder which of the master wordsmiths at Fishwrap (aka National Schismatic Reporter) cobbled up the clucking editorial cum open letter to Pope Francis. NSR is displaying their case of the vapors over the mean old Vatican’s treatment of the consciously evolved sister-leaders of the LCWR. You can pretty much guess the content: Card. Müller is a meanie and men are afraid of women, blah blah blah. I am not sure that you even need go over there to look at the editorial, unless you want to have some fun in their combox.
What I want to address hereunder is their misuse of the phrase “sentire cum Ecclesia“. To wit:
The prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith asks aloud if LCWR’s focus on new ideas robs it of the ability to “feel with the church.” [HERE … BUT… Card. Müller used the Latin “sentire cum Ecclesia“] Francis, the opposite is true. It is because LCWR feels with the church that it is exploring these new ideas. [No, I don’t think so.] Failure to explore what is new will cripple the church mission in the years ahead. Like it or not, change is the norm of contemporary society. Expressing changeless teachings requires new understandings and articulations. [They want the Church to conform to prevailing culture.]
They really don’t have a clue, do they?
I have written already about what sentire cum Ecclesia means. HERE On that occasion, NSR twisted what Pope Francis said to a group of sisters. He used sentire cum Ecclesia. NSR didn’t get it. They turned it into “feel”.
In a nutshell, if you have to cast your lot with one English word for sentire in the phrase sentire cum Ecclesia, you would have to pick “think” or “agree”, and decidedly not feel. That is not to say that emotions are excluded and this is all über-rationalist. No. But the governing concept is the mind, not emotions. Emotions come along under the tutelage of the mind and will.
The phrase “sentire cum Ecclesia” has its origins in Ignatian spirituality, with which we can assume Francis is somewhat familiar.
Sentire cum Ecclesia is straight out of the Spiritual Exercises.
If you want a crash course in St. Ignatius’ own 18 Rules for “thinking” with the Church, check this out HERE or HERE.
Here is a sample of what sentire cum Ecclesia REALLY means:
That we may be altogether of the same mind and in conformity with the Church herself, if she shall have defined anything to be black which to our eyes appears to be white, we ought in like manner to pronounce it to be black. For we must undoubtedly believe, that the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Spirit of the Orthodox Church His Spouse, by which Spirit we are governed and directed to Salvation, is the same;…
Tell me. Is this how the sister-leaders of the LCWR, who are moving beyond the Church, accept the Church’s teachings and discipline? Is this how they, who are into “conscious evolution”, are receiving direction from the Cardinal Prefect of the CDF, the Vicar of Christ’s own confirmed deputy?
It takes a lot of work to sort out the rubbish they put out in a single paragraph.
O Mary, Exterminatrix of Heresy, come to our aid!
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Sentire is one of those near false friends that so bedevil second language learners. It looks like it should mean “sense”, and that in English means “feel.” But it is closer to “sense” in the modern use of the word sensible. It is, in classical authors and the Latin Church Fathers, often best translated as “know,” or “understand.”
“Bother your pastors, disturb your pastors, all of us pastors, so that we will give you the milk of grace, of doctrine, and of guidance.”
Pope Francis told them to knock on his door to receive “the milk of grace, of doctrine, and of guidance.” That is what they are getting. Their issue is that they don’t want doctrine, and rather than guidance they want license.
“Like it or not, change is the norm of contemporary society. Expressing changeless teachings requires new understandings and articulations.”
Is the paradox intended here? “Change is the norm”? Given the endorsement of change, how else would we interpret “new understandings and articulations” but as “change”? So what they are saying is: “Expressing changeless teachings requires [change].”
To remove the teachings you don’t like, with respect to birth control, homosexuality, abortion, ordination of women, is not to “express changeless teachings,” but to abandon.
How could anyone write this? It makes no sense.
I read today in a Spanish blog that Cdl. Muller was recently appointed to the Congregation for the Religious, along with Cdl. Lacroix from Quebec (I don’t know anything about him). I hope this will reinforce his position respect to orthodoxy in the religious orders.
Traductora, I just looked that up and found this list of cardinals newly appointed to the various congregations on Vatican.va here, that is true Cardinal Muller is appointed to CICLSAL (Cong for Religious). Should be helpful. Interesting, hopeful news. http://www.news.va/en/news/africas-newest-cardinals-named-to-serve-as-members
I smell Google translate…
I looked it up and Google translate “sentire cum Ecclesia” as “feel with the church”. It’s a pity because the phrase is quite common with the Jesuits and one would think it is common knowledge especially for certain groups that may be inclined towards contemporary Jesuit thought.
Elizabeth D., I looked up Cdl Lacroix, and he’s quite good and actually celebrated an old rite mass himself recently. Cdl Stella is a little harder to place, but seems to be very devoted to the priesthood and very devout.
sometimes i wonder if it’s worth the effort,when you’re dealing with clueless.
mtwelle, the thing to do is to click on the word “feel” to drop down the list of suggestions. “think” should be in that list. Select it, and then there should be buttons to contribute your translation to the engine for future considerations. If enough people do this, then “feel” can be knocked out of top place.
Traductora. Crdl Muller was named by Francis to the Congregation of Religious AND 4 OTHER OFFICES! The article read. Also mentioned no other bishops in this case, were named for new posts within the CDF. Only Crdnl to retain such ‘power’ within the catholic church is Muller. Lacroix has been a base missionary in Central America for years. Do not just stay with the fact that they may or may not celebrate EF. Catholic church is far more that liturgy. Bless you
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