If you are looking for some lighter reading today, zip over the Sandro Magister’s page. He has a post about how the semi-official journal of the Holy See La Civiltà Cattolica (edited by Jesuits, ), promotes Francis as a master of eloquence. It’s director is the great fan of Pier Vittorio Tondelli, Fr Antonio (“2+2=5”) Spadaro, SJ.
I promise you that this is not from The Onion. It is from the other “Onion”, La Civiltà Cattolica (edited by Jesuits).
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on #ASonnetADay – GUEST Sonnet – Dorothy Parker – “I dunno yer highfalutin’ words, but here’s th’ way it seems…”Fr. Z, wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving! Grateful to Almighty God for your priesthood, your service to the church, and...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesPersonally I think #2 would look best on you. Is that a vain consideration? 
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed Masses#3 seems like a plum purple based on the light on the shoulders, I don't think the lighting does it...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesNo. 1 is best, the violet seems to have great depth, and there is Marian pale blue and white in...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesI tend to dislike vestments with so much ornamentation that it’s hard to see the base color. That’s my problem...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesNo. 1 and none is second on my screen. 
on CQ CQ CQ: Ham Radio in Advent? ZedNet is ACTIVE! Weekly net?Thank you all. Rawles got us moving this direction to begin with and Chicken, I hear you. 
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed Masses1 is gorgeous, 2 is also nice, though the gold trim kind of overpowers the delicate purple fabric. 
on CQ CQ CQ: Ham Radio in Advent? ZedNet is ACTIVE! Weekly net?I regularly rag chew with folks on Zednet. Brandmeister TG31429, Wires-X room 28598, and with notice, i can link in...
on ASK FATHER: Marriage rite in the traditional form but Novus Ordo Nuptial Mass? Wherein Fr. Z rants.StOlavssøn says: my mother attend Mass for the first RCIA initiation rite, or can it be done privately? She is...
on ASK FATHER: Marriage rite in the traditional form but Novus Ordo Nuptial Mass? Wherein Fr. Z rants.Father, I have a question and am not savvy enough to know how to ask other than entering a comment....
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesYes, number 3 does look blue in the photo. Could be the lighting of the internet? I hope you keep...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed Masses1 is the same as the ones we have here (we have solemn sets in all the liturgical colours). They’re...
on Daily Rome Shot 05A second vote to not miss Rome, under any circumstances. The Steve Ray pilgrimages are designed for Catholics and guided...
on CQ CQ CQ: Ham Radio in Advent? ZedNet is ACTIVE! Weekly net?Dear JesusFreak84, If you just want to pass the test for the Technician Class license, the test pool is available...
on CQ CQ CQ: Ham Radio in Advent? ZedNet is ACTIVE! Weekly net?Is ZedNet still in operation? I haven't seen any activity in about two months. I thought it was down for...
on ACTION ITEM – POLL: New possible vestment for ADVENT for live streamed MassesNumber Three looks pretty blue to me. I don't like that one at all. I voted for two and then... on #ASonnetADay – 98. “From you have I been absent in the spring…”Yes, that is part of my office space. on #ASonnetADay – 98. “From you have I been absent in the spring…”Hello Father. Today at in the chat after your streaming Mass, I asked about the room you're in in this...
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In other news, the documents of Vatican II are hailed for their clarity.
The question is, did the Pope and his hagiographer lift this directly out of Orwell, or did they imagine that they were being completely original? I keep getting images of pigs walking upright on their hind feet and writing on the side of a barn when I read this…
This cat is a prisoner of a bubble of his own design. Give me strength. Over the edge.
From the article:
If there is something during these years that the pope has taught to journalists – and to anyone who may wish to listen to him – it is that what he says requires a correct interpretation on the part of the other. […] And this entails that one keep in mind not only “that which he says,” but also “to whom he says it, when, where, with what tone and in what way.” […] The fear of being misinterpreted induces many not to speak, and drives those who must do so because of their office to “bulletproof” their language. This is why, when the pope without too much rhetoric sets himself to dialogue, at the least it is necessary to listen well to what he says and how he says it. Removing the question marks from his questions, depriving his statements of temporal nuances, translating his suggestions into dogmas, decontextualizing a phrase… all of these expedients, adopted inadvertently or in bad faith, are tantamount to mocking a fish after it has been taken from the water.
So, what the author is saying (on behalf of the pope) is that nobody can know what the pope means about something. For:
(a) what the pope means can only be understood in terms of what the other person in the dialogue takes from the pope’s comment.
(b) only what the other person understands in the context of his own particular situation and his own particular comments back has meaning;
but
(c) even the other party, if he doesn’t take into account ALL of what the pope says, and how, and when, and after what other comment, and what he DIDN’T say, etc, will be “decontextualizing” what the pope says, and … NOBODY can ever know if he caught all of the context that the pope had in mind. So nobody can actually understand him.
Take the worst results of Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, Marx, and Kierkegaard, and roll them all into one amorphous (relativistic) heap, and voila: the absolute destruction of communication. “You mean whatever you mean, I mean whatever I mean, and never the twain shall meet.”
And this passes for subtle brilliance. Sure … the brilliance of a tailor marketing new cloth that is so beautifully fine it can’t be seen by anyone of lesser quality.
TonyO wrote, “So, what the author is saying (on behalf of the pope) is that nobody can know what the pope means about something. . . . even the other party, if he doesn’t take into account ALL of what the pope says, and how, and when, and after what other comment, and what he DIDN’T say, etc, will be “decontextualizing” what the pope says, and … NOBODY can ever know if he caught all of the context that the pope had in mind. So nobody can actually understand him.”
Well done! What I’ve been struggling to say all this time, and you’ve said it for me. Thank you!
I like to read the Holy Father in the context of what Saint Thomas Aquinas had to say about various moral and theological subjects. If what the Holy Father and the Angelic Doctor say about a topic are in accord, then I conclude that I have understood Pope Francis well. If Aquinas and Francis don’t seem to be in accord, then I conclude that a decontextualizing of what the Pope said must have taken place. I consult the other Fathers and Doctors of the Church, the Documents of Trent, and our own Catechism, and try to reconcile what the Pope said with one or more of these. Once I’ve done so, I know I’ve taken into account all he said, as well as all he meant to say, thereby ensuring that I’ve caught all of the context that the pope had in mind, and move on from there, feeling that I have understood. And if I can’t reconcile them, then I deconstruct and reinterpret Francis’ words to comport with the Church document that most closely fits what I think he thinks he said. In that way I can be certain I’ve actually understood Francis.
Works for me!