Courtney McGrailVatican watchdog will not comment on Amoris Laetitia issue
As the row about the Pope’s Amoris Laetitia encyclical continues, the prefect for the Congregation of the Faith (CDF) has said that he cannot respond to the questions – the dubia – posed by four cardinals in a letter to the Pontiff.
Speaking during an interview with a German news outlet, Cardinal Gerhard Müller explained that it would be inappropriate for a department which speaks with the authority of the Supreme Pontiff to intervene without Pope Francis’ approval. It “cannot involve itself in disputes of opinion”, the cardinal stated.
Pressed on the issue of communion for divorced-and-remarried Catholics, the cardinal referred to a directive issued in 1993 by the CDF in which a German bishops’ plan to offer communion in certain cases was rejected. Adding that Amoris Laetitia should be read in conjunction with other papal documents, he insisted that marriage should be an “unshakeable foundation” of all pastoral strategies.
The cardinal went on to appeal to all those involved in the ongoing row: “At the moment it is important for each of us to remain objective and not let ourselves be driven into polarisation, and certainly not add fuel to the fire.”
Discord
Meanwhile, Cardinal George Pell has become the latest Vatican figure to speak out on enter the discord surrounding Amoris Letitia, joining those who have already defended the four cardinals: Cardinals Joachim Meisner, Walter Brandmüller, Raymond Burke and Carlo Caffarra
Speaking in London in answer to questions on the issue, the Australian prelate described the questions raised in the letter as “significant” and asked, “How can you disagree with a question?”
Cardinal Pell added that many of the faithful had become “unnerved” by recent incidents within the Church.
Archbishop Apuron’s Vatican trial ‘has started’
The Vatican trial of an archbishop accused of sexual abuse on the Pacific island nation of Guam “has started”, according to the prelate appointed in his place.
Speaking as he arrived in Guam to take up his new post, US Archbishop Michael Byrnes confirmed the commencement of the case against Archbishop Anthony Apuron who is implicated in the alleged abuse of five boys during the 1960s and ‘70s.
“It’s been initiated,” Archbishop Byrnes said of the legal proceedings. “The argument has been exchanged and now it’s kind of like in the second phase of investigation, examination.”
The Vatican Press Office did not confirm the status of the trial against Archbishop Apuron, which is set to become the first of a senior prelate accused of abuse. The archbishop has insisted on his innocence since the first accuser, now aged 52, emerged in May.
Pope prays for victims of Colombian air crash
Pope Francis has offered his prayers and condolences for the victims of the November 28 plane crash in Colombia which claimed 71 lives, including many members of the Chapecoense football team from Brazil.
“I would like to remember today the pain of the Brazilian people for the tragedy of the soccer team,” Francis said. “Let’s pray for the players who’ve died and their families.”
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin has confirmed the Pope issued two telegrams of condolence, to the prelates of Colombia and Brazil, in the wake of the disaster.
