Doctor Brian Clowes and I are on
our way back to Virginia from the Philippines. We had a whirlwind week,
speaking to many laity, priests, bishops, and seminarians about the need
to be bold and faithful in preaching the Gospel of Life.
It is
our loving God who will transform cultures, and He asks us to be His
voice, His hands and His feet. So many friends of ours in the
Philippines are following this call with courage, even as the Culture of
Death seeks to consolidate its recent wins in this country. Sadly,
others are taking an attitude of accommodation, as if the promoters of
abortion, contraception and the redefinition of marriage will be
satisfied with good will concessions.
When you speak the truth
boldly, you will see some conversions, as with our fearless director of
Asia and Oceania, Dr. Ligaya Acosta, who was also our gracious host on
this trip. She once promoted population control for the Philippines
ministry of public health, before seeing its real effect on her people
and having a radical conversion. It is important to engage at the level
of reason and good faith. But never concede an inch to error or false
compromise in the area of politics, culture or even in personal
conversations. To do so is, as we say in America, a one-way ratchet. You
won't get that back. Do not give an inch to sin and error, all while
loving the other. Pope Benedict made this crucial point memorably in
Caritas in Veritate:
Only
in truth does charity shine forth, only in truth can charity be
authentically lived. Truth is the light that gives meaning and value to
charity. That light is both the light of reason and the light of
faith, through which the intellect attains to the natural and
supernatural truth of charity: it grasps its meaning as gift,
acceptance, and communion. Without truth, charity degenerates into
sentimentality. Love becomes an empty shell, to be filled in an
arbitrary way. In a culture without truth, this is the fatal risk facing
love. It falls prey to contingent subjective emotions and opinions,
the word "love" is abused and distorted, to the point where it comes to
mean the opposite.
________________
The big news today is, of course, the release of
Amoris Laetitia,
the apostolic exhortation meant to present Pope Francis's position on
all the issues discussed during the Synod on the Family. We will not
have an official statement on the content of the document until we have
had a chance to thoroughly review it, and there simply has not been time
for a careful reading.
Of course, no one can "change doctrine,"
in the sense of reversing long held Magisterial positions of the
Catholic Church, and we should be clear about this point whenever we
speak about it. This does not mean that there are no potential risks
involved. The confusion that was rampant at the Synod and in its wake is
an indication of the very real risks to souls, and there is the risk of
demoralizing those who have made heroic sacrifices to live the truth of
Church teaching with regard to marriage. It is ours to remain in the
Truth of Christ, to be faithful, and to keep telling the truth even when
confusion seems to reign.
Our first and constant work that must
be done is prayer. Stay close to the sacraments, ask for God's grace to
help you grow in holiness, remember the true and unchanging Source of
our hope and faith and love. Do not give in to fear. Pray for our Holy
Father, for our shepherds and priests.
Thank you for praying for
me, for our missionaries and our mission. Know that you, HLI's
supporters, are in my prayers at every Mass.
