Corpus Christi Blog

Pope Francis: The Church is to Come Out of Herself (Part III)

05-15-2016Weekly ReflectionFr. Chad King

The proceeding is a brief reminder of the context in which Pope Francis, while he was still Cardinal Bergoglio, was speaking, followed by his third statement:

In the period leading up to a conclave, the cardinals of the Church gather in a series of meetings that are known as the "general congregations." In these meetings, they are allowed to make brief statements— known as "interventions"—about the problems they feel need to be addressed in the Church and what kind of man the next pope should be.

Before the recent conclave, Cardinal Bergoglio gave an intervention, which didn't even last four minutes but which got the attention of his brother cardinals. According to some, this speech was a major moment in his path to becoming Pope Francis. The soon-to-be Pope Francis said:

3. "When the Church is self-referential, inadvertently, she believes she has her own light; she ceases to be the mysterium lunae [Latin, "mystery of the moon," i.e., reflecting the light of Christ the way the moon reflects the light of the sun] and gives way to that very serious evil, spiritual worldliness (which according to de Lubac, is the worst evil that can befall the Church). It lives to give glory only to one another.

Put simply, there are two images of the Church: Church which evangelizes and comes out of herself, the Dei Verbum religiose audiens et fidente proclamans [Latin, "Hearing the word of God with reverence and proclaiming it with faith"]; and the worldly Church, living within herself, of herself, for herself. This should shed light on the possible changes and reforms which must be done for the salvation of souls."

When the Church is self-referential, inadvertently, she thinks she has her own light. She ceases to be the "mysterium lunae," mystery of the moon. The moon shines light in the darkness of night, but the moon gets the light from the sun. The sun shines on the moon, which then can illuminate the darkness. The Church is meant to do that, to take the light of Christ and bring it into the darkness of the world. The Church is not the source of the light; the Son Jesus is. However, when the Church is turned in on herself and is self-referential she gives way to the great evil of spiritual worldliness, which gives glory only to one another, and can think she is self-satisfied and that she has all that she needs.

From where do you get your light? Are you illuminating the light of Christ? Do you think that just by being a nice person, by usually being a loving person who does good things, that you are illuminating the light of Christ? That may be true, but do others know it is the Light of Christ? Keep in mind that there are a lot of atheists who are nice people, who are also usually loving and do good things. Are you generally a loving person on your own power, by yourself, or do you love others with a supernatural divine love, so that you are truly sharing the deep love you receive from God? It is not that we love, but that Christ loved us first and we are called to love others as Christ has loved us. Do others know that it is because of Jesus Christ and His love for you, that you are generally nice and loving to others? When you see others are feeling overwhelmed, sad, anx- ious, etc., do you ask if you can pray with them? Do you sit and simply listen to them? Do you tell them you will pray for them or do you only politely wish they have a good day? Thus, are you illuminating the light of Christ or your own light? May we be like the moon, and shine the light of the Son into the darkness.

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