Pope Francis: ‘honored’ by criticism?
by Phil Lawler | Sep 05, 2019
      
In the latest effort to explain away an unguarded utterance by Pope Francis, Matteo Bruni, the director of the Vatican press office, told reporters how they should interpret the papal remark that “it’s an honor that Americans attack me.”

Quote

In an informal context, the Pope wanted to say that he always considers criticisms an honor, particularly when they come from authoritative thinkers and, in this case, an important nation.

OK, the context was informal. The Pope was not speaking at a press conference. He was making a personal response to an author who had presented him with a book. There just happened to be a few dozen reporters within earshot, so the Pope’s comment couldn’t be denied. (Recall that when Pope Francis reportedly denied the existence of hell, the Vatican said the quotation could not “be considered a faithful transcription” and left it at that.)

But let’s take a closer look at that “informal context.” The Pope had been presented with a copy of How American Wants to Change the Pope, in which author Nicolas Seneze argues that a powerful coalition of conservative American political interests is working against the Pontiff. The Pope expresses a keen interest in the book, and in another offhand remark as he passed the book to an aide, described it as “a bomb.”

Seneze does not merely report that the Pope has American critics; he claims, in effect, that there is an American conspiracy against the papacy. Pope Francis indicates that he is anxious to learn more about the conspiracy theory. Now in that “informal context” does it really sound as if the Pope feels honored by this criticism?

The papal spokesman goes on to say that the Pope is honored because the criticism comes from “authoritative thinkers.” Is he saying, then, that the American critics of the Pontiff are “authoritative thinkers?” Because that really isn’t the thrust of the Seneze book that the Pope was welcoming. Seneze argues that the American critics are politically motivated: a theme that the Pope’s closest associates have sounded frequently. Or is Seneze himself the authoritative thinker? Because he’s not criticizing the Pope; he’s criticizing those people who criticize the Pope.

Finally—not to belabor the point unduly—despite his claims and those of his spokesman, there’s precious little evidence that Pope Francis is “honored’ by criticism. Ask Cardinals Burke and Müller. Ask the other authors of the dubia. Ask the priests who were summarily dismissed from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for voicing concerns about the Pope’s thinking. Ask the ousted faculty members of the John Paul II Institute. One honors criticism by responding to it. The track record suggests that Pope Francis prefers to suppress it.

…For as St. Don Bosco advised his students, Catholics can and should pray for a bad pope’s early death. …

Donald Trump said that he met with the North Korean dictator in order to prevent a war. His Holiness bows down in order to bring about their conversion.  

Conversion to the One True Faith, the Catholic Church.

Donald Trump said that he met with the North Korean dictator in order to prevent a war. His Holiness bows down in order to bring about their conversion.  

I've written in introduction, that I'm a heretic, and whether you would burn me at stack, half as a joke, or excommunicate me...? Because my favourite martyr Saint, master Jan Hus, who died with a prayer and forgiveness on his lips, while defending Good Faith and Church against corruption of medieval elites, was burnt on stack by a devilish council, quarreling for political might in the time of three popes. Recently, the Church has appologized for his death, but it is not enough. He was a martyr saint, regardless whether the Church proclaimed him such already, and was a conclusive proof of fallibility of councils, because that was a time when the fallen council condemned and executed a true saint.
(Elsewhere you have advised me to return to the Church... As time allows, I attend masses at catholic church in nearby town... Where I live today, in the nearby town there are two churches, one of them is catholic, and the other is "czecho-slovak hussite church", which could be thought of as a national ecclesia of a saint heretic (my jest). The catholic priest here is utterly stupid man, such that he talked a Christmas-night homily about fear, whether the world has feared born baby Jesus and why, and recently nearby Easter he talked a homily, whether Jesus is a shepherd or a pimp, and whether priests, because these words sound similar in our language, and more such absurd and witless stuff. In the hussite church, the priest is a hidden rabbi, a Jєω known for translating тαℓмυd, a kind wise bearded old man and seemingly a christian priest. But after last Easter, when he canceled big-friday service, that Jєωιѕн-like seder on thursday is enough, and scheduled some burial ceremony on white saturday, then I rather returned to the catholic church, better a witless somehow funny dude but at least a christian... I admit that it is specific situation and elsewhere it may be different...) This just to say, that there is a whole ecclesia named in honor of that Jan Hus in my country, but we (or they) are not expecting or awaiting proclamation of Jan Hus as a saint, they do not acknowledge catholic saints at all...

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It is incongruous for a man to boast of his "antisemitism" bona fides while lauding, nay, canonizing an abject Judaizer. I smell a rat.

For as St. Don Bosco advised his students, Catholics can and should pray for a bad pope’s early death.