The Catholic Message Board

anawim wrote: ↑Fri Aug 01, 2025 2:55 pm I have to admit, this is another one who I thought was already a doctor. The previous one was St. Therese of Lisieux.

St. John Henry Newman wrote:When men advocate the rights of conscience, they in no sense mean the rights of the Creator, nor the duty to Him, in thought and deed, of the creature; but the right of thinking, speaking, writing, and acting, according to their judgment or their humour, without any thought of God at all. They do not even pretend to go by any moral rule, but they demand, what they think is an Englishman's prerogative, to be his own master in all things, and to profess what he pleases, asking no one's leave, and accounting priest or preacher, speaker or writer, unutterably impertinent, who dares to say a word against his going to perdition, if he like it, in his own way. Conscience has rights because it has duties; but in this age, with a large portion of the public, it is the very right and freedom of conscience to dispense with conscience, to ignore a Lawgiver and Judge, to be independent of unseen obligations. It becomes a license to take up any or no religion, to take up this or that and let it go again, to go to Church, to go to chapel, to boast of being above all religions and to be an impartial critic of each of them. Conscience is a stern monitor, but in this century it has been superseded by a counterfeit, which the eighteen centuries prior to it never heard of, and could not have mistaken for it, if they had. It is the right of self-will.

Stella wrote: ↑Sat Aug 02, 2025 7:03 pm My view is that Francis was no less important that all the other Popes. Not that he is more special. It’s just the reality that if we fail to embrace the teaching authority of any Pope we fail to be ready for the next Pope who teaches in continuity. There seems to be many people thinking that the new Pope will be about reversing the direction of Francis, but that isn’t going to happen and it’ll be a shame to be left further behind.

Obi-Wan Kenobi wrote: ↑Sat Aug 02, 2025 9:12 pm

St. John Henry Newman wrote:When men advocate the rights of conscience, they in no sense mean the rights of the Creator, nor the duty to Him, in thought and deed, of the creature; but the right of thinking, speaking, writing, and acting, according to their judgment or their humour, without any thought of God at all. They do not even pretend to go by any moral rule, but they demand, what they think is an Englishman's prerogative, to be his own master in all things, and to profess what he pleases, asking no one's leave, and accounting priest or preacher, speaker or writer, unutterably impertinent, who dares to say a word against his going to perdition, if he like it, in his own way. Conscience has rights because it has duties; but in this age, with a large portion of the public, it is the very right and freedom of conscience to dispense with conscience, to ignore a Lawgiver and Judge, to be independent of unseen obligations. It becomes a license to take up any or no religion, to take up this or that and let it go again, to go to Church, to go to chapel, to boast of being above all religions and to be an impartial critic of each of them. Conscience is a stern monitor, but in this century it has been superseded by a counterfeit, which the eighteen centuries prior to it never heard of, and could not have mistaken for it, if they had. It is the right of self-will.

Doom wrote: ↑Sat Aug 02, 2025 9:47 pm

Stella wrote: ↑Sat Aug 02, 2025 7:03 pm My view is that Francis was no less important that all the other Popes. Not that he is more special. It’s just the reality that if we fail to embrace the teaching authority of any Pope we fail to be ready for the next Pope who teaches in continuity. There seems to be many people thinking that the new Pope will be about reversing the direction of Francis, but that isn’t going to happen and it’ll be a shame to be left further behind.

He has already significantly reversed the direction of Francis. Francis was a divisive figure who lashed out against his critics and governed as an authoritarian. Leo has already reversed course on both of those things; he is unifying figure who is trying to heal the divisions created by Francis.

Every Pope is in some ways a continuation and in other ways a break with his predecessor. Francis was a break with Benedict, who was a break with John Paul II, who was a break with Paul V,I and so on.