Infallibility is the big one; it's
rare, but it's there.
When I've gone to the store to purchase
electronics, invariably I'm asked if I want the “product protection
plan” --a guarantee. It's not something I plan on using, but it's
good to know it's there in case of need. Infallibility is something
like that. Rarely invoked, it gets all the attention.
“Infallibility” gets thrown around
a lot when the papacy is in the news. It's easy to understand why the
terms is so often misunderstood. “Infallible” seems to mean
“incapable of falling” (etymologically, it's failing).
That must mean moral failure, right: An infallible Pope is one who
can't make a mistake, commit a sin, or exercise poor judgment, right?
Wrong.
Infallibility refers only to teaching;
the Pope cannot “fail” when teaching under certain carefully
defined circumstances:
- it is a matter of revealed faith or moral truth: something that comes to us from Christ himself
- the Pope makes it clear he intends to teach “ex cathedra”: from the teaching chair of Peter
- the truth (dogma) is explicitly said to be binding on all the faithful “with the assent of faith”--faith in God
This “charism” (special gift of the
Holy Spirit) is at the service of the Gospel, of the whole Truth
about Christ and us. The Pope does not have the option to “invent
new truths” out of thin air, or create new doctrines on a whim: his
teaching authority is subject to the Bible, not “over” it. It is
a matter of “guaranteeing” the truth (a problematic area in an
time when relativism has taken such deep root we cannot all agree
that there is “one” truth).
 |
| I found this terrific image of Peter on his teaching chair via Facebook; don't know whom to credit. |
The charism of infallibility is limited
to teachings that are divinely revealed, even if those
truths had not previously been expressed in the same terms.
Infallibility itself, while exercised throughout Church history, was
only defined infallibly in 1870! That is because dogmas are
usually “defined” only when the truth they uphold is facing a
grave challenge. That was the case in the late 19th
century, when the very notion of truth was being undermined by the
glamor of “free thought” (relativism). It was also the case when
the pivotal dogmas about Jesus Christ were defined in the 4th
century—those truths we restate every Sunday in the Creed, using
the dogmatic language of the Councils of Nicea and Constantinople.
The Council of Trent (16th century) was also rather
generous in making infallible pronouncements.
When you think about it, infallibility
makes sense. The whole Church has a share in Christ's
infallibility, his complete trustworthiness (indeed, he is the
Truth). In teaching infallibly, the Pope is acting as visible head of
the Church. That is also why infallible pronouncements are unlikely
to be occasions for the Pope to act alone. They are much more likely
to be expressed by a Church Council (in union with the Pope, of
course) than by a Pope acting without reference to the college of
bishops (though he can, if need be).
Infallibility is not an excuse for
ignoring or dismissing the “Ordinary” teaching authority of the
Pope and bishops. It is an exceptional kind of teaching, not
the norm; a guarantee of not being misled in the most fundamental
matters of faith. The “ordinary” magisterium is still a unifying
power in the Church; a way of keeping in touch with the Truth that
makes us free.
This is Part 4 of a 7 part series. Earlier posts are:
#3, Bad Popes
#2, The Bishop of Rome is the Pope, not the other way around
#1, It was Jesus' idea
No comments:
Post a Comment