Spiritual realities surpass natural realities, often evading the capacity of our limited intelligence. That’s why the Divine Master frequently used analogies when he explained the marvels of his kingdom to his followers. Among them is the parable of the yeast: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened’ (Mt 13:33). The Fathers and Doctors of the Church, as well as the Magisterium, have always considered, in different ways, this image as a symbol of the dynamism of apostolic teaching. In obedience to the mandate of the Redeemer – ‘Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations’ (Mt 28:19) – the Church should reach the entire world and transform the face of the earth.
Were the Apostles mistaken about the extensiveness and objective of their mission? Let’s see what the Magisterium has to say…
Francis
Note 1: The authors of this study are aware that the Vatican Press Office has denied the interpretations that some media sources have attributed to certain affirmations contained in the interviews of Francis with Eugenio Scalfari. On the other hand, it is noteworthy that some of these sources are still published on the Vatican website (found by clicking on the links of the articles), lending an official air to their content, seemingly with the approval of Francis himself. In the midst of all the turmoil and confusion caused, we always feel that a presentation of the true doctrine should be made with clarity, together with such affirmations. We must not forget that the majority of the public read only the titles that the media publishes, and, as we know, the latter frequently manipulate the truth. Consequently, it appears that a mere declaration that the content of these interviews does not correspond with the textual words of Francis, is simply not sufficient. As such, we publish this article with the intention of clarifying and orienting the faithful, who have always been the principle objective of this page, as we expressed in our letter of presentation. In this way, each one can make a correct judgment, having beforehand attained knowledge of the truth.
Note 2: Fr. Lombardi explained the decision for the removal of the interview with Scalfari from the Vatican web: ‘The information in the interview is reliable on a general level but not on the level of each individual point analysed: this is why it was decided the text should not be available for consultation on the Holy See website. Its removal is a final update on the nature of this text. Some mistakes were made regarding its value, which was questioned. The Secretariat of State took the decision.’ (Fr. Federico Lombardi, November 15, 2013) However, ‘The Denzinger-Bergoglio_EN’ confirms that it is still posted on the Vatican webpage, just as our Spanish counterpart confirms the same for their language edition.
Teachings of the Magisterium
Enter the various parts of our study
I – The leaven of the Gospel penetrates and transforms the world
II – By divine mandate: the Church should evangelize
III – All humans should belong to the Church through sincere conversion
IV – Evangelization is the best assistance that the Church can offer humanity
He seems to love contradictions. All that is Catholic he brands as old and outdated, and then pays homage to the great spiritual wisdom of the eastern religious sects. He sheds abundant tears for the muslims in Lampedusa and not a word for the Christians in Syria. He mocks catholic mothers as rabbits, and then defends sodomy in the name of family love….If someone could make a collection of his contradictions, it would be a useful addition to Denzinger.
Pope Francis says that the Church should be a minority, and yet wants everyone in on his ecology spree. Anyone noted the contradiction?