Is the church a pastor or a teacher first? / ¿Es la Iglesia primero como un pastor o como un maestro? / L'église est-elle d'abord un pasteur ou un enseignant ?

Is the church a pastor or a teacher first?

Ludger Widmaier sscc

 

On December 18, 2023, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome published the declaration Fiducia Supplicans on the pastoral meaning of blessings. This declaration, which relates to questions of personal blessings outside of liturgical acts, has stirred many minds around the world. There have been many controversial and seemingly irreconcilable statements, especially on the question of blessing homosexual couples in this non-liturgical context. At the same time, I believe that this debate misses the fundamental issue of Fiducia Supplicans. The discussion relates to the question of whether or not a "sin" can be blessed; as if the situation of a non-liturgical blessing is about giving people a certain status within the ecclesial community that they are not entitled to.

Everything will be fine ...? / Tout va bien se passer ... ? /¿Todo irá bien...?

Everything will be fine ...?

by Martin Königstein sscc

"I would like to be full of confidence. Someone who is full of hope for the future.

Who manages to simply endure all of this (...) I look at you at you and would like to tell you: Everything will be fine." 

From: Der letzte Song (Alles wird gut) by rapper Felix Kummer (translated from German)

The Catholic Church on war and peace / L'Église catholique sur la guerre et la paix / La Iglesia Católica sobre la guerra y la paz

The Catholic Church on war and peace- Ten theses

by Thomas Wagner

 

1. "Ecclesia semper reformanda": The Catholic Church, with its 2000-year history, is one of the oldest institutions of mankind. For many, it embodies continuity and fidelity to the tradition of the Christian faith; others see it as a feudalistic-clerical system of rule. In reality, the church is far more complex to understand. A look at its history reveals a tense web of forces of persistence and change that are constantly wrestling with each other, particularly about its relationship to violence, war, and peace. The church was both a warmonger and a force for peace!