Celibacy is always, shall we say, an affront to what man normally thinks. It is something that can be done, and is only credible, if there is a God and if celibacy is my doorway into the kingdom of God.
Certainly, it is difficult to make the demands of the Gospel understandable to secularized people. But this pastoral difficulty must not lead to compromises with the truth.
A civilization inspired by a consumerist, anti-birth mentality is not and cannot ever be a civilization of love.
One can readily admit that the Magisterium's manner of expression does not seem very easy to understand at times. It needs to be translated by preachers and catechists into a language which relates to people and to their respective cultural environments. The essential content of the Church's teaching, however, must be upheld in this process. It must not be watered down on allegedly pastoral grounds, because it communicates the revealed truth.
For many people today, practical atheism is the normal rule of life...If this attitude becomes a general existential position, then freedom no longer has any standards, then everyting is possible and permissible.
It creeps me out to agree with Kasper on anything, but I would have to agree with him that Bergoglio's silence on contraception revelas that Bergoglio is in favour of it.
However, even in that statement Kasper cannot help but be true to himself and lie.
Distinctions Matter
Distinctions Matter Forward
Missale Romanum
Pre-1951 Calendar