Of course the "Devil's Advocate" was done away with in the reforms of the last century, and it seems that the traditional number of required miracles is being done away with as well.
The world loved both of the two Blessed's -- John XXIII and John Paul II. They were the beloved superstars of the conciliar and post-conciliar period. Like many, I shook hands with the latter and was pretty giddy about the event.
Honesty and fair-mindedness, however, requires that we listen to the voices of those who tell us they have reason to be scandalized by the prospective canonizations, those reasons that would traditionally have found expression in the voice of the "Devil's Advocate," intended to keep the process honest.
Here's a brief summary of the kinds of objections raised: "Saints aren't perfect" (Unam Sanctam Catholicam, July 7, 2013).
Related: History of the Devil's Advocate (Unam Sanctam Catholicam, 2013 Article)
[Hat tip to IANS]
Even The Brick By Brick Bund was skeptical about the new process and new definitions (and what day in the V2 life of the Church is worth living without some novelty being introduced?);
ReplyDeleteAt the time of the beatification of John Paul II I wondered aloud if we weren’t seeing a shift in the criteria for what is called “heroic virtue”. I wasn’t suggesting that John Paul wasn’t heroically virtuous, by the way. But I get a sense, in recent commentary, that what has always been understood as “heroicity” in the practice of the virtues a Christian must manifest hasn’t been somewhat undercut.
As I learned in the Studium conducted by the Congregation for Causes of Saints for future or potential postulators, et al., a virtue is practiced to a heroic degree under ordinary circumstances when it is practiced over a long portion of the person’s life and to the end with perseverance till death. It can also be heroic when the circumstances of life are such that that most people fail...
And, of course, it was the Focolare (Ecumenism on LSD) Movement that, in advance, organised the spontaneous cries of Santo Subito at Pope John Paul Ii's funeral that everyone, from he who abdicated to The Brick By Brick Bund, routinely describe as a spontaeous act.
C'est la vie
Dare I ask. Are we sure that canonizations are de fide?
ReplyDeleteDonna
Haven't you folks heard? We are all saints! What's the prob, Bob?
ReplyDelete