Catholic Church: Faith and Social Teaching

‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” The season of Advent, which concludes today, began with a call to conversion. This is a different point of emphasis from the controversy around the Catholic Church’s ostensible blessing of same-sex unions, which exploded the week before Christmas.

By now, Catholics have come to expect — and the more prudent, to ignore — these episodes. The pope makes or approves an ambiguous statement about a controversial Catholic social teaching — in this case, a document on the “pastoral meaning of blessings” by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, addressing the question of blessings for same-sex unions — media outlets interpret it as a step toward a more progressive church, and Catholics of both progressive and orthodox persuasions scour the internet for evidence that their preferred interpretation is the correct one.

About the Author

Madeleine Kearns

Madeleine Kearns is a former staff writer at National Review.

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‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” The season of Advent, which concludes today, began with a call to conversion. This is a different point of emphasis from the controversy around the Catholic Church’s ostensible blessing of same-sex unions, which exploded the week before Christmas.

By now, Catholics have come to expect — and the more prudent, to ignore — these episodes. The pope makes or approves an ambiguous statement about a controversial Catholic social teaching — in this case, a document on the “pastoral meaning of blessings” by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, addressing the question of blessings for same-sex unions — media outlets interpret it as a step toward a more progressive church, and Catholics of both progressive and orthodox persuasions scour the internet for evidence that their preferred interpretation is the correct one.