Liturgy,
Discipline and Governance:
Is There Private Interpretation?
Often times those who would be loathe to admit "private
interpretation" of Scripture, nonetheless exercise private interpretion
of the Sacred Tradition by setting themselves up as judges of the decisions of the Second
Vatican Council, Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II. While sometimes this arrogating of
judgement extends to doctrinal areas, it typically concerns liturgical matters and even
more so the prudential decisions of governance of the affairs of the Church. It is argued
that these latter are not covered by infallibility and therefore are subject to the weak
decisions of weak men. While an appealing logic at a troubled time in the life of the
Church, such an approach is both spiritually and ecclesiastically devisive and very far
from the attitude that the First Vatican Council said was the piety of a true Catholic
with respect to the Roman Pontiff.
...all the faithful of Christ must believe "that the Apostolic See and the Roman
Pontiff hold primacy over the whole world, and that the Pontiff of Rome himself is the
successor of the blessed Peter, the chief of the apostles, and is the true vicar of Christ
and head of the whole Church and faith, and teacher of all Christians; and that to him was
handed down in blessed Peter, by our Lord Jesus Christ, full power to feed, rule, and
guide the universal Church, just as is also contained in the records of the ecumenical
Councils and in the sacred canons"
... the faithful of whatever rite and dignity, both as separate individuals and all
together, are bound by a duty of hierarchical submission and true obedience, not only in
things pertaining to faith and morals, but also in those which pertain to the discipline
and government of the Church spread over the whole world, so that the Church of Christ,
protected not only by the Roman Pontiff, but by the unity of communion as well as of the
profession of the same faith is one flock under the one highest shepherd. This is the
doctrine of Catholic truth from which no one can deviate and keep his faith and
salvation... [Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Vatican Council I, 1870]
Answered by Colin B. Donovan, STL
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