The prayer of St. Therese of the Child Jesus
The second Synod on the Family has just opened. On October 2nd, Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, its secretary general, drew a parallel between the divisions that appeared in the course of last year’s synod and the work of the Second Vatican Council, which brought forward “diverging positions” but concluded on a “consensus” and finally “the approval of the documents.”
Is this merely a reference to history or a candid admission that the methods used at the Council to obtain this “consensus” and this “approval” will be once again applied at the synod? There is then a good chance of seeing this so-called pastoral mercy set up in opposition to dogma and morality presented as rigid, unsuited and insensitive to “new situations”… Also to be feared is a reminder of the teachings of the Church on marriage and the family, but accompanied by a loosening of canonical regulations, pastorally merciful accommodations, and mercifully pastoral exceptions… which will make the indissolubility of marriage completely theoretical, and recalling it totally rhetorical.
During these three weeks, Vaticanists will weigh risks and evaluate fears; everyone will analyze declarations and spy on the movements of the Fathers of the synod. During these three weeks, amid the almost total indifference of the media, St. Therese of the Child Jesus and her parents, Louis and Zelie Martin, whose relics are exposed at the basilica of St. Mary Major, will intercede. As a Carmelite in Lisieux, she prayed to “Jesus, Eternal Sovereign Priest” for priests: “Make them grow in love and fidelity towards Thee; protect them from the contamination of the spirit of the world.” St. Therese of the Child Jesus, pray for the Fathers of the Synod.
Father Alain Lorans
Who is advantaged by the new rules governing the Synod?
Interview with Miguel Ayuso on the book De Matrimonio
The Synod: Many requests for a clear reminder of the Catholic doctrine on marriage and the family
Petition to the Holy Father
