For all the concerns with a “liberal” Pope Francis, the Holy Father seems to have gotten it right in warning about what he calls “adolescent progressivism.” Let the liberals wring their hands in concern this time.
Vatican Radio reported November 18 on the Monday morning homily given by Francis, in which he related the first reading from the book of Maccabees to being attentive and faithful. The report noted that he closed his homily with a reminder “that the Lord never denies himself to the faithful.” Such a comforting conclusion seems to fit in line with the Holy Father’s welcoming, yet steadfast tone.
TheBlaze also commented:
He took aim at a “globalized uniformity,” which he said results from a secular worldliness, as people are oft-times willing to sacrifice their personal values and allegiance to God.
Pope Francis prayed that believers would be able to recognize the worldliness that could lead them to negotiate their faith and, thus, hamper their standing and relationship with the Lord.
“And this is a contradiction: we do not negotiate values, but faithfulness,” the pontiff told the audience. “And this is the fruit of the devil, the prince of this world, who leads us forward with the spirit of worldliness.”
Christians must remember that we may be in this world, but are not of it. The attraction of secularism and worldliness is real, and at times attractive. It can also be a distraction though, or even worse, a danger, to how we should live as Christians. In order to seem tolerant, and thus be accepted in this secular world, we abandon our beliefs and stand by others which, in the end, serve to do our faith more harm than good, in a world with little desire to stand by and protect the uniqueness of faith as much as it does to attack it.
And the Holy Father is also right to say that “we do not negotiate values.” For the Church’s positions are based on truth, and we cannot negotiate the truth which guides us. No matter what century we are living in, so long as the Church survives, she must be willing to abide by, communicate and fight for the values based on truth.
This can certainly be examined with regards to the Health and Human Services’ (HHS) contraception mandate requiring that employers, even those with religious objections, provide birth control for their employees. Despite the so-called accommodations which have been made by the White House, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement of unity on fighting the mandate. In the news release is a mention of remarks from Pope Francis from September 25:
Pope Francis has reminded us that “In the context of society, there is only one thing which the Church quite clearly demands: the freedom to proclaim the Gospel in its entirety, even when it runs counter to the world, even when it goes against the tide.”
Despite some interpreting the Holy Father’s words to mean that the Church is too obsessed with issues like abortion and birth control, Francis has continued to make deeply pro-life statements. In his commentary for LifeSiteNews.com, John-Henry Westen adds a pro-life perspective:
At this morning’s papal Mass, Pope Francis asked rhetorically and bitterly, “What do you think, that today human sacrifices are not made?” He added: “Many, many people make human sacrifices and there are laws that protect them.”
The statement sounds very much like he could be referring to the abortion of unborn children, which many Christians have referred to as the new human sacrifice to the gods of convenience, money, power and more. That perspective is supported by some of the other talking points from this morning’s homily.
Francis still knows of the importance of the Church’s role in the world, despite this threat of “adolescent progressivism.” And even perhaps because of such a threat, he encourages the Church to stick by her teachings that much more. Pope Francis is a loving and encouraging leader, and he seeks to love people and to lead them deeper into the Church. And he is not afraid to do so in such an unhesitating manner.
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