A person who publicly incites his or her subjects to hatred or animosity against the Apostolic See or the Ordinary, because of some act of ecclesiastical authority or ministry, or who provokes the subjects to disobedience against them, is to be punished by interdict or other just penalties (Code of Canon Law #1373).
In relation to the voices arising in America, clerical and lay, that are calling for the resignation of Pope Francis, ask the following questions:
- What spirit/s is/are motivating this voice/these voices?
- Is this call coming from God or from Satan?
- What tone is being employed?
- In what manner are they calling for the pope’s resignation?
- Are truth and charity both present in the process of the call or is one of them lacking? If so, what exactly is lacking and to what degree?
- Is the call universal (taken up by the entire Catholic Church in the whole world) or is it parochial (located to a subset of people in a localized region of the Church)?
- Is entitlement present in the call or otherwise? Does the call further unity or division* in the Mystical Body of Christ?
- Is peace present or absent in the very process of the call?
- What is the role of hatred in this call?”
Because something may appear to be desirable or good at face value, especially if it is in keeping with the modus operandi of the secular culture of a particular nation, it does not necessarily mean that the underlying motivation for it is coming from God. And because something may appear to be undesirable does not equally mean that it is not coming from God.
Discern.
The truth underlying this call for resignation of the Vicar of Christ is self-evident if you discern.
Examine all the facts, therefore, and discern. Do not be taken in by ‘famous’ names in American Catholic media and/or reporting. They all have underlying personal-professional agendas at stake.
Discern – and discern wisely.
*The furtherance of division never originates with the Holy Spirit. Neither do confusion, condemnation, and holier-than-thou proselytization.
