Archbishop Emeritus Mancini's Letters/Videos to the Faithful

The questions and reactions raised around this particular event have provided an opportunity to reflect more deeply on the larger issue at the heart of this matter, which is: how does a Catholic engaged in civic life give authentic and credible witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ and support Church teaching in the present secular environment? This question will be on the minds of many Catholics in our Archdiocese and all across Canada in the coming months, as our nation prepares for the election of a new government.

I have decided to write this letter to the faithful of our local Church with the pastoral objective of shedding some light on the Christian expectation of being credible witnesses to the Catholic faith in a secular world. I also wish to comment on Church teaching regarding political engagement and responsible citizenship. All of this is in keeping with the spirit of spiritual and pastoral transformation, which many of our faithful have recently embarked upon in this Archdiocese. These considerations are presented as a contribution to the ongoing formation of our Catholic faithful and an invitation to promote dialogue with one another in the Church and in the public sphere. I call upon the whole Church of Halifax-Yarmouth to receive these pastoral remarks, to consider their teaching and to pray for the grace of insight into their application. May all of us be granted the courage required to be Christian witnesses and the wisdom to understand the complexity involved in this responsibility.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

†Anthony Mancini
Archbishop of Halifax-Yarmouth

Responsibility for Christian Witness in the Politics of a Secular Age
A call to be authentic; A challenge to be credible; A commitment to be faithful.

From a Peaceable Kingdom to a Secular Nation
In today’s Canadian secularized society, the Judeo-Christian vision that historically influenced and shaped our country is no longer the predominant Canadian worldview, and with this cultural shift much is changing relative to religious assumptions. In our present circumstances, religion has been relegated, for the most part, to the realm of private life and largely ignored in the public arena. This is calling for a huge adjustment in thinking and self-awareness for engaged Catholics, as well as other persons of faith, in the struggle to maintain a proper presence and our rightful place in society. The fact that some in this secular age consider religion to be irrelevant does not make it so. In this changed environment, it does mean that those who are Catholics can no longer take for granted or presume societal support for many of the Christian values that may have been at the origin of our country. As many Catholics wake up to this reality, the focus of our attention inside the Church as well as for the Church in the world, requires a major reorientation - what Pope Francis has called a pastoral conversion. This shift touches on how we see and understand ourselves as Church, how we present our message and do ministry. All of this calls for an attitudinal change among Church leaders and members, from a maintenance perspective to a missionary commitment. Pope Francis refers to this change as “becoming missionaries,”1 no longer to some faraway place, but right here in our own country, in our families and neighbourhoods. This is the new mission field which constitutes on a daily basis the public space where authentic witness to the Christian faith must take place.

Becoming Missionary Disciples
What this entails and calls for from Catholics engaged in politics or what this requires of responsible Catholic citizens in a democratic society is the point of this reflection. The central challenge, as I perceive it, is for all our faithful, with or without leadership responsibilities, to give witness to their faith while at the same time respecting the freedom and choices of their fellow citizens. By being authentic and respectful, by being credible and faithful, we can be builders of bridges in a secular society. Speaking to the issue of Catholics involved in society, Pope John Paul II stated that our world:

…needs lay Christians able to assume roles of leadership in society. It is urgent to train men and women, who, in keeping with their vocation, can influence public life and direct it to the common good.2

What Pope John Paul II points out is what we, in the Church of Halifax-Yarmouth, have identified through our pastoral assemblies as a major priority of our Archdiocesan Pastoral Plan for the coming years. However, to train men and women to assume their roles, in keeping with their vocation, is no simple task! If the words of the Pope are to be acted upon, we must face an enormous formation hurdle. We must find the ways to educate and mentor the members of our Church to become effective disciples, willing to influence the context in which they live. Particularly for those engaged in public life, this will necessarily require support for them intellectually, psychologically and spiritually. It means also to encourage them in their efforts, so that by their presence, attitudes and – primarily – the authenticity of their lives, they will have a transformative impact on their colleagues and on the business of government. The primary foundational experience for this leadership formation must begin with the grace of a personal encounter of Jesus Christ. Without this foundation, no subsequent formation is sufficient.

Whenever necessary and possible, all of us are expected to speak about the content of our faith and the complexity of our Catholic teaching as we strive for the common good of society. This requires both faith and knowledge if one expects to be effective. Of course, this is the expectation. However, related to this expectation is the fact that a vast number of our baptized Catholics have not been evangelized and that more than a few “Catholics,” including some who are leaders in public life, have insufficient grounding and very little experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ as a person, with even less familiarity with Catholic social teaching, anthropology or theology. It is not realistic, therefore, to expect inadequately formed Catholics to give credible testimony to the faith or to uphold Church teachings in a secular state. Nor is it realistic to assume or take for granted in many of our Catholic citizens or political leaders the existence or the experience of a lived Christian faith. The whole point of our New Evangelization efforts is precisely to propose a personal encounter with Jesus Christ and its life changing impact for all who claim to be Christian.

Christian Witness in a Post-Christian World
Being an authentic and credible Catholic in today’s world is a demanding commitment. However, being a Catholic in today’s world is more than just an individual, purely spiritual reality reducible to a private matter. Faith in God and commitment to Jesus Christ is greater than concern with self; by its very definition being a Christian is relational and communal. Practical fidelity to the Gospel is a social engagement to feed the poor, to heal the sick, to love one another. Therefore, the Church’s teaching has communal and public consequences. We believe that the Gospel is about the kingdom of God3, which is a larger enterprise and a more extensive mission than simply looking after one’s personal salvation. The Kingdom of God and its eventual realization, however, depends greatly on the extent to which the experience of the Loving God reigns within each baptized person and within all who make up the Body of Christ. Without this personal and experiential dimension of faith, the social implications of the Gospel or the structural change it calls for will not come about simply by theoretical beliefs. From the perspective of Christian commitment, the transformation of society becomes a concerted collective effort by personally convinced men and women giving witness to their active missionary discipleship. The public arena becomes the context and the opportunity for promoting the Gospel-supported common good of human beings, by constructing a community marked by the ideals of justice, peace and dignity.

The ideals of such a community are often presented in our nation as secular values and as constitutive ethical principles of our society. Such values, however, are fundamental human realities, also supported by religious and spiritual truths. At a time when the Judeo-Christian values, which contributed so much to the nation’s myth as a Peaceable Kingdom, are no longer self-evident or affirmed, it should not be surprising that spiritual truths have become lost or ignored and the place of “religion” in the public space is often unrecognized, challenged and, in some circumstances, rejected. One of the effects of this evolving secularization and its negation of the religious is that fewer and fewer politically engaged citizens are willing to be publicly associated or identified with any faith or religious tradition often under the banner of political correctness.

Recently, Pope Francis expressed well how Catholics ought to stand up to this secularizing pressure:

… no one can demand that religion should be relegated to the inner sanctum of personal life, without influence on societal and national life, without concern for the soundness of civil institutions, without a right to offer an opinion on events affecting society… If indeed “the just ordering of society and of the state is a central responsibility of politics”, the Church “cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice”.4

How best to contribute to this “just ordering” is the very point of “Christian witness” in our world. It’s the responsibility of every Catholic and it’s a daily imperative: to be authentic. Pope John Paul II was talking to every baptized Catholic when he wrote:

Individuals, families, groups and associations, albeit for different reasons and in different ways, all have a responsibility for shaping society and developing cultural, economic, political and legislative projects which, with respect for all and in keeping with democratic principles, will contribute to the building of a society in which the dignity of each person is recognized and protected and the lives of all are defended and enhanced.5

In our local attempts to live up to this expectation “with respect for all and in keeping with democratic principles,”6 we all face the pressures, the struggles and the difficulties of corresponding to the exigencies of the Gospel, where, in the present world, our best efforts may only be good enough, but will hopefully be responsible and respectful enough, because they will never be perfect.

Faith and Responsible Citizenship
In the Catholic Tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue and like all virtues, it is the outcome of repeated practice, learning from mistakes and the fruit of patient endurance. This moral obligation of participation in political life takes shape and form over time, by trial and error, and from deepened awareness of all that goes into the ethics and politics of promoting the common good. Every citizen has the right and privilege, the duty and the obligation to be informed about the nation’s political matters and to cast his/her vote for the candidate who best represents the ideals and goals that make up the common good.

For all citizens, Catholic or otherwise, this is no minimal expectation of participation in political life. Catholic teaching roots this moral obligation in “the dignity of the human person”7 and recognizes the political community as the arena for its “most complete realization.”8 Christian faith and responsible citizenship, therefore, come together conceptually in the notion of the common good, and practically in the actualization of what we understand as “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily.”9

If responsible citizenship is clearly a duty for all Christians, what is not always clear, and is sometimes contested, are the practical ways in which these duties and obligations are to be carried out by individual Catholics in very specific circumstances. Catholics, no less than other citizens, must engage constructively on a daily basis with contemporary culture. It is here, in the type and manner of interaction, where differences are found among the faithful. Such differences, however, are not something new.

The early Church had frequent and sometimes acrimonious debates concerning the “correct” way to be followers of Christ.10 While some differences in approach are healthy, others can contradict the very values being proclaimed. When such division sets in, the credibility of Catholics is compromised. Is it possible to be united on foundational principles, beliefs and goals, yet have different approaches among Church members to effect the protection of life and the promotion of the common good? My response is yes.

Seeking the Common Good
Our understanding of the common good and its promotion is greatly enhanced by what Pope Benedict (as Joseph Ratzinger) referred to as the “non-negotiable principles” that underpin the fundamental values of a democratic state and give expression to what makes a human being truly human.11

The fulfillment of the “sum total of social conditions”12 for a human being to be truly human requires that, as Catholic citizens, we recognize, respect and promote fundamental ethical principles such as religious freedom, the right to life, the promotion of the family and marriage and the protection of minors. It means also upholding the right to economic development, respect for justice and the promotion of peace.13 It is the role and function of government and the work of politics to guarantee these essential principles and values. It is urgent, therefore, that public policies be proposed and laws be enacted regarding all of these matters, not the least of which concern abortion and euthanasia. In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision on assisted suicide, this urgency is even more abundantly clear. It is part of our Catholic responsibility to defend and promote just laws, to be respectful of fundamental values, and at the same time avoid falling into the trap of becoming single issue people.

The Gospel of Life, as Pope John Paul II taught us, demands a wide vision and a more inclusive attention:

Whatever is opposed to life itself, such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia or willful self-destruction; whatever violates the dignity of the human person, such as mutilation, torments inflicted on body or mind, attempts to coerce the will itself; whatever insults human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children; as well as disgraceful working conditions where people are treated as mere instruments of gain rather than as free and responsible persons; all these things and others like them …poison human society.14

Catholics in their daily lives must seek the best ways to effectively attend to all life issues by direct personal involvement when and where that is possible. It is part of what being Catholic is all about.

For any Catholic in a public office, the necessity to be attentive to the fundamental ethical values of life demands, along with a firm personal faith conviction, a political competency capable of influencing the legislation of just and compassionate laws. There must be a willingness to do this through dialogue, encounter and good will. For a politician who is Catholic, the ability to affect policy decisions in political life is not just a political or partisan exercise. It involves the whole person and must be rooted in that person’s lived experience, including his/her Christian faith. Along with faith there must also be wisdom, familiarity with the complexities of public issues and an understanding of the nature of politics in our democratic and pluralistic context. Ultimately this delicate and complex role of influencing legislation rests with each politically engaged Catholic, equipped with a properly formed conscience and hopefully encouraged by the awareness that he/she does not stand alone. As a Catholic, the political person should find support in standing united with the faithful who make up Christ’s Church. It seems clear, therefore, that active participation in the political process must be evaluated by more than the casting of a vote or motivated by the winning of a particular election.

Whatever observations one makes of a citizen’s actions or a politician’s decisions, it is important for all of us to keep in mind that one’s faith life and moral life are, in fact, whatever life one is actually living. There is no distinction and separation, therefore, between one’s privately held moral standards and one’s public expression of moral convictions, for the simple reason that such a gap is not consistent with the notion of integrity and the unity of a person. “By their fruits you shall know them”15 applies to all, including those in public roles and service! Because one’s actual lived life is what it is, it is not perfect and it may be less than satisfactory at any given time. Since there is room for growth in all of us, this is why there is the need for continuing formation in faith, for spiritual growth and for ongoing examination of one’s conscience.

Need for a Well Formed Conscience
Pope Benedict XVI stated in Deus Caritas Est that the Church is to help form consciences. This demanding ministry, in my experience, is a gradual process that does not occur by episcopal decree, but by exhortation, conviction and patience. Ultimately, a well formed conscience is dependent on many factors, one of which is the reception of Catholic teaching on the part of an individual trying to be faithful and his/her willingness to take ownership of it.

The Church wishes to help form consciences in political life and to stimulate greater insight into the authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly, even when this might involve conflict with situations of personal interest…. The Church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring about the most just society possible. She cannot and must not replace the State. Yet at the same time she cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.16

The need for a well formed conscience is because “following one’s conscience” is the prime moral directive to be upheld and respected by all in the Church and by the State. One has the right but also the duty to follow his/her conscience. Doing so, however, is not some kind of arbitrary, subjective feeling or expression of an individual’s preference. It is acting in freedom, yes, but in harmony with what Gaudium et Spes refers to as the law one discovers deep within one’s self, inscribed there by God. Catholic understanding is that one’s conscience is a person’s “…most secret core and …sanctuary.”17

Consequently, all persons must obey their conscience. To act accordingly, for a Catholic, always requires prayer and discernment, serious attempts to make moral judgments based on clear principles, taking into consideration the truths of faith and supported by the teaching ministry of the Church. In fact, following one’s conscience becomes the first criterion of credible Christian witnessing. Along with this personal obligation to act freely and with personal responsibility, there is a corresponding obligation on governments to act responsibly by recognizing, respecting and guaranteeing freedom of conscience and religion for all citizens. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops stated this clearly in their pastoral letter on Freedom of Conscience and Religion in 2012:

The right of citizens to participate fully as believers needs to be constantly upheld. We recommend the following four actions to our fellow citizens: affirm the rightful role of religion in the public square; uphold a healthy relationship between Church and state; form conscience according to truth; and protect the right to conscientious objection.18

When exercising her teaching ministry, there is no doubt that the Church is involved in the political realm. Each time the Church tries to bring the light of the Gospel into the service of the common good, it is a political act, but the Church, in doing so, is not partisan. She does not and cannot champion a candidate or party, but she cannot avoid interacting with them either. Catholic social teaching provides a framework for understanding and applying Gospel values that does not easily conform to the ideologies of “right” or “left,” “liberal” or “conservative,” or the platform of a political party. Nevertheless, our contribution is put forward, in spite of the fact that politics in their day-to-day manifestation are, more often than not, a contest of powerful and vested interests. Political interaction should be the expressions of different acceptable points of view of this democratic nation’s fundamental principles and values as understood by different political parties. Too often, instead of discussion, dialogue and debate, public discourse takes on an intolerant and uncivil tone, sometimes degenerating to unacceptable “ad hominem” attacks with the treatment of important values reduced to sound bites or political slogans.

The Way of Encounter and Dialogue
Christian faith, charity and the Church’s teaching call politicians, especially those who are Catholic, to a different kind of political interaction. Political discourse needs to be marked by human decency, shaped by respect, and expressed through the moral convictions of persons with well formed consciences. It ought to reflect political ideals focused on: the dignity of every human being, the pursuit of the common good, and the protection of the weak and vulnerable. Such are the reasonable goals of those entrusted with the enactment of laws for the country.19

In the pursuit of these ideals, expectations and values, and in spite of an often unwelcoming political atmosphere, Church interventions in civic matters and the pastoral promotion of non-negotiable principles will be more effectively attained by way of encounters and dialogue with political leaders. Such an approach reflects a more caring, person-centred pastoral solicitude. Respectful personal encounters with public figures dedicated to upholding the values of justice, the rights to freedom of conscience and the well-being of fellow citizens is a much more receivable way to go forward in upholding values central to political life, but also central to the Gospel and the Christian Tradition. A welcoming disposition and a presumption of good will, even with those who differ in opinion with us, is the kind of attitude I believe will more effectively produce fruitful discussion of difficult questions, as well as hearts and minds open to the Church’s social teaching in the public sphere.

In the effort to influence public life, some Christian perspectives are more confrontational, emphasizing the maintenance of purity and integrity in a sinful world. Political protest against laws and policies that are not in complete conformity with Christian beliefs becomes an expression of this particular manner of seeing the world of politics and how to engage with it. There is a place for opposing and protesting unjust law. Nevertheless, since we do not live in an ideal world and are called to be the Church in the modern world, there are circumstances when we must not only indicate our opposition but at times may have to collaborate by recognizing the difference between an unjust law and an imperfect one.20 When it is not possible to overturn or completely repeal a law that is unacceptable, it may be that the only “good” that is attainable is to limit the harm done by such a law.21 For example, engaging in the public debate over proposed legislation regarding euthanasia is an expression of significant Christian witness, even if the effort may not change the legal outcome. Christian witness is not ultimately about changing laws. It is about being faithful to Christ’s way, truth and life. On the specific matter of euthanasia, for instance, we have an opportunity to advance the Catholic Tradition for end of life care as an alternative to euthanasia.

In such complex situations, seeking the good, even a limited one, is perhaps better than no good at all. I believe this is consistent with the theology of the Incarnation. It corresponds with a Catholic spirit, which seeks to find God in all circumstances. It reflects a pastoral attentiveness disposed to interact, walk and work with people of good will in the promotion of the common good. Seeking and finding the good in all present circumstances is congruent with Vatican II’s theological understanding of the Church as God’s Pilgrim People, and it also conforms well with Pope Francis’ present emphasis on Catholics going out to the peripheries. The Holy Father is reminding us that Christian witness happens in the reality of the present moment as we journey along on our pilgrimage, lived out as a commitment to missionary discipleship.

The relevance of these theological concepts to Christian witness is contained in the important dimensions of time and graduality. God’s people make their way step by step, gradually, as Christ’s disciples take the time necessary to learn the lessons of the Master. Within the demands of the faith journey and the cost of Christian discipleship, there is a constant tension and balancing act between the ideal and the real, experienced by all who are trying to be faithful followers of Christ. It is the push and pull between the “already and the not yet” character of life and faith. Christian witness in a secular world, therefore, is tested and shaped by this daily struggle to be committed.

The responsible way forward, as I see the task of political engagement from a Christian perspective, is to highlight the good where it already exists and to work towards the good that can be accomplished, even if sometimes that good is less than the perfect. This is the message I hear in Pope Francis’ powerful words,

I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security. I do not want a Church concerned with being at the centre and then ends by being caught up in a web of obsessions and procedures.22

Christian Witness: A call, a challenge, a commitment
In his first encyclical letter, Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI explained that in dealing with the secular world “…charity must animate the entire lives of the lay faithful and therefore also their political activity, lived as ‘social charity’.”23 This social charity, I believe, is best expressed through dialogue wherever and whenever that is possible. But dialogue will never happen if there are no opportunities for encounter, if there is no willingness to listen to each other, or where there is mistrust in our personal, pastoral or political relations. Christian witness in our present secular age must be consistent with the Gospel’s mission to reveal to humanity God’s great love. In this mission Christ, the Word of God, set the tone and the content for dialogue. It is about the Charity of God! What greater example and expression of social charity can there be in daily life and in political life than to follow Christ’s example in his respect for humanity by entering into dialogue with each other?

The importance of encounter and dialogue is a major theme in Pope Francis’ exhortation The Joy of the Gospel. In number 165 of his letter, the Holy Father lists a number of essential attributes for effectively evangelizing people of our time. These attributes have a direct application for all of us trying to profess our faith in all areas of private and public life.

All this demands on the part of the evangelizer certain attitudes which foster openness to the message: approachability, readiness for dialogue, patience, a warmth and welcome which is non-judgmental.24

What is recommended here as necessary for the proclamation of the Gospel would certainly help a great deal to create an environment of receptivity for the Gospel values to be upheld in the culture and politics of a secular age.

In our country there are no Catholic political parties. What we have are politicians of various political philosophies and agendas, some of whom are sincere Catholics trying to live their faith as best they can in their public roles. Pope Francis referred to this civic service as trying to “live the delicate role of representatives of the people in conformity with gospel values.”25 The role is delicate indeed, for it is no simple task to represent people whose views and values are multiple and diverse. For politicians who are Catholic trying to represent their constituents, as well as be consistent with their faith, the task is enormous. The process of framing legislation in view of the common good must not only take into account party platforms, but also be subject to an informed conscience, a prudential judgment and “the art of the possible.” Pope Benedict said that “…Catholic politicians and legislators, conscious of their grave responsibility before society, must feel particularly bound, on the basis of a properly formed conscience, to introduce and support laws inspired by values grounded in human nature.”26 What Pope Benedict asks for is beyond the ordinary human capacity of anyone trying to live his/her faith credibly in our secular world. It is a task that requires the grace of God.

The responsibility of Christian witnessing for a politician who is Catholic is a call to be personally authentic, meaning that one must firstly be true to one’s self. It is a challenge to be credible, which demands honesty, consistency and truthfulness about fundamental values and respect for all in the face of support or opposition. Lastly, the task of Christian witnessing is a commitment to be faithful to the Person and teaching of Christ, to His way of caring for people, in the hope that the life Christ offers in abundance can be experienced. Because of these great and demanding expectations, we must pray for one another to be responsible citizens. For all those who take on the difficult and delicate responsibility of political engagement, there may be times when we must be constructively critical; more often than not, we must be understanding and at all times, prayerfully and charitably supportive.

May this letter be a source of encouragement and an expression of pastoral care for one and all. May the Peace of Christ be with you.

Acknowledgements
I wish to acknowledge and thank those who have contributed to the preparation and content of this pastoral letter on Christian witness in a secular age.

My appreciation goes out to Sister Nuala Kenny, retired medical doctor and emeritus professor of ethics at Dalhousie University, for her valued input, suggestions and commentary.

I am grateful for the insights derived from Professor Antonio Maria Baggio, professor of Political Philosophy at the Pontifical Gregorian University, some of whose published articles were kindly recommended to me. My gratitude is extended also to Professors John Zucchi and Filippo Sabetti of McGill University for their helpful comments and suggestions.

My appreciation goes to those fellow bishops whom I consulted and who graciously offered their perspectives on this question of Catholics participating in public life, a topic that all of us must face who are charged with the pastoral care of a portion of God’s people.

Finally, a special word of gratitude goes to my executive assistant, Ms. Pauline Amirault, who spent many hours patiently word processing the various revisions that this text has been through before coming to its latest form.

May all of the time, thought, and effort that have gone into this document be received as a useful contribution in our efforts to form credible witnesses of the Gospel and missionary disciples of Jesus Christ.

Endnotes
1 Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium.
2 Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation, Ecclesia in America, no. 44.
3 Luke 4:43
4 Pope Francis, op.cit., no.183.
5 Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, no. 3.
6 ibid. no. 3
7 Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1912-1915.
8 Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1910.
9 Gaudium et Spes, no. 74; Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1906
10 1 Corinthians 1:12.
11 Joseph Ratzinger, CDF note on “The participation of Catholics in Political Life” November 2002.
12 Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1906.
13 Ratzinger, op.cit.
14 Evangelium Vitae, no. 90.
15 Matthew 7:16.
16 Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est, no. 28.
17 Gaudium et Spes, no.16
18 Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter on Freedom of Conscience and Religion, 2012.
19 St. Thomas Aquinas – Lex est ordination rationis ad bonum commune ab eo qui bonum communitatis habet. (Sth. 1-11, 90, 1.) Law is the rule of conduct enacted by competent authority for the sake of the common good. (C.C.C. 1951)
20 Baggio, Antonio Maria, “Il paragrafo 73 della Evangelium Vitae e la questione delle leggi imperfette” in Anthropotes, Lateran University Press, Rome, 2003.
21 Ratzinger, op. cit.
22 Pope Francis, op. cit. no. 49.
23 Pope Benedict, op. cit. no. 29.
24 Pope Francis, op. cit. no. 16.
25 Pope Francis, Sunday Angelus, August 31, 2014.
26 Pope Benedict, Sacramentum Caritatis, no. 83.