The pope again placed himself in the crosshairs of the most conservative sectors of the Church by choosing to head the main “ministry” of the Roman Curia, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (Sacra Congregation of the Holy Office, until the Second Vatican Council), an Argentinian prelate who wrote and published a kind of “catechesis” on kisses almost 20 years ago.
The book, titled “Heal me with your mouth: the art of kissingand published in 1995, is now used by conservatives to support the Pope’s choice of its author, Argentine Archbishop Víctor “Tucho” Fernández, as Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, a body of the Holy See which, for example, is charged with overseeing the problem of abuse of minors within the church.
At the presentation of the book in 1995, the then priest Fernández clarified: “I make it clear that this book is not written so much from my existence, but from the lives of people who kiss.” The purpose of the book was presented as helping people “kiss better” and thereby “unleash the best in themselves”.
“What these extremist groups are doing is saying, ‘Look at the low quality that this theologian has, look at the nonsense he wrote, look at the low standard that he has.’
Now under attack from conservatives, the Archbishop has decided to go on the offensive. On Facebook, five days ago, he responded to the attacks he was the target of by speaking of “groups opposed to Francis who are enraged” by his choice and even used “unethical means” to “damage” him. bring”: they refer to a little book of mine that no longer exists, which talked about the kiss. I was inspired by a phrase from the Church Fathers who said that the incarnation was like a kiss from God to mankind.’
“They translate the word ‘witch’ as ’whore’. But the book says ‘witch’. They have no right to change my words.”
Well, continues the Archbishop – seen as the ghostwriter of many of the Pope’s writings – at the time he was “very young” and “a pastor trying to reach young people”: “I thought about writing a catechesis for them based on what the kiss I wrote this catechism with the participation of a group of young people who gave me ideas, phrases, poems, etc.
What does Bishop Víctor Fernández, the new Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, think? https://t.co/MM8UnU1nrM
– ACI Digital (@acidigital) July 4, 2023
In the note, the archbishop says where the attacks on him come from (from “Catholics in the United States”) and accuses them of misrepresenting the contents of the book because they don’t know Spanish. Not skimping on language, he illustrates: “They translate the word ‘witch’ as ’whore’. But the book says ‘witch’. They have no right to change my words. It seems they have no ethics for that And it’s not the first time they’ve done this to me.” For the rest, he also says, “they will continue to say many things and will ally themselves with whoever it is to attack Francis for appointing me”.
The new prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith – a position once held for about 20 years by the German prelate Joseph Ratzinger, who would then rise to become Pope Benedict XVI – says he has been “humiliated for years” by quotes from that book. “What these extremist groups are doing is saying, ‘Look at the low quality that this theologian has, look at the nonsense he wrote, look at the low standard that he has’.”
“I am proud to have been that young pastor who made sure to reach everyone in the most diverse languages.”
But, he assures, “a catechesis for a group of young people is not a book on theology, there is a great difference in literary genre”, that is, “a pastor’s catechism for the bridal couple of a group of young people cannot be a theological handbook.” are called”.
“I am proud to have been that young pastor who made sure to reach everyone in the most diverse languages,” the archbishop wrote. Which at the same time emphasizes what Pope Francis himself said when he chose him for the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith: “When the Pope talks about my curriculum, he mentions that I was rector of the Faculty of Theology, but at the same time he says that I was a parish of Santa Teresa.” And this is “important to him” because it means that a theologian can “dive into the mud” and “use simple language that reaches everyone.”
Source: DN
