Pope Francis and Sharing the Eucharist with Non-Catholics: A Lesson in Evangelization

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It seems hardly a day goes by that the Catholic blogosphere is not in an uproar over some statement or action by someone whom they feel is threatening to destroy the Church. The offender is more than likely a member of the Church hierarchy - priest, bishop, cardinal. Of course the ranting and raving really starts when the guilty party is Pope Francis. A standard prayer of Catholic bloggers seems to be that Pope Francis be permanently silenced - not that they wish him any harm!

One of the latest items of contention is the Holy Father's answer to a Lutheran woman married to a Catholic. The question, as translated by Edward Pentin from Italian into English, was as follows:

My name is Anke de Bernardinis and, like many people in our community, I'm married to an Italian, who is a Roman Catholic Christian. We’ve lived happily together for many years, sharing joys and sorrows. And so we greatly regret being divided in faith and not being able to participate in the Lord's Supper together. What can we do to achieve, finally, communion on this point?

Before I get to the "offensive" response by Pope Francis, it is important to take a closer look at this question.  Here is a Lutheran woman who has been happily married to a Catholic man for many years.  As she relates, it is a great sadness to her and her husband that they do not share the same faith, and more specifically, that they cannot participate in the "Lord's Supper" together.  She is asking the earthly head of the Catholic Church how they can achieve this unity.

Nearly every Catholic blogger has said the answer is simple: become a Catholic! And certainly that is true. But look again at the question. The woman has been married to a Catholic for many years. We can safely assume that she and her husband have discussed this division between them, and her husband, and many others no doubt, told her that only members in good standing in the Church can participate in the Sacraments. But she has not, as far as we can tell, made any moves to become Catholic. The fact that she is talking with the Pope and asking him questions shows that she has respect for the Catholic Church. But up this point, that has not been enough to give her the courage to walk away from her own faith and become a Catholic. She wants to know how she and her husband get over this seemingly insurmountable barrier between them.

Pope Francis obviously took all of this into account when he answered her. His goal - as should be the goal of all of us - is to bring people into the church, not set up roadblocks that will keep them out. The Holy Father could have taken the easy way out and given the technically correct answer that she had no doubt heard many times before. Pope Francis wanted to do something that would make her take that step she has feared for so many years:  to think outside her own personal box and to approach the problem in a different way, since obviously what she has been doing has not been working.

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First Pope Francis joked about being afraid to speak out in the presence of well respected theologians such as Cardinal Walter Kasper.  This got under the skin of not a few bloggers.  Nonetheless, even though Cardinal Kasper is wrong about communion for divorced and remarried, he is still a very learned and respected theologian. After all, Pope Benedict XVI confirmed Cardinal Kasper as President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Pope Benedict obviously had high respect for the Cardinal, the Catholic blogosphere notwithstanding.

Pope Francis then gave a short meditation on the Eucharist:

I think of how the Lord told us when he gave us this command to “do this in memory of me,” and when we share the Lord’s Supper, we recall and we imitate the same as the Lord. 

As Pope Francis said, we have this command from Christ to "do this in memory of me".   It is interesting to note that Pope Francis uses the word "Lord's Supper."  Many bloggers were upset by the Pope's use of this expression because it is seen as Protestant.  However, this is the expression used by the woman.  Therefore, Pope Francis is talking in a language that she will understand and which will not alienate her from the rest of his explanation. Again, the Pope is trying to bring this woman to the truth, not set up walls and roadblocks, unlike so many who are more concerned about being "right" than bringing others to the truth.    

The Holy Father explains that by partaking in the Lord's Supper, we recall and imitate His actions. Pope Francis is explaining that sharing communion is not something we do on our own because it seems like a good thing to do.  We do it because it is a command from Jesus Christ.

Pope Francis goes on to explain that this command is not just about looking back 2000 years ago, but also looking forward to the new Jerusalem when there will be another "Lord's Supper" - the "eternal banquet" when the saints receive their heavenly reward:

And there will be the Lord’s Supper, there will be the eternal banquet in the new Jerusalem, but that will be the last one.

Pope Francis says he asks himself what is the purpose of the Lord's Supper for the time in which we live, the time between the first Lord's Supper and the eternal banquet in the new Jerusalem:

In the meantime, I ask myself — and don’t know how to respond — what you’re asking me, I ask myself the question. To share the Lord’s banquet: is it the goal of the path or is it the viaticum [provisions] for walking together?

Pope Francis wonders what is the purpose of the Lord's Supper: is it our ultimate goal, our reward for obeying Christ, or is it the means by which we walk and are united together in obedience to Christ? Father John Zuhlsdorf, in a rather flippant comment, replied to this by saying: "Ummm… it’s not that hard. It’s both."  As Pope Francis says, our ultimate reward will be the "eternal banquet in the new Jerusalem," but what is the purpose of the Eucharist in this life?  Is the Eucharist our reward now, or is it the means by which we will receive our ultimate reward?

Quoting Pope St. John Paul II (Homily given on June 1, 1997 to the 46th International Eucharistic Congress):

These are words which concern the very essence of the Eucharist. Behold, Christ came into the world to bestow upon man divine life. He not only proclaimed the Good News but He also instituted the Eucharist which is to make present until the end of time His redeeming mystery. And as the means of expressing this He chose the elements of nature - the bread and wine, the food and drink that man must consume to maintain his life. The Eucharist is precisely this food and drink. This food contains in itself all the power of the Redemption wrought by Christ. In order to live man needs food and drink. In order to gain eternal life man needs the Eucharist. This is the food and drink that transforms man's life and opens before him the way to eternal life. By consuming the Body and Blood of Christ, man bears within himself, already on this earth, the seed of eternal life, for the Eucharist is the sacrament of life in God. Christ says: "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me." (Jn 6:57).

Certainly no one who is not in a state of grace should be allowed to receive the Eucharist, but as Pope St. John Paul II told us, we must receive the Eucharist in order to stay in that state of grace.  It is a hard mystery, and as Pope Francis said:

I leave that question to the theologians and those who understand.

Of course, in this statement, Pope Francis is implying that no human being has a complete understanding of the great mystery of the Eucharist just as no human being can fully understand God Himself, Father Z notwithstanding.

As Pope Francis next explains, when we say we share, that means there are no differences between us, that we all have the same doctrine:

It’s true that in a certain sense, to share means there aren’t differences between us, that we have the same doctrine – underscoring that word, a difficult word to understand — but I ask myself: but don’t we have the same Baptism? If we have the same Baptism, shouldn’t we be walking together? You’re a witness also of a profound journey, a journey of marriage: a journey really of the family and human love and of a shared faith, no? We have the same Baptism.

As Pope Francis explains here, all Christian churches share in the understanding of baptism as an act of the Holy Spirit which rescues us from our sin and brings us into union with God. We all share in this same doctrine. Therefore, "shouldn't we be walking together?" 

Pope Francis points out the woman's marriage as an example of this profound mystery. Even though she is Lutheran and her husband is Catholic, they have walked together in the journey of marriage: "a journey really of the family and human love and of a shared faith, no? We have the same Baptism." Because the woman and her husband share in the same baptism, they are able, despite their religious differences, to walk together. This shows the power of the Holy Spirit, which cleansed them both in baptism.

Pope Francis says that this mystery makes it very difficult for him to understand what doctrine really means.  How is that all Christians can share in the basic doctrine of baptism, and yet be separate?

Father Zuhlsdorf, again in his flippant way, dismisses this profound statement by writing:

“doctrine” is difficult to understand? How about “That which is taught. Christian doctrine ordinarily means that body of revealed and defined truth which a Catholic is bound to hold, but is often extended to include those teachings which are not of faith but are generally held and acted upon. Occasionally the word indicates these last only, “the teachings of theologians,” as distinct from “the faith taught by the Church.” – The Catholic Dictionary – Is there more to say? Sure. But that’s a start.

This statement clearly shows that Father Zuhlsdorf is not understanding the Holy Father at all, and he is doing his readers a great disservice with his casual dismissal of the words of Pope Francis.

Pope Francis goes on to state that all Christians also have a shared understanding of what it means to be forgiven by the Lord:

When you feel yourself to be a sinner – and I feel more of a sinner – when your husband feels a sinner, you go to the Lord and ask forgiveness; your husband does the same and also goes to the priest and asks absolution. I’m healed to keep alive the Baptism. When you pray together, that Baptism grows, becomes stronger. When you teach your kids who Jesus is, why Jesus came, what Jesus did for us, you’re doing the same thing, whether in the Lutheran language or the Catholic one, but it’s the same. 

As the Pope explains, the woman, when she feels she has sinned, goes to the Lord and asks for forgiveness.  As a Catholic, her husband does the same by going to the priest and asking for absolution.  Father Z flips off this statement by Pope Francis, again showing his refusal to accept anything which does not fit in with his personal beliefs:

The Sacrament of Penance is the means given to us by Christ Himself, the means by which HE desires for us to seek forigivness [sic] and reconciliation.

Wow - Father Z does enjoy giving it to Pope Francis. Does Father Zuhlsdorf truly believe that those who do not have access to the Sacrament of Penance are thus denied the forgiveness of Jesus Christ? If that is the case, then baptism outside of the Catholic Church would not be valid in wiping away sins either. We know this is not true because the Church herself recognizes the validity of Protestant baptism. Why would Our Lord recognize baptisms outside of the Church and then deny forgiveness to those same people?

Pope Francis tells us that the forgiveness received by the Lutheran woman and Catholic man keeps their Baptisms alive.  When they pray together, their Baptisms become stronger.  Because they are both validly baptized, they can both teach their children about the mission of Christ and what He does for us, whether in the "Lutheran language" or the "Catholic one."  As Pope Francis says, they are united in their understanding of the message of Jesus because they are both validly baptized.

Father Zuhlsdorf seems to refuse to accept this teaching by the Holy Father.  His response is:

What Jesus did for us.. okay… but how we participate in what Jesus did for us is different.

Certainly the Pope is saying that the way in which we participate in the Gospel is different. Only the Catholic Church has the fullness of the truth and the complete sacraments.  However, Pope Francis says that since Protestants and Catholics are both validly baptized, we are on the same road and therefore have a common understanding, a message which is rejected by Father Zuhlsdorf and most other Catholic bloggers.

Pope Francis then gets to the central question:

The question: and the [Lord’s] Supper? There are questions that, only if one is sincere with oneself and with the little theological light one has, must be responded to on one’s own. See for yourself. This is my body. This is my blood. Do it in remembrance of me – this is a viaticum that helps us to journey on.

By first explaining that our shared baptism puts all Christians on the same road, having all been forgiven of our sins, we are then required to make a personal response to the meaning of the Lord's Supper. However, the Holy Father warns us that we must be sincere with ourselves and our own level of spiritual understanding. As the Pope warns, we must listen to Christ when He says, "This is my body. This is my blood. Do it in remembrance of me - this is a viaticum that helps us to journey on." Pope Francis is warning us that this cannot be taken lightly but with great thought and reflection.

The Holy Father then gives us an example from his own life:

I once had a great friendship with an Episcopalian bishop who went a little wrong – he was 48 years old, married, two children. This was a discomfort to him – a Catholic wife, Catholic children, him a bishop. He accompanied his wife and children to Mass on Sunday, and then went to worship with his community. It was a step of participation in the Lord’s Supper. Then he went forward, the Lord called him, a just man. 

Pope Francis and Tony Palmer
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 Pope Francis is talking about Tony Palmer, an Anglican bishop who was married with a Catholic wife and Catholic children.  This bishop would actually go to Catholic Mass with his family on Sunday, and then afterwards would go to services in the  Episcopal church.  A little history of Tony Palmer from The Boston Globe:

An articulate, laid-back, jovial South African in his early fifties, with a penchant for quirky clerical clothes, Palmer didn’t look or sound much like a conventional Anglican bishop. When I first met him in May, at a coffee shop in Bath, close to where he lived with his family, he explained that he had been ordained by the Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, or CEEC, whose presiding bishop is in Florida.

The CEEC, which was formed in the 1990s, is Anglican. Yet unlike the Episcopal Church in the United States, it’s not part of the Anglican Communion loyal to the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Its leaders see themselves as part of a “convergence” movement, seeking to combine evangelical Christianity with the liturgy and sacraments typical of Catholicism.

That convergence, Palmer told me, “is a precursor to full unity between the Protestant and Catholic Churches.”

Tony Palmer's wife converted to Catholicism while she was married to him.  They raised their children as Catholics.  Even though he remained Anglican, as noted above, Palmer worked to bring Catholics and Protestants together.

As Pope Francis explains, this "was a step of participation in the Lord's Supper."  Pope Francis had actually told Tony Palmer not to convert to Catholicism because the Holy Father felt the Episcopal Bishop would be more effective as an Episcopalian in bringing unity to the Christian world.  As Bishop Palmer explained:  “[Bergoglio] told me that we need to have bridge-builders. He counseled me not to take the step because it looked like I was choosing a side and I would cease to be a bridge-builder.”

Pope Francis told the Lutheran woman, "Then he went forward, the Lord called him, a just man." (Father Z's comment to "he went forward" - [?!?] - shows his complete lack of understanding.) Pope Francis believes that even though Tony Palmer was not officially Catholic, he nonetheless died in full communion with Jesus Christ, a "just man".  A Catholic Requiem Mass was even said at Bishop Palmer's funeral in Bath, England.

The point of this story is that we cannot dictate how God will work in our lives and use us to bring the saving Gospel to others.  As Pope Francis explained,  God used Tony Palmer as an Anglican. Who are we to say how God, in his great wisdom and understanding, will use us?

The Holy Father ended his comments to the Lutheran woman by saying:

To your question, I can only respond with a question: what can I do with my husband, because the Lord’s Supper accompanies me on my path?

It’s a problem each must answer, but a pastor-friend once told me: “We believe that the Lord is present there, he is present. You all believe that the Lord is present. And so what's the difference?” — “Eh, there are explanations, interpretations.” Life is bigger than explanations and interpretations. Always refer back to your baptism. “One faith, one baptism, one Lord.” This is what Paul tells us, and then take the consequences from there. I wouldn’t ever dare to allow this, because it’s not my competence. One baptism, one Lord, one faith. Talk to the Lord and then go forward. I don’t dare to say anything more.

In answering the question of a Lutheran receiving communion in the Catholic Church, Pope Francis first tried to show the ways in which we are united:  in our baptism, in seeking forgiveness of sins, in our understanding of the Gospel.  As the Holy Father summarizes above, "One faith, one baptism, one Lord."  As he says, despite the fact that we do share the basic foundations of Christianity, Pope Francis "wouldn't ever dare to allow" a non-Catholic to receive communion in the Catholic Church - as he says, it is not his competence.  Yet he still manages to allow the door to be open by saying "talk to the Lord and then go forward."

Pope Francis has given us a valuable lesson on how to talk to those outside of the Church.  Try to stress the ways in which we agree, emphasize those ways in which the other person is truly seeking Christ.  Show the universality of the Gospel message, that it is not just for Catholics but for all people.  Remember, being a Christian is not about proving who is right, but about saving people from their sins, bringing them to the eternal love of Jesus Christ.  This is exactly what Pope Francis did in this situation.

How sad that the Catholic blogosphere, in their prejudice and self righteousness, completely missed this message.  To follow these Catholics is to continue to erect walls between people and to block the effectiveness of the Gospel.

This is also Pope Francis showing his complete trust in the guidance of the Holy Spirit of those who are truly seeking God.  Pope Francis believes Jesus Christ when He said, "Seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened."  So this is exactly what his answered involved:  he told the Lutheran woman to seek for the truth - "Talk to the Lord and go forward" - in the sure confidence that if she is sincerely seeking, she will find the truth.

Now if only the Catholic blogosphere would start seeking the truth with a sincere heart instead of sitting in judgment of every word and action that doesn't meet with their self-righteous approval.

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