Consequences of Vatican II
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Another Propaganda Gesture of the
‘Cold Call Pope’
After a series of “spontaneous” phone calls made to Catholics who have written to him, the press have dubbed Francis the “cold call Pope.” The latest call by this populist Pope to unwed mother-to-be Anna Romano, 35, seemed to me particularly insulting to serious, intelligent Catholics.
The supposedly distraught Anna Romano, who was living in a scandalous relationship with a man in the town of Arezzo, near Florence, wrote a letter to the Pope explaining her situation: a divorced woman who was “unlucky with men” and had been through several relationships. Now she was pregnant and had “discovered” that the “man of her dreams,” who is the father of the baby, is already married and has a child.
"He left me, telling me he had no intention of taking care of the baby," she said. The man also told her to have an abortion, which she chose not to do.
Now, “in a desperate and anguished state,” she was addressing the Pope because she had no one else to turn to. Then she went on to explain that she feared no priest would baptize her illegitimate child.
The Pope responded by picking up the phone and calling Miss Romano."The Pope told me I was very brave and strong to decide to keep my baby," she said, describing the unexpected call. He also assured her that he would be her spiritual father and baptize the illegitimate baby.
A lot of nonsense
One would have to be completely out of touch with reality to believe that, in our times, a divorced Catholic woman who is pregnant would be distraught about finding a priest to baptize her illegitimate child.
True enough, the percentage of illegitimate births in Italy was minimal before the 1980s, but today that country is following the general trend, showing a dramatic increase in the number of unwed mothers.
In 2011, statistics report that almost one out of four births (23.4%) in Italy were illegitimate. Other traditionally-conservative Catholic countries report even larger numbers of extra-marital births: France, 56.8%; Portugal, 45.6%; Spain, 37.4%; Ireland, 33.7%.
The latest figures on births in the United States show 40.7% of women are unwed mothers. Overall, it is a moral disaster, another consequence of the Church opening her doors to the world after Vatican II and poor moral guidance given to the faithful.
More to the point regarding the Anna Romano drama, we find no reports in Italy of 21st-century priests refusing baptism to these thousands of illegitimate children. To my knowledge, the modern priest, steeped in the Vatican II “catechism of tolerance,” does not refuse baptism to children of unwed mothers.
Who can believe that Anna Romano – not a homeless teen but a 35-year-old woman with a job, family and friends – was truly distraught with no one to turn to except the Pope? Who also can seriously consider that she would have difficulty finding a priest to baptize her child?
It seems to me she took a long shot at entering the spotlight, and hit the jackpot. Off on a holiday, she got a call on her cell phone from the Pope. Also savvy to a good media opportunity, Francis gave her a ring to reassure the woman that she was not alone. A propaganda gesture sure to make the headlines and win lots of sympathy in unprincipled pro-life circles. Certainly, this attitude does not reflect the grave teaching of Popes in the past regarding morals.
An indirect approval of unwed mothers
In fact, this incident could have been an excellent opportunity for the Pope to address the matter of soaring illegitimate children taking place among Catholic women and girls, especially since having babies out of wedlock lost the stigma of wrong-doing. Instead of being admonished to “Go and sin no more,” the guilty girl or woman is praised – as Francis commended Anna – for being “brave” and even “heroic” for not murdering her baby.
Any stigma attached to unwed mothers has been so erased in modern society that many unmarried women in their 30s – like Anna Romano – are deliberately choosing to have a child. Fearful her child-bearing years are sliding away, the middle-aged woman decides it is time to have a baby, with or without a husband. And often it is without, since no one – including the Church authorities – is speaking out strongly against adultery and couples living together outside of marriage.
TIA has published articles on several occasions on unwed mothers (here and here), making the position of the Catholic Church (before Vatican II) very clear: A repentant unwed mother can be admitted to the Sacraments, her child should be baptized, but she should also face certain sanctions in society, which cannot give her the same status that belongs to the married upright mother and wife.
If the Pope had wanted to give a good lesson to the many young Catholics living in sin outside of marriage in our days, he could have taken another tone in his response, and added some words of stern warning about mortal sin and its deadly consequences for the soul. But it seems that Anna Romano who received his call – and the rest of the world who read the sensational story – did not receive any warning on the seriousness of the sin committed.
What we are witnessing in this case is the same “catechism of tolerance” preached by all the post-conciliar Popes. A lack of concern for Catholic Morals and transgressions against the 6th and 9th Commandments; a great preoccupation with making others feel good in this life, without any serious concern for eternal life.
The Pope may be using his cold calls to bolster his popularity in the media and among the revolutionary masses, but he certainly loses esteem among serious Catholics who want – and need – a Pontiff to address the moral decline of our days.
Posted September 11, 2013
Spontaenous phones calls made to please the media and crowds
"He left me, telling me he had no intention of taking care of the baby," she said. The man also told her to have an abortion, which she chose not to do.
Now, “in a desperate and anguished state,” she was addressing the Pope because she had no one else to turn to. Then she went on to explain that she feared no priest would baptize her illegitimate child.
The Pope responded by picking up the phone and calling Miss Romano."The Pope told me I was very brave and strong to decide to keep my baby," she said, describing the unexpected call. He also assured her that he would be her spiritual father and baptize the illegitimate baby.
A lot of nonsense
One would have to be completely out of touch with reality to believe that, in our times, a divorced Catholic woman who is pregnant would be distraught about finding a priest to baptize her illegitimate child.
True enough, the percentage of illegitimate births in Italy was minimal before the 1980s, but today that country is following the general trend, showing a dramatic increase in the number of unwed mothers.
In 2011, statistics report that almost one out of four births (23.4%) in Italy were illegitimate. Other traditionally-conservative Catholic countries report even larger numbers of extra-marital births: France, 56.8%; Portugal, 45.6%; Spain, 37.4%; Ireland, 33.7%.
The latest figures on births in the United States show 40.7% of women are unwed mothers. Overall, it is a moral disaster, another consequence of the Church opening her doors to the world after Vatican II and poor moral guidance given to the faithful.
Francis made Anna Romano a celebrity & promoted unwed mothers
Who can believe that Anna Romano – not a homeless teen but a 35-year-old woman with a job, family and friends – was truly distraught with no one to turn to except the Pope? Who also can seriously consider that she would have difficulty finding a priest to baptize her child?
It seems to me she took a long shot at entering the spotlight, and hit the jackpot. Off on a holiday, she got a call on her cell phone from the Pope. Also savvy to a good media opportunity, Francis gave her a ring to reassure the woman that she was not alone. A propaganda gesture sure to make the headlines and win lots of sympathy in unprincipled pro-life circles. Certainly, this attitude does not reflect the grave teaching of Popes in the past regarding morals.
An indirect approval of unwed mothers
In fact, this incident could have been an excellent opportunity for the Pope to address the matter of soaring illegitimate children taking place among Catholic women and girls, especially since having babies out of wedlock lost the stigma of wrong-doing. Instead of being admonished to “Go and sin no more,” the guilty girl or woman is praised – as Francis commended Anna – for being “brave” and even “heroic” for not murdering her baby.
Percentage of children born to unwed mothers in the US, by race
TIA has published articles on several occasions on unwed mothers (here and here), making the position of the Catholic Church (before Vatican II) very clear: A repentant unwed mother can be admitted to the Sacraments, her child should be baptized, but she should also face certain sanctions in society, which cannot give her the same status that belongs to the married upright mother and wife.
If the Pope had wanted to give a good lesson to the many young Catholics living in sin outside of marriage in our days, he could have taken another tone in his response, and added some words of stern warning about mortal sin and its deadly consequences for the soul. But it seems that Anna Romano who received his call – and the rest of the world who read the sensational story – did not receive any warning on the seriousness of the sin committed.
What we are witnessing in this case is the same “catechism of tolerance” preached by all the post-conciliar Popes. A lack of concern for Catholic Morals and transgressions against the 6th and 9th Commandments; a great preoccupation with making others feel good in this life, without any serious concern for eternal life.
The Pope may be using his cold calls to bolster his popularity in the media and among the revolutionary masses, but he certainly loses esteem among serious Catholics who want – and need – a Pontiff to address the moral decline of our days.
Posted September 11, 2013
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