Pope's "Light of the World" Interview Sends Media Into Meltdown

Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
24 Nov 2010

Author Peter Seewald

The international media claimed a "revolutionary change"; "Catholic Church does a u-turn" and "Pope condones condom use".

While 24 new Cardinals were being congratulated, another story had broken in Rome which quickly went viral and resulted in headlines like those above.

The headlines were a result of "Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times", a book-length interview by German journalist Peter Seewald.

A number of passages from the book were published in L'Osservatore Romano's Saturday edition.

A handful of commentators were given permission to quote from the book before its official release on 24 November.

However one part came from a section which was supposedly under embargo until the release date.

It was this section, in the Vatican's own newspaper, which sent newspapers, radio, television and online news sites into overdrive.

Pope Benedict spoke about human sexuality and the use of condoms. He said focusing exclusively on condoms trivialises the complex issue of human sexuality, or the "banalization of sexuality".

The Pope said that because of this, too many people no longer see sexuality as something that expresses love and instead the sexual act is "a sort of drug that people administer to themselves".

Author Peter Seewald Presents Book Interview
With Pope Bendict XVI

Then replying to a question referring to the prevention of HIV, Pope Benedict said; "There may be a basis in the case of some individuals, as perhaps when a male prostitute uses a condom, where this can be a first step in the direction of a moralization, a first assumption of responsibility, on the way toward recovering an awareness that not everything is allowed and that one cannot do whatever one wants. But it is not really the way to deal with the evil of HIV infection. That can really lie only in a humanization of sexuality."

The Pope was then asked  in the interview; " Are you saying then, that the Catholic Church is actually not opposed in principle to the use of condoms?"

Pope Benedict answered; "She [the Church] does not regard it as a real or moral solution, but, in this or that case, there can be nonetheless, in the intention of reducing the risk of infection, a first step in a movement toward a different way, a more human way, of living sexuality."

By now editors were experiencing virtual palpitations. And so the headlines - "Condoms to Stop Aids in Some Cases" also "Condoms Justified" and  "Softening on Condoms Represents Minimal Change".
The Pope, condoms, prostitute, a movement toward a different way, this was definitely a lead story.

Unfortunately in the majority of cases the lead story was taken out of context.  Some thought this to be a new direction for the Catholic Church on contraception while others wrote it gave condom use green light to all  homosexuals and even married couples.

Another problem  concerned the translation of the text. In the Italian text which was published in L'Osservatore Romano, the word prostitute was given the female translation. In other languages the gender is cited as male including the official English translation which specifies "male prostitute".

Nonetheless, "Vatican experts" and "progressive Catholic commentators" were rolled out by print and broadcast media to voice their opinions with some saying they knew exactly what the Holy Father really intended. Any suggestion there was  no change in Church teaching, and perhaps the comment had been taken out of context, or even misunderstood, was really an attempt to limit the fall out, according to the "experts".

Despite the headlines, the Pope's comments do not signal a major new shift in Vatican thinking.

Cardinal George Pell said Pope Benedict was speaking on the basic Christian and Catholic teaching on sexual activity: "that such sexual activity is to be confined to the love making between husband and wife. He [Pope Benedict] urges abstinence from premarital and extra-marital sex and fidelity within marriage".

Similarly the Bishop of Parramatta, Bishop Anthony Fisher OP said the Pope has not deviated from or altered in any way Catholic teaching on the intrinsic wrongness or contraception or on reserving sexual intercourse to marriage, that is of a man and a woman.

"Pastors have long recognised that in cases such as homosexual intercourse, contraception and marital acts are not an issue," Bishop Fisher said.

"Using a condom in this situation is clearly not contraception. It is clear that even here the goal must be to move the individual to living a truly 'humane', that is chaste and loving, sexual life.

"The Pope suggests that sometimes "as perhaps when a male prostitute uses a condom' to protect his client from disease, this might be a sign of awakening moral responsibility. But using condoms, the Pope insists, is still not 'a real moral solution'".

Officially the Vatican has said the Pope was not "reforming or changing" the Church's teaching on sexual responsibility, but rather considering an "exceptional situation" in which sexuality places a person's life at risk. The Pope's comments were not, or intended to be "revolutionary".

For many years the Catholic Church has been at the forefront of treating and caring for HIV/AIDS victims and various theologians have studied the morality of condom use to reduce the risk of AIDS.

However the Pope repeats in the book what he said during his trip to Africa last year, "we cannot solve the problems [of AIDS] by distributing condoms" He said by focusing exclusively on condoms damages human sexuality, making it "banal" and turning it into a kind of "drug".

In Peter Seewald's book the Holy Father also talks about the clerical sex abuse scandal. He refers to it "like a crater of a volcano, out of which suddenly a tremendous cloud of filth came, darkening and soiling everything...." He said he can also understand why some Catholics, particularly victims, have responded by leaving the Church in protest.

He also speaks about the challenge facing the Church as far as economic and social progress that leaves God out and hence the ethical aspect.

Ordination of women and the Church's moral teaching and even his health are issues the 83-year old Holy Father discusses.

He said if the Pope is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of the papacy, he has a right and perhaps an obligation to resign.

But before the headline writers fire up once more, there is no hint of Pope Benedict XV1 handing in his pallium, Papal Cross and resigning resigning (and being the first pope in 700 years to do so). He has already made 13 trips abroad during his pontificate and already scheduled for next year are trips to Croatia, San Marino, Spain (for World Youth Day) and Germany.