Cardinal Müller, in new book, renews argument against change in Church teaching on marriage

July 29, 2014

Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, renews his argument against changes in Church teaching on marriage, in a new book-length interview.

In The Hope of the Family, Cardinal Müller argues that the greatest problem facing the Church is not the relatively small number of divorced and remarried couples who wish to receive Communion, but the very large number of couples who do not understand the Christian meaning of sacramental marriage.

The German cardinal calls for a renewed emphasis on instruction in the Church’s teachings on marriage and family life. While advocating pastoral solicitude for divorced Catholics, he argues forcefully against the suggestion—championed by another German prelate, Cardinal Walter Kasper—that the Church might allow divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist.

In his preface to The Hope of the Family, another leading prelate, Cardinal Fernando Sebastian Aguilar, the retired Archbishop of Pamplona, Spain, argues:

A simple 'adaptation' of the reality of marriage to the expectations of the world does not bear any fruit, but rather turns out to be counterproductive: the Church cannot respond to the challenges of the modern world with a pragmatic adaptation. In opposing an easy pragmatic adaptation, we are called to choose the prophetic audacity of martyrdom.

The Hope of the Family is the result of a lengthy conversation between Cardinal Müller and a Spanish journalist, Carlos Granados. It was published simultaneously on July 29 in Spain, Italy, and the US.

 

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Further information:

• Müller: "These Theories Are Radically Mistaken" (L'Espresso)
• The Hope of the Family (Ignatius Press)