Does the Holy Father understand and intend
the doctrine of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis to be
the infallible teaching of the Church?

Ordinatio Sacerdotalis:
Infallible?

By Jack Healy

n In May, 1994 Pope John Paul II "declared" in his apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis "that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly Ordination on women." Alluding to the special ministry Peter received from Jesus "of confirming the brethren" (Luke 22:32), and acting as Peter's successor, the Pope stated that his "judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church's faithful" (esse definitive tenendam).1

Since the issuance of the apostolic letter, however, reactions from some quarters have served to cast doubt on the definitive character of the papal teaching. The nature of this dubium concerned the question whether or not the teaching set forth in the letter belonged to the deposit of faith (depositum fidei). Conceivably, some warrant for the doubt may be found in the Pope's letter itself. In the paragraph immediately preceding his declaration, his Holiness mentions that in some quarters the exclusion of women from ordination is viewed as debatable or simply as a matter of Church discipline. Although the Pope intended his declaration to remove all doubt, he may have sparked some doubt as to the exact nature of the teaching which to his mind is neither theologically debatable nor disciplinary. Thus, to be more precise, the dubium raised concerned both the nature of the teaching and the Pope's mind on the matter.

It was to this two-fold dubium that the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith responded in its Responsum of November, 1995,2 a year and a half after Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. As to the nature of the teaching, namely, "that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women," the Congregation claimed that the teaching belonged to the deposit of faith (ad fidei depositum pertinens). Thus, the issue of women's exclusion from priestly orders is not a matter of Church discipline or theological argument or moral teaching but rather a matter of "faith." Excluding women from ordination is, in more technical language, a matter de fide, the source of which is divine revelation.

However, in the course of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis John Paul never speaks of women's exclusion from priesthood as a matter of faith. Rather he uses the word doctrina, a term found in his apostolic letter of 1988, Mulieris Dignitatem, and in an earlier curial declaration approved by his predecessor, Paul VI (Inter Insigniores, 1976). In any case, John Paul in Ordinatio Sacerdotalis claims that "the teaching that priestly Ordination is to be reserved to men alone has been preserved by the constant and universal Tradition of the Church and firmly taught by the Magisterium in its more recent documents."

Clearly the "more recent documents" he mentions are, among others cited, his own and those of Paul VI. That the papal doctrine excluding women from priesthood is "firmly taught" gives rise to the other aspect of the dubium bearing on the Pope's mind and intention in Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. Does the Holy Father understand and intend the doctrine of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis to be the infallible teaching of the Church? It follows logically that infallibility attaches to any doctrine belonging to the depositum fidei as divinely revealed. In stating, therefore, that the doctrine of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis belongs to the deposit of faith, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith rightly asserts that the doctrine is infallible.

However, the point needs to be made that in no way does the statement of the Congregation make the doctrine infallible. With regard to any teaching, no Vatican Congregation can ever attach the note of infallibility which is a non-transferable prerogative enjoyed by the Pope alone or by the college of bishops united with him or by the Church as a whole. Functioning only at the pleasure of the Holy Father, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith exercises an authority which derives solely from the Papal Office. For this reason any action of the Congregation requires the Pope's explicit approval.

It is, therefore, absurd to think that the Congregation can render the teaching of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis infallible and de fide. The Congregation and its Responsum are, in a real sense, extrinsic to the teaching. In removing the dubium, the Congregation is merely explicitating the Pope's mind. That the Congregation dares to use such loaded phrases as "belonging to the deposit of faith" and "set forth infallibly" shows unmistakably the Pope's hand in formulating the Congregation's reply.

It is an intriguing question why John Paul enlisted the Congregation to promulgate as de fide and infallible the teaching in Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. He is, of course, at liberty to use any form for proclaiming binding and irreformable teaching. Be that as it may, the Responsum of the Congregation, the Pope's apostolic letters Ordinatio Sacerdotalis and Mulieris Dignitatem and other "recent documents" make clear relative to the issue of female ordination the Pope's manifest will and mind. With this obviously the case, the teaching of Vatican II requires of all the faithful "religious submission of will and of mind" (Lumen Gentium 25), even if the Pope were not speaking infallibly.3

In light of what has been said above, the conclusion seems inescapable that the Pope is, indeed, witnessing to a doctrine infallibly held by the Church, namely, that "the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women." Exercising like Peter the unique office "of confirming the brethren," the Pope is teaching as definitive (esse definitive tenendam) a doctrine belonging to the deposit of the faith. Such papal definitions, according to Vatican II,

need no approval of others nor do they allow appeal to any other judgment. For the Roman Pontiff is not pronouncing judgment as a private person. Rather, as the supreme teacher of the universal Church, as one in whom the charism of the infallibility of the Church herself is present, he is expounding or defending a doctrine of the Catholic faith.4

What has recently exercised theologians is the unique, if not daring, manner which the Pope has chosen to promulgate the infallible teaching already articulated in Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. John Paul has elected to reply to the dubium by way of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith whose action of itself is not infallible. "In this case, an act of the ordinary papal Magisterium, in itself not infallible, witnesses to the infallibility of the teaching of a doctrine already possessed by the Church."5 Thus, in a non-infallible manner, the Holy Father has proclaimed by means of the Congregation a doctrine which, according to the Responsum, "from the beginning . . . has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal magisterium."

As mentioned already, it is an intriguing question why the Pope has adopted this means of addressing the nagging issue of female ordination. One possible answer to the question is given in an unlikely source, Ethics & Medics,6 a monthly publication devoted to medical-moral concerns. Therein Benedict Ashley, O.P. makes mention of the similar manner in which "definitions" have been formulated in both the Responsum of the Congregation and the latest papal encyclical Evangelium Vitae (1995). Ashley, however, does not elaborate on the similarity. He merely cites the fact that John Paul has in mind "the pastoral purpose" of addressing two troubling controversies. In the encyclical he confronts a challenge to the Church's moral doctrine and in the Responsum, a challenge to the Church's sacramental doctrine. Somewhat ambiguously Ashley refers to these documents as "declarations" and concludes that they do not meet "the theological criteria of infallible ex cathedra exercises of papal authority." With this the case, the Holy Father, according to Ashley, seems to be demonstrating a certain pastoral sensitivity toward dissenters whom "he does not want to force into heresy with its canonical consequences."

Ashley's opinion has merit. But his aligning of the moral and sacramental controversies besetting the Church suggests yet another reason for John Paul's use of the Congregation relative to Ordinatio Sacerdotalis. The Supreme Pontiff is, while speaking with supreme authority, tactfully diffusing the charge of "creeping infallibilism," which dissident theologians, especially moralists, lay against him.7

Two years previous to Evangelium Vitae, John Paul issued Veritatis Splendor (1993), his tenth encyclical and, in the history of the Church, the first of its kind devoted exclusively to morality. In the encyclical the Pope confronts certain erroneous ethical theories seeping into the Church. These theories claim in principle the right to contradict explicit Church moral teaching since in this realm the Magisterium has never set forth an infallible definition.8 It was subsequently rumored that in Veritatis Splendor the Pope would obligingly change the situation by issuing such definitions.9

That the Pope did not, may stem in part from his desire to avoid catering to the constrictive mentality behind these theories. For that mentality narrows the binding character of magisterial teaching and, in fact, the living Tradition of the Church, to ex cathedra statements and defined propositions.10 Pastorally, if not tactically, it would not do, therefore, for the Pope to issue infallible definitions. Such an act of the extraordinary Magisterium would have the unsalutary effect of reinforcing that very mentality which, ironically, has been quick to charge the Vatican with "creeping infallibilism."

Be that as it may, we have already established that the Responsum of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith cannot render Ordinatio Sacerdotalis infallible and de fide. But Ashley's observation concerning the similarity in "definition" between the Responsum, but also Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, and Evangelium Vitae deserves more attention.

The Pope in the latter encyclical11 addresses the so-called "culture of death" and singles out for condemnation direct and voluntary killing of the innocent, abortion and euthanasia. In each case, the Pope invokes the same solemn formula which cites his authority, his communion with the bishops, the testimony of Scripture, Tradition and the ordinary and universal Magisterium. At the center of that formula stands his ringing pronouncement, "I confirm that . . ." or "I declare that . . . ."12

We mentioned earlier that the Responsum of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith shows unmistakably the hand of the Holy Father. By way of evidence we note that the declaratory formula evident in his Evangelium Vitae reappears several months later in the Congregation's Responsum. Characteristically, the formula cites the testimony of Scripture, ecclesial Tradition, the ordinary and universal Magisterium and the authority of the Roman Pontiff exercising his proper office. Somewhat more diffusely Ordinatio Sacerdotalis contains the same elements but, like the encyclical, contains the explicit words "we declare that . . ." (declaramus).

That among these documents there is a similarity of "definitions" may seem merely academic. But there is more to the matter. In light of the contemporary controversies they address, these definitions carry a weight hitherto unseen in documents of this kind. In view of their solemnity and clarity, the very definitions themselves carry an authority which exceeds that usually ascribed to an apostolic letter, a Responsum or an encyclical. While papal documents may according to their kind be classified and weighted, it is generally recognized that the dogmatic value of a document does not derive from its classification. For example, an apostolic letter, although of minor rank and authority, may serve as the vehicle for an infallible pronouncement. While Benedict XII employed an Apostolic Constitution to define the immediacy of the beatific vision (1336), Pius IX issued a Bull proclaiming Mary's Immaculate Conception (1854).

Since the vehicle is of secondary importance, it is, in reality, the Pope's purpose and intention which determine the dogmatic value of a teaching, that is, whether it is being taught infallibly as an article of divine faith or authoritatively as irreformable doctrine requiring mere interior assent. Because at issue are the Pope's mind and intention and not the species of the document, it is, as Henricus Denziger alerts us, admittedly very difficult to assign infallibility to particular texts and citations.13 Nevertheless, he offers us the standard theological wisdom which discerns some reliable indicators of infallibility.

To establish the infallibility of the text the following properties should be evident: the very form of the words ought to stand out with solemnity which normally occurs when a doctrine is defined by the words "we believe," "we define," "we anathematize" and the like. The matter of the doctrine should be drawn from divine and apostolic tradition and ought to serve man's supernatural salvation by fostering faith and morals. It ought to be manifestly clear from the words themselves that the Magisterium wants to present the teaching as divinely revealed and, therefore, irreformable and to be believed by all. Thus, the document should be addressed to all the faithful. Moreover, it should be discerned in the very tenor of the words of the definition that only those things clearly stated and directly intended fall within the definition and not, therefore, those things said parenthetically. Explanations and arguments which find their way into the document do not share in infallibility but should be considered products of mere human theological effort and thus not immune from the conditions of human weakness.14

However one assess the above theological criteria, it is clear that they serve to corroborate the view that the "definitions" of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis and Evangelium Vitae are, indeed, infallible and de fide. If with regard to Ordinatio Sacerdotalis there be any doubt, the Responsum serves to dispel it. In all three documents "the very form of the words" makes it unmistakable that the teaching at hand derives from "divine and apostolic tradition," and seeks "to serve man's supernatural salvation by fostering faith and morals."

To deny the fact that in the declaratory formulas the Roman Pontiff clearly and unequivocally manifests his mind, one would have to deny their solemn and definitive character. The "very tenor of the words of the definitions" makes that impossible. In a century which has witnessed the promulgation of conciliar and papal documents of every kind and value, the Pope's apostolic letter and the Congregation's Responsum are unique. For along with his recent encyclical, they make explicit by way of infallible definition teaching that is "divinely revealed and, therefore, irreformable and to be believed by all."

To end the agitation surrounding female ordination, John Paul has chosen first to use an apostolic letter for his solemn declaration and then to confirm its infallibility through the non-infallible Responsum of the Congregation. Some may see this action as a novel, even daring, tactic to put the issue to rest; others, as a firm but gentle exercise to confirm the brethren in their faith. In any case, we see exhibited in Ordinatio Sacerdotalis and the Responsum the care of a good Shepherd solicitous for his flock, even the wayward and dissident. Perhaps, they may come to recognize, having given religious assent to the Pope's teaching, that "a bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench" (Isa. 42:3). n

1 AAS, "De Sacerdotali ordinatione viris tantum reservanda," 5 Iulii, 1994, vol. LXXXVI, no. 7, Citta del Vaticano. The pertinent section: Ut igitur omne dubium auferatur circa rem magni momenti, quae ad ipsam Ecclesiae divinam constitutionem pertinet, virtute ministerii Nostri confirmandi fratres [cf. Lc 22,32], declaramus Ecclesiam facultatem nullatenus habere ordinationem sacerdotalem mulieribus conferendi, hancque sententiam ab omnibus Ecclesiae fidelibus esse definitive tenendam, p.548. See English translation of entire letter: The Wanderer, June 16, 1994.

2 Responsum ad dubium circa doctrinam in Epist.Ap. 'Ordinatio Sacerdotalis' traditam, in L'Osservatore Romano, 22 November, 1995, N.47, Vatican City; with accompanying English translation.

3 Hoc vero religiosum voluntatis et intellectus obsequium singulari ratione praestandum est Romani Pontificis authentico magisterio etiam cum non ex cathedra loquitur. From Lumen Gentium, 25, Constitutiones, Decreta et Declarationes, Sacrosanctum Oecumenicum Concilium Vaticanum II Romae, Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis, 1966, p.138.

4 Ibid., 140.

5 L'Osservatore Romano, 22 Nov., 1995, p. 2.

6 Pope John Center, 186 Forbes Road, Braintree, MA; Senior Editor: the Rev. Albert S. Moraczewski. Ashley's article is entitled, "Women's Ordination & Papal Teaching: 'Creeping Infallibility'?" in March 1996, Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 3-4.

7 "Curran claims 'creeping infallibilism,'" in Our Sunday Visitor, September 7, 1986, 4.

8 "Theologians' Statement Supports Curran," in Washington Post March 15, 1986, A7. However, see Cardinal Ratzinger's letter to Fr. Curran, Our Sunday Visitor, ibidem.

9 Germain Grisez acknowledges the rumor but doubts its truth. See his "Veritatis Splendor: Revealed truth vs. dissent," HPR, March 1994, vol. XCIV, No. 6, p.16.

10 Cf. Ratzinger's letter above.

11 Without the availability of the Latin text, we cite from the English translation, The Gospel of Life, a special supplement issue of Inside the Vatican, April 1995, pp. 3-50.

12 In paragraphs 57, 62 and 65. E.g., "Therefore, by the authority which Christ conferred upon Peter and his Successors, and in communion with the Bishops of the Catholic Church, I confirm that the direct and voluntary killing of an innocent human being is always gravely immoral [emphasis in English text]. This doctrine, based upon that unwritten law which man, in light of reason, finds in his own heart (cf. Rom. 2:14-15), is reaffirmed by Sacred Scripture, transmitted by the Tradition of the Church and taught by the ordinary and universal Magisterium." See the sterling article by J. Laffitte, "'Evangelium vitae,' Aspects théologiques et doctrinaux," Nouvelle Revue Théologique, Nov.-Dec. 1995, tome 117/n.6, pp. 821-842.

13 Assignare vero inter documenta maioris auctoritatis textus seu locos infallibiles, multo difficilius est quam multis videtur. In his Enchiridion Symbolorum, Verlag Herder KG, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1963, editio XXXII, p.7.

14 Ibid., p.8. (We will spare the reader the lengthy Latin text.)