Sir, – Regarding Fr Tony Flannery's piece ("Pope pragmatic in prioritising structural reform", Rite & Reason, March 11th), he seems to be arguing that Pope Francis is reorganising the internal governance of the church, (the curia, the synod of bishops, etc) in order that theological change will follow in the wake of such structural changes. Either that or that theological change cannot take place without prior structural change.
Fr Flannery ends his article by saying, "I am very hopeful" (of change). This hopefulness is somewhat at odds with the sense of the two preceding sentences where Fr Flannery cites the pope's recent statement of defence and indeed praise of the church's handling of the clerical sexual abuse scandals and the pope's assertion of Pope Paul VI as a "genius", for his encyclical Humanae Vitae . These two observations are hardly tokens of an intention towards change.
Father Tony’s theory that structural change is a necessary precursor for theological change, if that is what he is saying, seems to me to be a feeble thesis.
Surely Pope Francis could institute theological change in areas such as clerical celibacy, the ban on contraceptives and the place of women in the church if he had a mind to amend the governance of the church at the same time or even after such changes?
The necessity for proper structural changes to bring about doctrinal change is far from convincing on reading Fr Flannery’s article. – Yours, etc,
RICHARD HOLDEN,
Middleway,
Taunton,
Somerset,
England.