Archbishop Chaput: What the Church Needs in the Next Pope

Build on the good of what Francis achieved while focusing on doctrinal clarity

(Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Shortly after Pope John Paul II died in 2005, I received a note from a rabbi. He asked, in a friendly way, why Catholics seemed to spend so much time worrying over matters of doctrine, and why the Vatican had an entire office designed, in his words, to “police Catholic thought.” We had a fruitful exchange that underlined an essential difference between our faiths. The defining qualities of being “Jewish” and “Catholic” differ. Catholics come from different language groups, ethnicities and cultures. We have no uniquely Catholic homeland or common bloodline. None of these things serve, or was intended to serve, as a ground for unity.

The glue of Catholic identity is what we believe. Creed matters. The Nicene Creed we recite at every Sunday Mass, written 17 centuries ago and confirmed in an ecumenical council, is our binding statement of faith, a statement of truth about the world and human purpose. Grounded in Scripture, it provides the framework for Catholic teaching, which in turn provides the guidebook for a good Catholic life. Bad or ambiguous teaching creates confusion. Confusion divides and demoralizes.

This explains why the church has always paid close attention to the content and application of its teaching. Catholics believe that souls and eternity are at stake. If so, confusion in matters of faith is lethal.

Read Archbishop Emeritus Chaput’s full thoughts here.

Archbishop Emeritus Chaput served as archbishop of Philadelphia from 2011 to 2020 and of Denver from 1997 to 2011.