Cardinal Robert Sarah is a Guinean prelate of the Catholic Church. Before serving as aprefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, he served as secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples under Pope John Paul II and president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum under Pope Benedict XVI.
He has been a strong voice in opposing Islamic radicalism and defending traditional Catholic teaching on issues of sexual morality and the right to life. He has referred to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and gender ideology as the “two radicalizations” that pose a threat to the family: the former through child marriage, polygamy, and the subjugation of women; the latter through divorce, same-sex marriage, and abortion.
He is a critic of the Second Vatican Council while sympathising with those of the era before it. In 2016 he “called for priests to face the same direction as the congregation while celebrating Mass (ad orientem) although facing the congregation had become the prevailing practice since the Second Vatican Council”, an advice which was regarded as a direct challenge to Pope Francis. He is also “an advocate of traditional Catholic marriage doctrine in opposition to same-sex marriage, denouncing “Western homosexual and abortion ideologies”, suggesting that they are both of “demonic origin”, comparing them to Nazism and Islamic terrorism.
Media outlets like Le Monde and Catholic publications like Crux and the Catholic Herald have mentioned him as papabile, that is, a possible candidate for the papacy.
The below is a summary of the interview he gave to the media portal Valeurs Actualles:
The Gospel does not teach that everyone will go to heaven.
It is necessary to confess sin and punish those who commit it.
Because we [Catholics] are not ardent believers or missionaries, Islam is growing. The progress of Islam exposes the incompetence of the Christians. We dare not spread the gospel.
The liturgy adheres to strict rules that have been passed down through the ages, but the Catholic liturgy is sick today.
Why do so many young people find the ancient liturgy so fascinating? Let’s be truthful. Saying that everyone has a psychological need for identity would be very simple. However, wouldn’t it be preferable to acknowledge that a lot of festivities let them down?
Some people think that the use of secular music, phony relaxation, removing sacred divisions, and leveling the architectural surfaces of churches makes the liturgy more approachable. This delusion is tragic. These decisions all distance us from God.
I want to be explicit about Traditionis custodes. There is deep unhappiness and real suffering in the Church surrounding the liturgy.
Parish liturgies frequently depart from Vatican II. For instance, as asked, Gregorian singing wins first place?
The liturgical practices of today need to change. In light of the Council, it ought to include the finest aspects of the ancient, such as the Deum, or celebration centered around the cross, the extensive use of Latin, the usage of the old offering, or the prayers recited at the foot of the altar.
A cult is an illusion if it remains outside of culture.
It is frightening what the German Synod is going through. It’s an attempt at apostasy, to turn away from the Gospel. The Church in that place is extremely wealthy, highly reliant on the government, and globally integrated.
[The German church] thinks it will succeed by imitating the Protestants, who approve of same-sex marriage and name women pastors. However, there is hardly any purpose or religion in these German protesting communities!
So, what are we running after?
Cardinal Robert Sarah: “There is a serious illness in the Liturgy” today
Cardinal Robert Sarah is a Guinean prelate of the Catholic Church. Before serving as aprefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, he served as secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples under Pope John Paul II and president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum under Pope Benedict XVI.
He has been a strong voice in opposing Islamic radicalism and defending traditional Catholic teaching on issues of sexual morality and the right to life. He has referred to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and gender ideology as the “two radicalizations” that pose a threat to the family: the former through child marriage, polygamy, and the subjugation of women; the latter through divorce, same-sex marriage, and abortion.
He is a critic of the Second Vatican Council while sympathising with those of the era before it. In 2016 he “called for priests to face the same direction as the congregation while celebrating Mass (ad orientem) although facing the congregation had become the prevailing practice since the Second Vatican Council”, an advice which was regarded as a direct challenge to Pope Francis. He is also “an advocate of traditional Catholic marriage doctrine in opposition to same-sex marriage, denouncing “Western homosexual and abortion ideologies”, suggesting that they are both of “demonic origin”, comparing them to Nazism and Islamic terrorism.
Media outlets like Le Monde and Catholic publications like Crux and the Catholic Herald have mentioned him as papabile, that is, a possible candidate for the papacy.
The below is a summary of the interview he gave to the media portal Valeurs Actualles:
The Gospel does not teach that everyone will go to heaven.
It is necessary to confess sin and punish those who commit it.
Because we [Catholics] are not ardent believers or missionaries, Islam is growing. The progress of Islam exposes the incompetence of the Christians. We dare not spread the gospel.
The liturgy adheres to strict rules that have been passed down through the ages, but the Catholic liturgy is sick today.
Why do so many young people find the ancient liturgy so fascinating? Let’s be truthful. Saying that everyone has a psychological need for identity would be very simple. However, wouldn’t it be preferable to acknowledge that a lot of festivities let them down?
Some people think that the use of secular music, phony relaxation, removing sacred divisions, and leveling the architectural surfaces of churches makes the liturgy more approachable. This delusion is tragic. These decisions all distance us from God.
I want to be explicit about Traditionis custodes. There is deep unhappiness and real suffering in the Church surrounding the liturgy.
Parish liturgies frequently depart from Vatican II. For instance, as asked, Gregorian singing wins first place?
The liturgical practices of today need to change. In light of the Council, it ought to include the finest aspects of the ancient, such as the Deum, or celebration centered around the cross, the extensive use of Latin, the usage of the old offering, or the prayers recited at the foot of the altar.
A cult is an illusion if it remains outside of culture.
It is frightening what the German Synod is going through. It’s an attempt at apostasy, to turn away from the Gospel. The Church in that place is extremely wealthy, highly reliant on the government, and globally integrated.
[The German church] thinks it will succeed by imitating the Protestants, who approve of same-sex marriage and name women pastors. However, there is hardly any purpose or religion in these German protesting communities!
So, what are we running after?