Five Cardinals Submit Dubia to Pope Francis Ahead of Synod on Synodality

Yesterday, news broke that five cardinals submitted dubia (formal questions) to Pope Francis over the summer, all of which are directly related to the Synod on Synodality set to begin tomorrow in Rome. Edward Pentin explains in his report for the National Catholic Register:

Five cardinals have sent a set of questions to Pope Francis to express their concerns and seek clarification on points of doctrine and discipline ahead of this week’s opening of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican.

The cardinals said they submitted five questions, called dubia, on Aug. 21 requesting clarity on topics relating to doctrinal development, the blessing of same-sex unions, the authority of the Synod on Synodality, women’s ordination, and sacramental absolution.

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The dubia were signed by German Cardinal Walter Brandmüller, 94, president of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences; American Cardinal Raymond Burke, 75, prefect emeritus of the Apostolic Signatura; Chinese Cardinal Zen Ze-Kiun, 90, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong; Mexican Cardinal Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, 90, archbishop emeritus of Guadalajara; and Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, 78, prefect emeritus of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

The same group of senior prelates say they submitted a previous version of the dubia on these topics on July 10 and received a reply from Pope Francis the following day.

But they said that the pope responded in full answers rather than in the customary form of “Yes” and “No” replies, which made it necessary to submit a revised request for clarification.

Following the release of the cardinals’ original and reformulated dubia, the Vatican published a “provisional English translation” of the Pope’s response, which he apparently composed in Spanish. A full English translation of his letter to the five cardinals was then posted on Cardinal Burke’s personal website.

To read the five cardinals’ open letter to the faithful explaining their course of action, see here.

For detailed analysis of the five dubia and Pope Francis’ response to them, all in light of the Synod on Synodality, be sure to watch this week’s edition of the CFN Weekly News Roundup (subscribe to CFN’s YouTube channel and click the notification bell).

And in the meantime, pray this prayer composed by Bishop Athanasius Schneider.