Cardinal Robert Sarah has called for greater doctrinal clarification on certain aspects of the Second Vatican Council and subsequent magisterium to avoid interpretations of “rupture” with the Church’s Tradition.
In an extensive interview granted to the French outlet La Nef, the emeritus prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship addressed some of the most sensitive debates in current ecclesial life: the doctrinal crisis, relativism, liturgy, the pontificate of Francis, the Society of Saint Pius X, and the future of the Church under Leo XIV.
Although the cardinal avoided speaking of “corrections” to the Council, he did defend the need for new doctrinal “clarifications” on issues that for decades have given rise to divergent interpretations within the Church.
“The Church has nothing to fear from clarity,” he affirmed.
According to Sarah, certain topics related to religious freedom, ecumenism, collegiality, or the relationship between the Church and the modern world have at times been used to justify a “hermeneutic of discontinuity” with regard to Catholic Tradition.
“A council must be read in continuity with the faith of all time,” the cardinal insisted.
“Permeability to the spirit of the world is the great heresy of our time”
The cardinal denounced a growing adaptation to the “spirit of the world” and warned of the “return of paganism” even within ecclesial circles.
“When faith is reduced to a sociological language, liturgy to animation, morality to permanent negotiation, and the Church to an institution that must adjust to the desires of the times, then something of paganism returns,” he affirmed.
For Sarah, the central problem is that even within the Church “man places himself at the center” while the sense of worship and the primacy of God disappears.
“Permeability to the spirit of the world is the great heresy of our time,” he added.
The cardinal also lamented that many ecclesial sectors seem to have “fear of displeasing the world,” preferring “ambiguity to clarity” and “accompaniment without conversion” over authentic Christian mercy.
Sarah acknowledges “zones of confusion” during the pontificate of Francis
Asked directly about the pontificate of Francis, Sarah admitted that certain stages of the Church’s life can leave “wounds of confusion.” “I love the Pope, but loving the Pope does not mean suspending all critical intelligence,” he noted.
The cardinal also revealed that during the previous pontificate he personally expressed to Francis his concern over certain “practical ambiguities” that could “obscure doctrinal clarity.”
Nevertheless, he insisted that the current crisis cannot be attributed solely to one person, but rather responds to much deeper and earlier cultural and ecclesial processes.
Liturgy, Tradition, and the Society of Saint Pius X
Sarah also addressed the liturgical issue and tensions with the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X following the future episcopal consecrations without pontifical mandate scheduled for July 1 in Switzerland.
The cardinal described that possibility as an “objectively grave” situation and recalled that fidelity to Tradition cannot be separated from hierarchical communion with Rome.
“The liturgy belongs to the Church, not to parties,” he affirmed.
At the same time, he asked ecclesial authorities not to disdain “the suffering or doctrinal questions” accumulated among many faithful linked to the traditional world, insisting moreover that the true liturgical issue does not consist in a “war of sensibilities,” but in recovering for the entire Church the sacred sense of worship and its orientation toward God.
Hope in Leo XIV and in an interior renewal
Finally, the cardinal assured that he also perceives signs of spiritual renewal, especially among young people, families, and communities that are rediscovering Eucharistic adoration, silence, confession, and liturgy celebrated with dignity.
“They do not seek a diluted religion, but a full faith,” he affirmed.
Referring to the pontificate of Leo XIV, Sarah expressed his hope that the Church may recover greater doctrinal clarity, liturgical depth, and sense of God.
“If this pontificate helps the Church to rediscover more doctrinal clarity, more liturgical depth, and more interior peace, it will have rendered a great service to the faithful people,” he concluded.