Roman Catholic Dogma - Papal Bulls and Encyclicals

Papal Bulls and Encyclicals

Pope Pius XII stated in Humani Generis, that Papal Encyclicals, even when they are not ex cathedra, can nonetheless be sufficiently authoritative to end theological debate on a particular question:

The end of the theological debate is not identical however with dogmatization. Throughout the history of the Church, its representatives have discussed whether a given Papal teaching is the final word or not.

In 1773, Father Lorenzo Ricci, hearing rumours that Pope Clement XIV might dissolve his Jesuit order, wrote "it is most incredible that the Deputy of Christ would state the opposite, what his predecessor Clement XIII stated in the Papal Bull Apostolicum, in which he defended and protected us." When a few days later he was asked if he would accept the Papal Breve, reverting Clement XIII and dissolving the Jesuit Order, Father Ricci replied, whatever the Pope decides must be sacred to everybody.

In 1995, questions arose as to whether the Apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, which upheld the Catholic teaching that only men may receive ordination, is to be understood as belonging to the deposit of faith. Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church's divine constitution itself, in virtue of Our ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Lk 22:32) We declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church's faithful.

Critics of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis point out, that it was not issued under the extraordinary papal magisterium as an ex cathedra statement, and so is not considered infallible in itself. Its contents are, however, considered infallible under the ordinary magisterium. The American Cardinal Avery Dulles, in a lecture to US bishops, stated that Ordinatio Sacerdotalis is infallible, not because of the Apostolic Letter or the clarification by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger alone but because it is based on a wide range of sources, scriptures, the constant tradition of the Church, and the ordinary and universal magisterium of the Church: Pope John Paul II had identified a truth infallibly taught over two thousand years by the Church. Many Catholics believe that it meets all the criteria of an infallible ex cathedra pronouncement, even aside from its repetition of universal magisterial teaching.