Francis asks forgiveness of the Italian Protestants
In the Middle Ages the Catholic Church persecuted them just like witches and sorcerers: now Pope Francis has officially apologized to the Waldensian community.
Francis apologizes to the Protestants
During his visit to Turin, Pope Francis apologized for the fact that in the Middle Ages the Catholic Church persecuted Protestants in this region. In the Middle Ages the Waldensians were excluded from the church and persecuted as heretics. “On behalf of the Catholic Church, I ask forgiveness for the un-Christian and even inhuman treatment that we directed against you. In the name of Christ, forgive us!” said the head of the Catholic Church at the Waldensian church in Turin.”
The Waldensian church was formed 800 years ago. Its founder, a wealthy French merchant, Peter Waldo, resolved to live in radical poverty and preached this way of life in contrast to the opulence and corruption of the church of his time. He rejected the church’s hierarchy and the clergy’s monopoly on the interpretation of the Bible. As much as 300 years before Luther, the Waldensians fought against the buying of offices in the church and the trade in indulgences. For this they suffered fierce persecutions whose aim was their physical extermination.
“If we think about our history, we cannot but feel sorrow at seeing the conflicts and violence that were committed in the name of one’s own faith,” said Francis.
Merely an ecclesial community?
Relations with the Catholic congregations have normalized over the years; however, the Italian Protestants pointed out that in official Roman Catholic statements they, unlike the Lutherans, are not called a church, but rather an ecclesial community. The Waldensian pastor Bernardini addressed the Pope directly: “We have never understood what this concept means. A half-church? A church that is not a church? We think that one should go further here. A good reason for that would be the year 2017, when we celebrate 500 years of the Reformation.”
In Turin, Francis spoke of the Waldensian church quite naturally. His visit and apology are powerful ecumenical signals, even though he acknowledged: “Unity as a fruit of the Holy Spirit does not mean uniformity. Brothers and sisters are united by a common origin, but that does not mean that we are identical.” At present, the Waldensian church unites nearly 100,000 believers throughout the world, most of whom live in Italy. Regret over the killing of Jan Hus
The apology to the Waldensians is already the second instance in which Francis distances himself from the church’s actions in the past. Also recently, in mid-June, he publicly expressed “deep regret over the cruel death of Jan Hus”. Jan Hus, a church reformer, was burned in 1415 at the Council of Constance. The Pope sees possibilities for further cooperation
In Turin the Pope said that, regarding the further future, even though there are substantial differences in anthropological and ethical questions, this should not hinder cooperation between the two churches. Both Catholics and Waldensians should together take up the care of the poor and the outcast. They already cooperate, for example, in creating an interconfessional translation of the Bible, as well as in a joint call to fight against the violence committed against women.
LLSTA