Can Church Doctrine Ever Change?

In a world that changes constantly, people wonder if the Church can change its doctrine.

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[Pheenix]

Fr Casey, watching your videos have served me two-fold: First is that they are encouraging me to seek what I've lost (faith). Second is that I have an affinity for history. Your channel is killing 2 birds with one stone.

[francesedwards]

“Love one another as I have loved you”
-Jesus

[vincewarde]

I'm an evangelical minister and I absolutely love the "King James was good enough for Jesus" reference - it's a common joke in our circles too :)

[saraescuderosole]

Watched a video of conservative christians vs progressive christians and asked God to show me what is right and what is wrong and a minute later this video pops up in my screen. I am truly amazed, inspired and grateful.

[mapelp]

Thank you Fr. Casey, for all your hard work in putting together another excellent presentation on key Church teachings, actions, documents and more. It should be clear to all of us that you are giving us precious capsules of what true Catholics must believe, do and share among other things. It is our responsibility to process them and get them to bloom within ourselves. Thee are no shortcuts in Catholic teachings, and you constantly remind us that we must always strive to aim high, for Jesus set the bar very high and said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
Nothing is impossible with God's help!

[gimgim]

father casey, can u make a simple do's and don'ts inside the church during mass? i think it would be nice. 😁

[HAHAHAradio]

As a seventh day adventist I love your videos. They've helped me a lot, keep up this great work & God Bless. ♡

[markwurtz]

If the King James Bible … - OK that was funny!

[Jozenchill]

Never be behind the Church, never be ahead of the Church. Always be with the Church.

[thehippiecatholic]

Truth is not always popular, but sometimes it is. Popularity or obscurity does not denote or discredit truth. This is such an important issue because so many Catholics believe that the Church is not a living institution and instead focus on preservation. While there’s gifts in this, if we only focus on preservation, we lose touch with our new world and new moral issues.
People are Catholic by their baptism, it’s something the Holy Spirit does, not something we merit for ourselves by our “virtue”.
The Church belongs to the Truth, the Truth doesn’t belong to the Church. Christ = Truth. We are His Church and the truth will still be true under scrutiny, that’s what makes it true.

[killianmiller]

It feels to me that much of the push to ordain women to the priesthood/diaconate finds its source in secular feminism instead of piety and obedience to the church and sacred scripture/tradition.

[kaitlynlightfoot]

So glad you're back, Father Casey! I've been sitting here and studying cognitive psychology for over three hours now, so the notification for this video was a well-needed break. 😂
I like to think of true doctrine as un-changing, but often revealed more fully as time goes on. As humans gain more complete knowledge and understanding of topics over time, the Church can do the same thing with her beliefs and teachings. Humans are not perfect and can often make mistakes about things though, which can sometimes be confused as doctrine. We have fundamental dogmas that have to be maintained and all belief has to be rooted in those. "Doctrine" can sometimes be confused with the prevailing cultural ideas of a given time (such as the case of slavery, capital punishment, etc). When in reality, those "doctrines" do not fit into the fundamental dogmas of Christ and His Church.

[anastylos]

You are always making such great videos. Neither conservative nor liberal, simply catholic.
I wonder if it is possible to add subtitles in other languages. There are many people who would like to help you make these videos available to a larger audience.

[alexander.frisch]

Amazing video ! Really learned a lot from you. Thanks and keep on the good work, it's really an original concept !

[bolivarpc]

this is such an amazing video! we as Church are still growing and learning!! greetings from Panama!

[newgeorge]

Very erudite: diplomatic, thoroughly researched and positive in every way

[jakubgrzeszkiewicz]

Father, what about tattoos? In the Book of Leviticus it was said: " Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves". Yet Pope Francis said that we shouldn't fear tattoos and the key is in moderation. Could you address that?

[PedroSouza-rsmi]

Hi! I'm from Brazil, I really like your videos and I have some friend that would love too, but they don't understand english. Could you enable to add subtitles?

[lawrencer.taveras]

Excellent! I pray that this video may be used to evangelize those who need to be lighted from their blindness. An Aggiornamiento is happening!

[justingraham]

The salient point of this Council is not, therefore, a discussion of one article or another of the fundamental doctrine of the Church which has repeatedly been taught by the Fathers and by ancient and modern theologians, and which is presumed to be well known and familiar to all.
For this a Council was not necessary. But from the renewed, serene, and tranquil adherence to all the teaching of the Church in its entirety and preciseness, as it still shines forth in the Acts of the Council of Trent and First Vatican Council, the Christian, Catholic, and apostolic spirit of the whole world expects a step forward toward a doctrinal penetration and a formation of consciousness in faithful and perfect conformity to the authentic doctrine, which, however, should be studied and expounded through the methods of research and through the literary forms of modern thought. The substance of the ancient doctrine of the deposit of faith is one thing, and the way in which it is presented is another. And it is the latter that must be taken into great consideration with patience if necessary, everything being measured in the forms and proportions of a magisterium which is predominantly pastoral in character. - Pope St John XXIII, Opening Speech at Vatican II
The Church before, during, and after Vatican II has never reversed any doctrine. It has presented the same doctrines in new articulations, but it has never made an about face. Usury has always been defined as loaning money which one knows cannot be repaid. This is still a sin. Religious liberty was defined at Vatican II as freedom from coercion. The Church has never supported forced conversions. As for slavery, the Church has always been a home to those enslaved in body, that their souls might be free.