Journeying in Love: Pope Francis' Moral Theology (Pope Francis' Theology)

The Pope is first of all the pastor of the Church and sign of its unity. He can be a theologian professionally, or he cannot be, as it has happened for the majority of popes. ln both cases, in his teaching as well as in the choices he makes or in the orientations he offers, his teaching and his style are imbued with a theological perspective and ask theologians to confront with them. The collection "Pope Francis' Theology," calling upon the expertise of eleven theologians from various Countries of the world, aims at showing us what theology is at the base of such incisive words and such simple gestures with which Pope Francis has made us so familiar. They are eleven easy volumes, written in a captivating way yet able to show in a rigorous way the deep roots of his thought and action. Journeying in Love aims to answer the many questions that concern the Christian lifestyle that is proposed and emerges from the behaviour and theological reflection of the Pope. His way of inhabiting the Church and the world that transpires from his gestures and words are an expression of a style of life and not a mere doctrinal teaching. In fact, Fumagalli's analysis shows the strong bond between Pope Francis and the Gospel and its centrality within a message of which he is a bearer. The value of the moral theology of his pontificate transpires from the most relevant texts of his magisterium. The study proposed is dedicated, in the first part, to its ethical teaching of a fundamental nature and, in the second part, to that which more specifically concerns the world of affectivity. The intent is to highlight the lymph that animates the teaching of the Pope. For this reason the reflections focus on Christian love, the vital essence of moral theology, and on its conjugal declension, as a fruitful nucleus of family morality. CONTENTS Abbreviations...........................................................................4 Preface to the series................................................................5 Introductory Notes...............................................................n 1. A theological style........................................................11 2. A theology of the Gospel.............................................14 J. A theology of the people of God.................................16 Chapter i Christian Love...................................................................19 1. The source of love.........................................................21 2. The experience of love.................................................29 3. Love as communion and mission............................38 Chapter 2 Conjugal Love....................................................................51 1. The truth of love..........................................................53 2. The vitality of love.....................................................70 3. The vulnerability of love............................................86 Chapter 3 Concluding summary......................................................95 1. The interpretation of Christian morality..............96 2. Appraisal of moral action.......................................100 3. Communicating moral theology............................102 Journeying in Love 1 JOURNEYING IN LOVE 2 SERIES 4 ABBREVIATIONS 5 CONTENTS 10