Papal Infallibility Explained

Since are new Pope, Pope Francis I was just recently elected, i thought it appropriate to talk about Papal Infallibility. The Catholic teaching of papal infallibility is a teaching that is generally misunderstood by those outside the church. People outside of the church misunderstand the word infallible and think more along the lines of sinless. They think that Catholics believe that the pope cannot sin. Others that do not understand the true meaning of papal infallibility think that the pope uses some sort of magical incantation when his infallibility is due. Since there are so many who believe these common misconceptions, lets define what infallibility is not. It is not the absence of sin and it does not only pertain to the pope but also pertains to the whole Church when they are in union with the pope teaching a true doctrine. Before Christ ascended into Heaven, he commanded the Apostles to go and preach everything he taught them. He promised them that the Holy Spirit would be there with them always to guide them in the truth. Although there will be individual Catholics who will stray away from Christ’s teachings, the Church will not. Whether an infallible pronouncement is made by the pope himself or by the ecumenical council is usually only made when a doctrine has been called into question. Although this happens, the large majority of all Catholics have never doubted most doctrines.  Some people ask how popes and the teaching authority of the Church can be infallible if some have lived immoral lives. This shows there misunderstanding of the term infallibility. There is no guarantee that a pope will not sin or live not according to God. Other people say that papal infallibility cannot exist since some popes disagreed with others. A pope’ s private theological opinions are not infallible, only his teachings that he defines are considered to be infallible. Infallibility prevents a pope from solemnly teaching as truth, something that is actually false.