Episode Transcript  

One

The Threat of the Telephone Effect

Have you ever played the telephone game? The way it works is that the first player whispers some phrase into the ear of the second player. Then the second player whispers it into the ear of the third player, and so on. Normally, by the time you get to the last player, say, the tenth or twelfth person down the line, the message has gotten so garbled through miscommunications along the way that it bears almost no resemblance at all to the original statement made by player one. And that’s just with a handful of people over a couple of minutes. Imagine if it were countless millions of people over two thousand years. In other words, how can we be sure that the teachings of Jesus haven’t been lost over the centuries?

Jesus seemed confident, though, that His Truth would be preserved. He said, “Heaven and earth will pass away – but my words will never pass away.” How did He know? What mechanism did He put in place to make sure His truth would come down to us, pure and un-distorted?

The answer is that He gave His Church a teaching office with His authority and with the power of infallibility. And that means we can be confident of knowing His truth, after all these years.

Two

What is Infallibility?

One time I was teaching about the Pope, and a woman said, “I heard the Pope was inflammable.” I said, “Well… yes, he probably would burn—but I think you meant infallible.” Big difference! Infallible means Christ won’t let him teach error in faith and morals. Inflammable… well, let’s hope we never find out.

Infallibility is a word that’s very often misunderstood. It does not mean that the Pope and the bishops will be perfect or sinless. Impeccability means a person will never sin. Jesus gave the Church’s teaching authority the gift of Infallibility. Infallibility means preservation from error when officially declaring the truth about faith and morals.

Let’s listen to how the Catechism puts it, “In order to preserve the Church in the purity of the faith handed on by the apostles, Christ, who is the Truth, willed to confer on her a share in His own infallibility. By a “supernatural sense of faith” the People of God, under the guidance of the Church’s living magisterium, “unfailingly adheres to this truth” (#889)

What does that mean? If means if you want to be sure you’re not making a mistake about the truth that Jesus revealed, you have to put yourself under the guidance of the Magisterium, the successor of Peters and the Apostles, the Pope and the Bishops united to Him when they speak definitively on a matter of faith and morals (See #890).

Now the Pope doesn’t always exercise his power of infallibility; sometimes he just gives his own personal opinions on current affairs or theological problems. But when he speaks authoritatively, as the Successor of Peter, and declares that something is part of what has been revealed by Christ, something that is true in all times and all places, then you can take it to the bank. Because the Pope is just telling you what Jesus Himself teaches.

Three

Preaching to All Peoples at All Times

Infallibility doesn’t mean the Church can only repeat Jesus’ exact words. It means the Church can explain His unchanging truth in new ways, applying it to new situations so that every generation can understand and live it.

For example, when the Church says the Eucharist involves “transubstantiation,” she’s not adding anything new to what Jesus said. She’s simply giving a precise word to express what Jesus meant when He said, “This is my Body… This is my Blood”—that the bread and wine truly become His Body and Blood. That’s exactly what “transubstantiation” means: a real change of substance.

When the Church began using the word “Trinity” to describe the Three Persons in One God, it was introducing a new word—not one found in the Bible or used in the earliest centuries. But the word itself simply made explicit what the New Testament reveals: that there is one God in three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

If the Church is going to preach the Gospel in new times and places, she has to use new words and new languages. But how can we be sure these new expressions faithfully reflect the timeless truth of Christ? Because Christ gave the Church the mission to preach the same, unchanging truths to a constantly changing world. And the gift of infallibility shows us that the Church can do that reliably.

Four

Responding to New Challenges

Not only does the Church have the mission of preaching the Gospel to new times and new places, but she also has the mission of responding to new objections and challenges.

For instance, in the fourth century, the Church had to respond to the challenge of Arianism, which claimed that Jesus wasn’t really God. No one in the Christian world had really ever made that claim before, so the Church had to carefully craft an argument based on Christ’s truth, showing that Arianism was false.

In the sixteenth century, the Church had to respond to the challenge of Lutheranism, which claimed that the way you lived had no relationship to whether or not you were heading towards Heaven. No one in the Church had really ever made that claim before, so the Church had to carefully craft an argument based on Christ’s truth, showing that Lutheranism was false. In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the Church has had to respond to the challenges of the sexual revolution, which claim that it’s okay to use contraception, or engage in homosexual acts, or pretend to change your gender.

Again, no one in the Christian world had really ever made these claims before, so the Church has had to carefully craft arguments based on Christ’s truth, showing why these false views of human sexuality were wrong. Christ knew His Church would face these challenges, and so He entrusted her with the gift of infallibility, enabling her to reliably defend the truth and refute any claims that contradict the Gospel.

Five

The Great Commission

Jesus’ last direction to His apostles was that they “go out to all the world, making disciples of all nations, and teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” 

The world is a big place, with a lot of languages, a lot of false ideas, and a long, long history. So do you want to hear one of the greatest miracles in history?  In two thousand years, the Church has never contradicted herself in any official teaching on faith or morals.

That’s absolutely astonishing. Across centuries, cultures, and countless languages, the Church continues to proclaim the same truth. And she can do so with confidence because Christ gave her the gift of infallibility through the pope and the bishops united with him. That’s why the Church can preach to the whole world, with clarity, authority, and confidence.

Suggested Resolutions:

Choose one resolution for today to help you grow closer to God, or create your own. Here are some ideas to inspire you. 

• In the gift of infallibility, we have a lot to appreciate. This week, take time to research and familiarize yourself with the teachings of the Church through the Catechism, such as its infallible papal teachings like the Immaculate Conception of Mary and her Assumption.

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