Vatican, 24 November, 2022 / 7:40 pm (ACI Africa).
Pope Francis on Thursday distinguished between how catechists and theologians interact with Church teaching.
A theologian, he said, has a vocation to go beyond existing doctrine, because “he is trying to make theology more explicit.”
While a catechist, when instructing children and adults in the faith, “must give the correct doctrine, solid doctrine.”
Pope Francis’ comments on the role of the theologian and the catechist were made in a meeting with the prestigious International Theological Commission (ITC) at the Vatican Nov. 24.
The International Theological Commission exists under and to advise the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. Members are appointed by the pope for five-year terms, during which time particular theological questions are studied and the results published.