Sankt Pölten (kath.net), October 18, 2014
“Not much is said in the media about the beatification of Paul VI, although along with John XXIII he is great Pope of the Council. He continued the Council and led most of its proceedings. He saw to its implementation and put into practice all the reforms encouraged by the Council. Why is everyone nevertheless so quiet about him?
“The main reason is surely the Encyclical Humanae vitae that he wrote, which was very controversial at the time. It is interesting that the beatification follow[ed] right after the conclusion of the Extraordinary Synod. Such things do not happen without a reason.
“The message of Paul VI may be inconvenient, but it contains a key question for our understanding of marriage and family, for the renewal of the Church and the development of society. Pope Paul VI was called ‘prophetic’ in his vision of the future of the demographic question. He foresaw how the widespread contraceptive mentality affects not only the number of children, but also people’s sexual behavior, with many consequences.
“Meanwhile many of the things that he warned about have come true, but not only that. There have also been positive developments. More and more people are discovering that natural methods of regulating conception [e.g. Natural Family Planning] enrich their marriage.
“And so there should be genuine rejoicing that Pope Francis ordered the Beatification of Pope Paul VI. The man deserves to be discovered by many more people.”
(Translated by Michael J. Miller)
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