154
this way of looking at others by his words and
his actions. So why cloud something so clear?
We should not be concerned simply about falling
into doctrinal error, but about remaining faithful
to this light-filled path of life and wisdom. For
âdefenders of orthodoxy are sometimes accused
of passivity, indulgence, or culpable complicity
regarding the intolerable situations of injustice
and the political regimes which prolong themâ.
161
195.âWhen Saint Paul approached the apostles
in Jerusalem to discern whether he was ârunning
or had run in vainâ (
Gal
2:2), the key criterion
of authenticity which they presented was that he
should not forget the poor
(cf.
Gal
2:10). This
important principle, namely that the Pauline
communities should not succumb to the self-cen-
tred lifestyle of the pagans, remains timely today,
when a new self-centred paganism is growing.
We may not always be able to reflect adequately
the beauty of the Gospel, but there is one sign
which we should never lack: the option for those
who are least, those whom society discards.
196.âSometimes we prove hard of heart and
mind; we are forgetful, distracted and carried
away by the limitless possibilities for consump-
tion and distraction offered by contemporary so-
ciety. This leads to a kind of alienation at every
161
âC
ongregation
for
the
D
octrine
of
the
F
aith
,
Instruction
Libertatis Nuntius
(6 August 1984), XI, 18: AAS 76
(1984), 907-908.
