The cardinals explained in a “Notification to Christ’s Faithful” dated Oct. 2 that they decided to submit the dubia “in view of various declarations of highly placed prelates” made in relation to the upcoming synod that have been “openly contrary to the constant doctrine and discipline of the Church.”

Those declarations, they said, “have generated and continue to generate great confusion and the falling into error among the faithful and other persons of goodwill, have manifested our deepest concern to the Roman pontiff.”

The initiative, the cardinals added, was taken in line with canon 212 § 3, which states it is a duty of all the faithful “to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church.”

[The more conservative cardinals have tried to bring these issues to a head in earlier Dubia too, which Pentin mentions. The lack of effective resolution may be an attempt by Pope Francis to let the synod deal with these issues, but that’s part of the problem. The main task of a pontiff is to safeguard the “deposit of faith,” ie, the Magisterium — all of the doctrine and the teachings that support it. These cardinals are very worried that a lack of discipline will lead to heresies old and new erupting in the Church. Maybe Pope Francis thinks the synod will do better in resisting heresies, but that’s a very passive approach to his duties. — Ed]