In April of 1969 they issued the following clarification which deserves as much publicity as their first declaration, although it has received scarcely any publicity at all:
“We cannot close our minds to the reactions of a certain segment of the public, both within our communion and outside of it, which appear to have distorted in some degree our pastoral application of the encyclical Humane Vitae…
“In particular we feel that our teaching on freedom on conscience and the role of the magisterium has not always been accurately reflected. Consequently, we wish to reiterate our positive conviction that a Catholic is not free to form his conscience without consideration of the teaching of the magisterium, in this particular instance exercised by the Holy Father in an encyclical. It is false and dangerous to maintain that because this encyclical has not demanded the absolute assent of faith (n. 14), any Catholic may put it aside as if it had never appeared. On the contrary such teaching in some ways imposes a greater burden on the individual conscience.”
“The Catholic knows that he may not dissent from infallible teaching. In the presence of such teaching he can only seek to understand, to appreciate, to deepen his insights.”
“In the presence of other authoritative teaching, exercised either by the Holy Father or by the collectivity of the bishops, he must listen with respect, and with the firm conviction that his personal opinion, or even the opinion of a number of theologians, ranks very much below the level of such teaching. His attitude must be one of desire to assent, a respectful acceptance of truth which has upon it the seal of God’s Church.”
