There's a priest on Twitter saying Pope Francis's teaching that the DP is inadmissible in all cases somehow isn't authoritative. This is patently false. Its authority can be established from the repeated, insistent calls from JP II, Benedict XVI, and himself to abolish it. 1/

Some of these may be found at https://www.usccb.org/resources/statements-holy-father-and-vatican, including JP II's Christmas Day 1998 message in which he said: "May Christmas help to strengthen and renew, throughout the world, the consensus concerning the need for urgent and adequate measures ... to end the DP." 2/

That is part of his ordinary magisterium. There are many others, e.g., Benedict XVI: "I express my hope that your deliberations will encourage the political and legislative initiatives being promoted in a growing number of countries to eliminate the death penalty" (11/30/11). 3/

These unambigious, repeated calls, made in statements, messages, and even sermons, were indisputably made in their official capacity as Roman Pontiff, are in no way "personal opinions." Casting doubt on this obvious fact is politics, plain and simple. 4/

More immediately, Francis first formally taught that it is never acceptable in an address at the Vatican on October 11, 2017: https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2017/october/documents/papa-francesco_20171011_convegno-nuova-evangelizzazione.html. Those who study theology will be familiar with several papal addresses and allocutions of this sort that are now in Denzinger. 5/

The recent CDF document on euthanasia, for example, contains numerous doctrinal references to allocutions given by Pius XII, which are still being cited as authoritative and foundational on the subject. 6/

Furthermore, the change to the Catechism was accompanied by a letter to all the bishops of the world from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2018/08/02/180802b.html. Approved by Francis, this is the same sort of document as the aforementioned one on euthanasia. 7/

Documents of the CDF that have been approved by the pope are by definition part of that pope's ordinary magisterium; indeed, a rather important part. 8/

The priest in question was correct to observe that the mere fact of being in the Catechism does not lend a statement any additional authority. While this may seem counter-intuitive, it was explicitly stated by the two main authors of the CCC, Cardinals Ratzinger & Schönborn. 9/

However, the act of making a single, specific change to the Catechism is unprecedented. Without saying it adds to its formal authority, I will say that it clearly manifests the mind of the Supreme Pontiff on the teaching's importance and timeliness. 10/

In any case, the authority by the revised section is: 1) the popes' repeated calls to abolish the DP; 2) the CDF letter to all bishops; and 3) the pope's own October 2017 address. It can safely be concluded that this is manifestly a teaching of the ordinary Roman magisterium. 11/

Such teachings, according to Lumen Gentium 25, call for the "religious assent (obsequium) of intellect and will." They are not definitive dogmas, which require a solemn definition, which we have not seen since the bodily assumption of Mary in 1950. 12/

Those who reject such papal teachings may, in some cases, do so in good conscience (though that is not automatically so!). In the past, such people were said to "dissent" from doctrine or to be "dissenters." Such terminology is appropriate for Catholics who support the DP. 13/

There are no canonical penalties associated with this, so no one is going to be excommunicated for defying it. Several dissenting bishops, however, were removed from the episcopacy by JP II and Benedict, which is their right as Bishop of Rome. 14/

There is an unfortunate tendancy among many Catholics today to say "If it's not a dogma, then it's just an opinion." From the point of view of Catholic theology, that is just grossly mistaken. There are many layers of authority, none of which is "just an opinion." 15/

To conclude, if you want to be fully committed and faithful to the Catholic Church's pro-life and social doctrines, you MUST oppose the death penalty in all cases. If you don't, fine, you do you, son (or Father), but don't kid yourself about your pious "orthodoxy." 16/16