Prefect clarifies “always inappropriate” in Mater Populi Fidelis applies only to liturgy and magisterium from now on; private use remains licit.
Newsroom (27/11/2025 Gaudium Press ) Three weeks after the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) published the doctrinal note Mater Populi Fidelis, which declared the Marian title “Co-redemptrix” to be “always inappropriate,” Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the DDF, has offered a significant clarification: the prohibition is limited to official Church documents and liturgy going forward and does not extend to private devotion or informed theological discussion.
Speaking to journalists after Tuesday’s press conference presenting the new DDF note Una Caro on monogamy, Cardinal Fernández addressed the controversy surrounding paragraph 22 of Mater Populi Fidelis. The paragraph states that, given the need to safeguard Christ’s unique mediation, “it is always inappropriate to use the title ‘Co-redemptrix’ to define Mary’s cooperation.”
In an exclusive exchange, the Cardinal explained that the adverb “always” (Spanish: siempre) does not constitute a retrospective judgment on past papal, saintly, or magisterial usage of the title. Rather, it signals a definitive decision for the future.
“From now on, certainly,” he said. “It isn’t meant to judge the past at all. It means ‘from now on.’ And moreover, it means above all that this expression will not be used either in the liturgy, that is, in liturgical texts, or in the official documents of the Holy See.”
The Cardinal traced the decision to decades of study initiated under Pope John Paul II, who personally asked then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger to examine the theological suitability of the title. After receiving Ratzinger’s analysis, John Paul II ceased using “Co-redemptrix” in his own teaching, while continuing to affirm Mary’s “unique cooperation” in redemption—language the new note adopts repeatedly.
“We use this phrase—the ‘unique cooperation of Mary in the work of redemption’—I believe 200 times in the document,” Cardinal Fernández stated, emphasizing that Mater Populi Fidelis preserves the doctrinal substance traditionally associated with the contested title while retiring the term itself to avoid pastoral confusion in the contemporary context.
He explicitly affirmed the freedom of the faithful to continue using “Co-redemptrix” in private prayer and discussion, provided they grasp its properly subordinate meaning:
“If you, together with your group of friends, believe you understand well the true meaning of this expression, have read the document, and see that its positive aspects are also affirmed there, and you wish to express precisely that within your prayer group or among friends, you may use the title—but it will not be used officially.”
Asked whether Mariologists were consulted in drafting Mater Populi Fidelis, the Cardinal replied: “Yes, many, many, as well as theologians who specialize in Christology.”
The full exchange follows:
Mater Populi Fidelis n. 22 (excerpt): “Given the necessity of explaining Mary’s subordinate role to Christ in the work of Redemption, it is always inappropriate to use the title ‘Co-redemptrix’ to define Mary’s cooperation… When an expression requires many, repeated explanations to prevent it from straying from a correct meaning, it does not serve the faith of the People of God and becomes unhelpful.”
Diane Montagna: Your Eminence, Mater Populi Fidelis no. 22 says, in the Spanish original, that it is “siempre inoportuno” to use the title “Co-redemptrix”… Meanwhile, the English text originally said “it would be inappropriate” but was then changed to “it is always inappropriate”…
Cardinal Fernández: The translator did a softer translation but then he said to us, “Look, I’m not sure about this,” and then it was changed.
Montagna: But why did you use the word “always” [siempre], especially as the saints, doctors of the Church and popes have used the title…?
Cardinal Fernández: That in this moment, after these thirty years of study by the dicastery… Pope John Paul II himself asked Ratzinger to study the issue… After that study… he didn’t use it anymore. But he conserved the positive aspects… We use this phrase—the “unique cooperation of Mary in the work of redemption”—I believe 200 times in the document…
Montagna: Yes, but why did you use the term “always”? Does this refer to the past…?
Cardinal Fernández: No, no, no. It refers to this moment… What we believe is that, in the substance behind that word, there are elements that can be accepted and continue to be upheld.
Montagna: So, does “always” mean “from now on”?
Cardinal Fernández: From now on, certainly. It isn’t meant to judge the past at all… And moreover, it means above all that this expression will not be used either in the liturgy… or in the official documents of the Holy See… If one wishes to express Mary’s unique cooperation in the Redemption, it would be expressed in other ways, but not with this expression, not even in official documents… If you, together with your group of friends… wish to express precisely that within your prayer group or among friends, you may use the title—but it will not be used officially.
Montagna: Thank you very much. Just one final question, did you consult any Mariologists for Mater Populi Fidelis?
Cardinal Fernández: Yes, many, many, as well as theologians who specialize in Christology.
The Cardinal’s clarification brings a measure of resolution to a debate that has simmered since the note’s publication on 4 November, while leaving open the broader theological discussion about the precise nature and articulation of Mary’s cooperation in the work of redemption.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Diane Montagna substack
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