Clip of Pope saying Scotch whisky is 'the real holy water' censored by Vatican

Correct. The pope is infallible when speaking Ex Cathedra, or from the Seat of Peter. The pope also wasn’t always considered to be able to “speak infallibly”; that was codified just over a hundred years ago.

It’s been used a grand total of twice: once to declare the Immaculate Conception, and once to codify Mary’s Assumption into heaven. Far more common in history are the councils of bishops, which are also infallible. The Famous Vatican and Vatican 2 conferences from the 1900s are the most recent examples, but those date back to the 2nd and 3rd century.

Everything else that comes from the pope, including encyclicals (papal writings that inform a huge piece of what Catholics believe) is considered no more “truth” than anything said by others in the church.

/r/nottheonion Thread Parent Link - thenational.scot