The impact on Nietzschean Christians in the light of Fiducia supplicans, by Pope Francis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46859/PUCRio.Acad.PqTeo.2595-9409.2026v9n17a10Keywords:
Nietzschean Christian, The Whale, Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis, Fiducia supplicansAbstract
This paper has the objective of identifying how Nietzschean Christians behave when confronted with truth and acceptance. Based on a qualitative-interpretative approach, I analyze The Whale, by the American playwright Samuel D. Hunter, by focusing on the character Elder Thomas and his relationship with the main character – Charlie – and Liz, his nurse-friend. For relevant purposes, this study unites theological, philosophical and theatre studies by highlighting a theme which Church and society always debated: same-sex couple marriage acceptance. As a theoretical background, this paper takes into consideration the concept of “dissimulation” by Friedrich Nietzsche jointly with the main idea (welcoming) of declaration Fiducia supplicans, by Pope Francis, to design the concept of “Nietzschean Christian” used to analyze the character Elder Thomas. Comparing the reasons of said declaration, I consider it as a continuation of the decrees taken by The Second Vatican Council, as to update the Church to the contemporary world and to approximate people thereto. As a result, when faced by truth and acceptance, a Nietzschean Christian gets extremely frustrated and shows their intolerant nature, being incapable of accepting the differences between people, only their own idea of being right before God.
References
ARMSTRONG, Chanda. Pope Francis’ Legacy of Inclusivity: The ‘Declaration Fiducia Supplicans’ and the African Catholic Church’s Opposition to Blessing Same-Sex Couples. Scientia-The International Journal on the Liberal Arts, v. 14, n. 2, p. 15-31, 2025. Disponível em: <https://scientia-sanbeda.org/index.php/scientia/article/view/200>. Acesso em: 29 jun. 2026.
BÉVIERRE, Claire, BOIDIN, Olivier; THONNAT, Elvire. La réponse de parents catholiques d’enfants homosexuels aux critiques de «Fiducia supplicans». La Crox. Paris, 1 fev. 2024. Disponível em: <https://www.la-croix.com/a-vif/la-reponse-de-parents-catholiques-d-enfants-homosexuels-aux-critiques-de-fiducia-supplicans-20240201>. Acesso em: 01 jul. 2026.
COUTINHO, Sérgio R. O que foi o Concílio Vaticano II? Café História, Brasília, 11 abr. 2022. Disponível em: <https://www.cafehistoria.com.br/o-que-foi-o-concilio-vaticano-ii/>. Acesso em: 10 mar. 2025.
DENZIN, Norman K.; LINCOLN, Yvonna Sessions. (Orgs.). O planejamento da pesquisa qualitativa: teorias e abordagens. Porto Alegre: ARTMED, 2006.
ELIAV-FELDON, Miriam. Introduction. In: ELIAV-FELDON, Miriam; HERZIG, Tamar. (Orgs.). Dissimulation and deceit in early modern Europe. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. p. 1-8.
EMEFU, CSSP, Chimaobi Clement. The Reception of Fiducia Supplicans as Indicative of the Paths of Synodality. Spiritan Horizons, v. 21, n. 21, p. 109-124, 2025. Disponível em: <https://dsc.duq.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1438&context=spiritan-horizons>. Acesso em: 02 jul. 2026.
FERNÁNDEZ, Víctor Manuel Card.; MATTEO, Mons. Armando. Press release concerning the reception of Fiducia supplicans. Disponível em: https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_ddf_doc_20240104_comunicato-fiducia-supplicans_en.html. Acesso em: 5 jul. 2026.
FRANCISCO, PP. General Audience of 13 December 2023 - Catechesis. The passion for evangelization: the apostolic zeal of the believer. 30. Ephphatha, Church, be open! Disponível em: <https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2023/documents/20231213-udienza-generale.html>. Acesso em: 14 mar. 2025.
FRANCISCO, PP. Declaration Fiducia Supplicans on the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings. Disponível em: <https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_ddf_doc_20231218_fiducia-supplicans_en.html>. Acesso em: 10 mar. 2025.
HUNTER, Samuel D. The Whale. Denver: Denver Center Theatre Company, 2012.
IBRAHIM, Areeg. Literature of the converts in early modern Spain: nationalism and religious dissimulation of minorities. Comparative literature studies, v. 45, n. 2, p. 210-227, 2008. Disponível em: <https://www.jstor.org/stable/25659650>. Acesso em: 14 mar. 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/25659650
KATIANDA, Samuel Tesa. “Why do You Submit to Regulations?”: Insights from Nietzsche for Being an Authentic Christian. Indonesian Journal of Theology, v. 13, n. 1, p. 111-130, 2025. Disponível em: <https://www.indotheologyjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/599>. Acesso em: 02 jul. 2026.
LECAROS, Véronique; CAMERE, Carlos Piccone. «Fiducia supplicans» y la homosexualidad: entre la doctrina perenne y una pastoral renovada. Reflexiones a partir del caso peruano. Estudios Eclesiásticos. Revista de investigación e información teológica y canónica, v. 100, n. 392, p. 117-155, 2025. Disponível em: <https://revistas.comillas.edu/index.php/estudioseclesiasticos/article/view/21867>. Acesso em: 19 abr. 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14422/ee.v100.i392.y2025.004
LUTHER, Martin. On Christian Liberty. Trans. W. A. Lambert. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003.
NIETZSCHE, Friedrich. On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense (1873). In: PEARSON, Keith Ansell; LARGE, Duncan. (Eds.). The Nietzsche Reader. Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2006.
NIETZSCHE, Friederich. Beyond Good and Evil: prelude to a philosophy of the future. Ed. Karl Ameriks and Desmond M. Clarke. Trans. Judith Norman. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
NIETZSCHE, Friederich. On the Genealogy of Morality. Ed. Keith Ansell-Pearson. Trans. Carol Diethe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
PERRIER, Emmanuel. Fiducia supplicans face au sens de la foi. Revue Thomiste. Toulouse, 22 jan. 2024. Disponível em: <https://revuethomiste.fr/contenu-editorial/chroniques/lumieres-et-grains-de-sel/fiducia-supplicans-face-au-sens-de-la-foi>. Acesso em: 30 jun. 2026.
SNYDER, Jon R. Dissimulation and the Culture of Secrecy in Early Modern Europe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
