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I called attention previously to Cardinal Raymond Burke's assertion that Evangelii Gaudium was not really an exercise of the papal teaching office, or magisterium.
A friend called my attention to this interview in which Bishop Robert Morlino makes the same point at about 12:00.
But, here is what Evangelii gaudium says:
16. I was happy to take up the request of the Fathers of the Synod to write this Exhortation.[19] In so doing, I am reaping the rich fruits of the Synod’s labours. In addition, I have sought advice from a number of people and I intend to express my own concerns about this particular chapter of the Church’s work of evangelization. Countless issues involving evangelization today might be discussed here, but I have chosen not to explore these many questions which call for further reflection and study. Nor do I believe that the papal magisterium should be expected to offer a definitive or complete word on every question which affects the Church and the world. It is not advisable for the Pope to take the place of local Bishops in the discernment of every issue which arises in their territory. In this sense, I am conscious of the need to promote a sound “decentralization”.
The sentence that begins "Nor do I believe that the papal magisterium...." would seem to suggest that Pope Francis understood Evagelii gaudium to be an exercise of the papal magisterium, no? I await a clarification from Cardinal Burke and Bishop Morlino. Me thinks that among their many tasks, deciding what is, or is not, official papal teaching is not one of their tasks.
