Roman Catholic Blog

Semantic Semetic Silliness.....

The Jerusalem Post Internet Edition

40,000 join pope at Nazareth mass

May. 14, 2009
jpost.com and AP , THE JERUSALEM POST

An estimated 40,000 people greeted Pope Benedict XVI on Mount Precipice in Nazareth before he presided over a mass on Thursday morning.

Many of those who gathered in the city, where tradition holds that Jesus grew up, swayed back and forth to Arabic music played over loudspeakers, clapping in unison and waving yellow and white Vatican flags. A yellow and white banner hanging over a stone wall read "Pope, Don't Forget."

As the music subsided, the crowd began the familiar chants in Italian of "Benedetto" and "Viva il Papa."

In his address, the pope called on the city's Christians and Muslims to bridge the gaps between their communities.

"Nazareth has experienced tensions in recent years which have harmed relations between its Christian and Muslim communities," he said. "I urge people of good will in both communities to repair the damage that has been done, and in fidelity to our common belief in one God, the father of the human family, to work to build bridges and find the way to a peaceful coexistence."

"Let everyone reject the destructive power of hatred and prejudice, which kills men's souls before it kills their bodies," implored the pontiff.

The pope arrived on Mount Precipice, where Christian tradition says a mob tried to throw Jesus off a cliff, in his white popemobile and spoke from a specially constructed amphitheater - the biggest in Israel.

Earlier, the archbishop of Galilee for the Greek Melkite Church, Elias Chacour, welcomed the pope with a plea for his prayers and "moral and spiritual support" to stem the exodus of Christians from the Holy Land.

He said the flight of Christians "fills me with pain" and that the future is not encouraging.

After the Mount Precipice mass, the pope headed to the Basilica of the Annunciation to worship and for talks with local religious leaders.

___________________________

I post this article not just to highlight the positive reception the Pope is getting in the Holy Land (despite press reports to the contrary), but also to illustrate the absolute silliness of how some in the Israeli press are treating the Holy Father. I will call your attention to three items:

1.) Not capitalizing "Pope" in the title, perhaps this is a typo - perhaps its purposeful - if L'Osservatore Romano made such a mistake say with the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem, spelling it chief rabbi - we would all be reminded as to what "gift of the gab' meant.

2.) Not capitalizing "Mass" in the title, perhaps this is a typo - perhaps its purposeful - two typos in the same title?

3.) Most seriously a diminuition of the historic person of Jesus where it describes Nazareth as "where tradition holds that Jesus grew up."

Nonetheless, I hope this type of Silliness won't impugn the impact of the Holy Father's visit.

Pope Benedict XVI Reaffirms That The Catholic Church Is The One, True Church; Changes The Good Friday Prayer

Here's the link: Pope: Other denominations not true churches

Quote:

Pope Benedict XVI has reasserted the universal primacy of the Roman Catholic Church, approving a document released Tuesday that says Orthodox churches were defective and that other Christian denominations were not true churches.

Benedict approved a document from his old offices at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that restates church teaching on relations with other Christians. It was the second time in a week the pope has corrected what he says are erroneous interpretations of the Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that modernized the Church.

Here's the link: Pope mandates change in traditional Good Friday prayer

Quote:

The new version, published in L'Osservatore Romano, reads:

Oremus et pro Iudaeis. Ut Deus et Dominus noster illuminet corda eorum, ut agnoscant Iesum Christum salvatorem omnium hominum.

Oremus.

Flectamus genua.

Levate.

Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui vis ut omnes homines salvi fiant et ad agnitionem veritatis veniant, concede propitius, ut plenitudine gentium in Ecclesiam Tuam intrante omnis Israel salvus fiat. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

This prayer would be used only in the Latin language, in the extraordinary form of the Latin liturgy. However it could be translated:

Let us also pray for the Jews: that God our Lord might enlighten their hearts, so that they might know Jesus Christ as the Savior of all mankind.

Let us pray.

Let us bend our knees (kneel).

Please rise.

Almighty and eternal God, whose desire it is that all men might be saved and come to the knowledge of truth, grant in your mercy that as the fullness of mankind enters into your Church, all Israel may be saved, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Abe Foxman's take: Prayer for Conversion of Jews Remains Troubling Despite Vatican Changes

I'm pleased with the position taken by The Remnant: A Papal Masterstroke

My thoughts:

I like the new prayer even better. It once again affirms the Catholic teaching that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.

Any thoughts?

Vatican Document On Evangelization Expected Soon

Here's the story: New Vatican statement to address central doctrinal dispute

Here is a quote:

The Vatican will release a new document on evangelization next week, with officials in Rome indicating that it will be an important statement on the duty to spread the Catholic faith.

The subject of the new document, which is being released under the auspices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, is evangelization. The document will be released on December 14.

The importance that the Vatican attaches to the subject is reflected by the list of ranking officials who will participate in a news conference introducing the document. Three cardinals will join in presenting the subject to the press. And because the three cardinals head three separate Vatican congregations, it is clear that the document is the product of careful preparation involving several dicasteries.

Cardinal William Levada, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, will chair the December 14 presentation, assisted by Archbishop Angelo Amato, the secretary of the Congregation. They will be joined by Cardinals Ivan Dias and Francis Arinze: the prefects of the Congregation for Evangelization and Congregation for Divine Worship, respectively.

While Vatican officials have not announced a title for the document, or given a topic more specific than the broad theme of evangelization, informed officials suggested that this important new statement would address a lingering controversy over the claim that the Catholic Church is the one true Church of Christ.

This is a big deal.

Here's more:

In July of this year, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith released, a document entitled "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine on the Church", reaffirming the central role of Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church in the plan of salvation. That document, released without fanfare, revived a controversy that had been ignited in 2000 by Dominus Iesus, a powerful statement released by the same Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (headed at that time by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger), which affirmed the traditional Catholic teaching that the Christ and his Church provide the only means of salvation.

The new Vatican document is expected to carry the argument of Dominus Iesus a step further, explaining that because of the unique role played by the Church in the plan of redemption, Catholics have an obligation to spread the faith, thus offering others the best means of attaining salvation.

This will help in three ways:

1) It will clear up yet another difficulty in relations between the Catholic Church and the Society of St. Pius X.

2) It will make clear that so-called progressives who have denied or watered down the notion the need for conversion to the Catholic Faith and/or snubbed the articulation of the truth that the Catholic Church is the One, True, Church of Christ as an expression of "triumphalism" have been in error.

3) Most importantly, it will restate and clarify authentic Catholic doctrine, thereby instructing the faithful on what it means to be Catholic and what is required of believing Catholics.

It's actually a very exciting document, and one of the most important things the Holy See has done in a long time.

I suspect this document will be controversial and, because it expresses the truth that the Catholic Faith possesses the fullness of revealed truth and is the perfection of divine revelation and that other religions possess truth only in so far as they agree with the Catholic Faith, Pope Benedict XVI will be criticized even more than Ann Coulter when she said that Christianity is the perfection of Judaism.

Any thoughts?

Pro-Abortion Liberal, Alan Colmes, Is Offended By Christians Who Believe That Christianity Is The Truth

It's always interesting to hear a lecture on authentic Christianity from people who support legal, elective abortion and claim that choosing abortion is a fundamental human right.

Alan Colmes' statements here are an example of the slippery slope created by the dictatorship of relativism and religious indifferentism.

Mr. Colmes also quoted the New Testament out of context and even added some of his own words to the words of Christ (when he said, "not the rude and arrogant") during his failed attempt to embarrass Ann Coulter.

Here's the actual text Alan Colmes referenced:

"Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them. For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:17-20)

I wonder what Alan Colmes would think of the Gospel texts quoted after the jump?

The Latest Lame Excuse For Liberals To Be Angry With Ann Coulter

Ann Coulter said Jews need to be perfected by becoming Christians. Of course, this sent the liberals over at MediaMatters into frothy lather and they very likely almost fell over themselves in their frenzy to put up video and denounce Ann.

News flash: Christians are supposed to believe all people ideally should be Christians.

Why is it now wrong to say that Christians believe their religion is the truth and that religions which oppose and/or contradict Christianity are not true, or at best, as Ann put it: less perfect?

Religious indifferentism is an error. This Catholic Encyclopedia article explains why: Religious Indifferentism

Here's the story: Columnist Ann Coulter Shocks Cable TV Show, Declaring 'Jews Need to Be Perfected by Becoming Christians'

Any thoughts?

Vatican: Pope's Refusal To Meet Rice Not A Snub

The Vatican has clarified erroneous media reports that the Holy Father's decision to abstain from meeting with Condoleezza Rice was not a snub and not intended to be interpreted as a reflection of the views of the Holy See pertaining to U.S. policy in the Middle East.

Here's the story: Vatican: Pope's refusal to meet Rice should not be seen as snub

Here's a quote:

Pope Benedict XVI declined to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during his August vacation, but Vatican officials said it should not be interpreted as a diplomatic snub.

"The only reason she wasn't received was that she came during a period when the pope doesn't receive anyone. It was a purely technical question of protocol," an informed Vatican source told Catholic News Service Sept. 20.

The source said it was "absolutely not" the Vatican's intention to rebuff Rice or signal disagreement with U.S. policy on the Middle East.

Rice was about to travel to the Middle East for diplomatic talks in early August when the request for a papal meeting was made. The pope was vacationing at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, outside Rome.

Even as it declined the request, the source said, the Vatican made it clear that top officials of the Vatican's Secretariat of State would be happy to meet with Rice at any time.

"So clearly there was no intent to send a negative signal," the source said.

Rice instead ended up speaking by telephone with Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, while he was visiting the United States in August.

Cardinal Bertone later praised Rice's mediating attempts, saying, "I recognize the untiring efforts of the secretary of state in reconciliation among the governments of the Middle East."

Any thoughts?

Jesus Was Not A Liberal

Casting Out The Money Changers by Carl Heinrich Bloch (May 23, 1834 – February 22, 1890)

I have noticed that, from time to time, liberals attempt to claim that Jesus was a liberal.  I think the claim stems from the notion that Jesus was "anti-establishment" (which isn't entirely true), that Jesus preached about forgiveness and encouraged leniency (primarily because of the severity of the punishments meted out during His public ministry, not because He didn't believe in punishment; he mentioned the reality of the threat of hell far more often than He spoke of heaven), His concern for the poor, and His teaching that we would be judged on whether or not we practiced the corporal works of mercy (To feed the hungry; To give drink to the thirsty; To clothe the naked; To shelter the homeless; To visit the sick; To visit the imprisoned; To bury the dead).

The Catholic Encyclopedia says the following in its article on the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy:

The KGB's Assault On The Holy See

The Myth of Hitler's Pope is just one of many ways in which the KGB sought to discredit the Holy See, according to a new and excellent article from the National Review Online. The article has far-reaching implications, and actually connects a lot of dots.

Here is the article: Moscow’s Assault on the Vatican

Here is the opening section of the article:

The Soviet Union was never comfortable living in the same world with the Vatican. The most recent disclosures document that the Kremlin was prepared to go to any lengths to counter the Catholic Church’s strong anti-Communism.

In March 2006 an Italian parliamentary commission concluded “beyond any reasonable doubt that the leaders of the Soviet Union took the initiative to eliminate the pope Karol Wojtyla,” in retaliation for his support to the dissident Solidarity movement in Poland. In January 2007, when documents disclosed that the newly appointed archbishop of Warsaw, Stanislaw Wielgus, had collaborated with Poland’s Communist-era political police, he admitted the accusation and resigned. The following day the rector of Krakow’s Wawel Cathedral, the burial site of Polish kings and queens, resigned for the same reason. Then it was learned that Michal Jagosz, a member of the Vatican’s tribunal considering sainthood for the late Pope John Paul II, has been accused of being a former Communist secret police agent; according to the Polish media, he had been recruited in 1984 before leaving Poland for an assignment to the Vatican. Currently, a book is about to be published that will identify 39 other priests whose names have been found in Krakow secret police files, some of whom are now bishops. Moreover, this seems to be just scratching the surface. A special commission will soon start investigating the past of all religious servants during the Communist era, as thousands more Catholic priests throughout that country are believed to have collaborated with the secret police. And this is just Poland — the archives of the KGB and those of the political police in the rest of the former Soviet bloc have yet to be opened on the subject of operations against the Vatican.

Catholic News Agency has this article on the same topic: KGB intent on linking Pius XII with Nazis, says former spy

Please take the time to read this article and share your thoughts and insights.

You may also be interested in this article: How Pius XII Protected Jews

Traditionalist Catholics & Antisemitism

The Southern Poverty Law Center has put out an "intelligence report" suggesting that Traditionalist Catholics are often antisemitic. The article mentions Mel Gibson as an example, but goes on to make generalizations about Traditionalist Catholics that are not flattering. The overall tone of the article is that Traditionalist Catholics are a growing threat and people should sit up and take notice.

Here is the article: The 'Synagogue of Satan'

One of the most interesting things the article mentions is the idea that the Antichrist will be Jewish.

The Greek and Latin Fathers of the Church were of the opinion that a personal Antichrist will come just before the end of the world and be accepted by the Jews as the Messiah and enthroned in the temple at Jerusalem.

One of the reasons the Church Fathers believed this is this verse from the Gospel of St. John:

I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. (John 5:43)

An excellent exposition of the Church's understanding of the Antichrist can be found in the Catholic Encyclopedia: Antichrist

Catholic Answers provides these articles about the Antichrist:

The Antichrist by Jimmy Akin
The Antichrist (Church Fathers)
The Antichrist (Fathers Know Best)

Antisemitism is sinful, and it cannot be condoned, and there do appear to be elements within Traditionalist Catholic circles whose statements about the Jewish people in general are, at best, politically incorrect (and perhaps imprudent), and at worst, antisemitic.

It seems to me that the best way to view anyone not of the Catholic faith is as a potential Catholic. The last thing you want to do when explaining the Catholic Faith to people is to antagonize them.

I would never encourage altering the Catholic Faith so as to make it appealing to anyone. We should never give people the false impression that one can be a good Catholic, but differ from Church teaching on matters of faith and morals – and a lot of people do need to hear what the Church teaches (and why) when it comes to faith and morals – especially in terms of sexual morality or the gospel of life. However, at the same time, I would say that Catholics should definitely make an effort to use prudence when presenting elements of the faith that are controversial or could be easily misunderstood. Jesus did not reveal his Divine Nature to the Apostles and lay out the doctrine of the Holy Trinity all at one time and in the early stages of His ministry to them. He revealed Himself and the Three Persons of the Blessed Trinity gradually.

I can't tell you how many times I have cringed inside when hearing a Catholic "explain" Catholic teaching on any number of issues and inadvertently mangle the authentic teaching or illustrate the teaching in a way that is actually heretical. Evidently, lots of Catholics think that Sunday Mass attendance or what they understand to be a general knowledge of the Faith makes them qualified to teach the Faith. This often amounts to what they have imbibed over their years as a Catholic, and/or is dependent upon the competency with which their own catechetical instruction was carried out – and as many people know – Catholic catechesis in the United States has generally been abysmal over the last 40 years or so.

Any well catechized Catholic who has ever sought to teach the Catholic Faith, especially in an academic setting, where grades are involved, can tell you that there is often a sense among the students that catechism is a waste of time, that "we already know this stuff" (and they really, really don't), and my personal favorite (heard from parents and students): you can't give a grade in religion class, because there are no right or wrong answers (cringe) or because you can't grade someone's relationship with God (a depressingly silly perspective rooted in the error that religion is entirely subjective). Lots of people who are not qualified to teach the Catholic Faith believe they are qualified and attempt to do so, and lots of people who believe they already understand the Catholic Faith (but don't) are frequently their pupils.

I can't tell you how many times people have tried to explain the Catholic Faith to me (especially in relation to the Second Vatican Council) who completely misunderstood Church teaching.

Explanations of the Catholic doctrine of The Blessed Trinity, the Hypostatic Union, the Immaculate Conception, and other teachings about The Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as about Catholic teaching on moral issues can easily become mired in error if not given by someone with a solid grasp of Catholic doctrine. Subjects like the Catholic doctrine that there is no salvation outside the Church, or of predestination can lead to confusion and hinder people from embracing Catholic teaching if they are not explained properly.

I would put Catholic teaching about the Antichrist in a similar category. Although I am personally fascinated by it and have read a few books on the subject, it seems to me that one isn't likely to convert many Jewish people to the Catholic faith by saying terrible things about Jews and then launching into a dissertation on how the Jews are destined to follow the Antichrist.

Part of the problem comes from lumping all the Jews into one category. That isn't any more accurate than lumping all Catholics into one category, and the potential for confusion and error snowballs from there.

Bottom line: Just as it is unjust to portray all Traditional Catholics as dangerous antisemites, it is equally unjust to make sweeping generalizations about the Jewish people either.

The other important lesson is that when explaining the Catholic Faith, make sure you know the subject matter you are discussing. If you aren't sure about something, don't give your best guess as a definitive answer. Tell the person you don't know the answer, then look it up and get back to them. All of us have a moral obligation to know our Catholic Faith and be able to give a reason for the hope that is in us, and we must always take great care never to misrepresent Church teaching when explaining the Catholic Faith to others.

Any thoughts?

Mel Gibson Interviewed By Diane Sawyer - 10/13/06 (Parts 2 & 3)