By An Anonymous Catholic
As of yesterday, Pope Francis allowed priests to begin blessing homosexual couples. While short of an endorsement of marriage, the fact that the leader of the largest single Christian Denomination chose to allow the blessing of gay couples marks the end of the Roman Catholic Church as an institution. Rome is conquered.
As I have pointed out before, regardless of what your religious or spiritual orientation may be, homosexuality has long been identified as a sin by the Word of God. Throughout the trajectory of Christian thought, homosexuality was viewed and denounced as an immoral act. At a minimum, it is a form of premarital sex. At a more profound understanding of the act and identity, homosexuality is an outgrowth of a reprobate mind, encaptured by Satanic and unnatural lusts.
The Old Testament recommended stoning. The New Testament recommended removal from the Christian community. Correspondingly, just as Christian leaders are never to bless the deviant acts of other sinful behaviors – lying, theft, murder, adultery, etc – homosexuality is likewise not to be condoned. A priest would never bless the acts of a car thief. A genuine Christian leader would never raise a flag to celebrate adultery. Why, therefore, would any so-called Christian leader create a carve-out for this one sin while condemning the rest? There is simply no justification.
More importantly, the Roman Catholic faith is one in which the individual partaking in Communion is supposed to be of a clear and repentant mind. A Catholic should go to confession before engaging in Communion. At a minimum, the Catholic is supposed to seek the absolution of sin through prayer because he “detests” his sins and is “heartfully sorry” for the sins he committed and promises not to do them again because he “offends God” through his sinful acts. How does this square with the homosexual (sinner) involved in a continual homosexual relationship (sin)? It does not. One can love the sinner, not the sin.
But loving the sinner means correcting the sinner. I do not love a sinner who continually engages in self-destructive behavior if I do not do my best to stop the repeated sinful acts. I may love my brother, but if he continues to rob banks, I would implore him to stop. I may love my sister, but if she continued to engage in sexual indiscretions, I would be compelled – out of love – to do everything in my power to stop her self-destructive behavior. Now, the Roman Catholic Church has chosen to “bless” the acts of the repeated sinners who mock God and the Word.
I left the Catholic Church over theological differences, but I always loved and respected the traditions and the dogged disavowal of modernity. More and more, however, the “infallible” Pope invites something that no longer resembles the Church. So, what is next? It appears short of a new schism; the old schism – Orthodoxy – offers the only viable alternative to Catholics who seek a more Godly Church that embraces traditions and hierarchical order. The Orthodox faiths – i.e., original Eastern Catholicism – has many variations, but those variations are uniquely nationalistic. This is an outgrowth of Biblically designed distinctions of nations themselves. The traditions and culture, while similar, are clearly different from Roman Catholicism in the post-Vatican II Era.
One thing that can be said is that Orthodoxy appears to provide Roman Catholics with a “vote with your feet” option. Eastern Catholicism – Orthodoxy – appears to be the last community of holdouts in a fight for the survival of organized Christianity. One need not join any faith to be a Christian, but if you are a Roman Catholic, it is time to acknowledge that the Catholic Church you knew has fallen to modernity. The only option appears to be a return to the “old” Catholic Church – which is alive and well amongst the unyielding Orthodox faithful.
Note: I am not an Eastern Orthodox Catholic, either. The faith is beautiful. The traditions are a marvel to witness. But I have my own variation of Christianity that does not fit easily into any organized box. I do, however, see the value of Orthodoxy to those Roman Catholics who may feel betrayed by the latest acts of a false Pope.
“Note: I am not an Eastern Orthodox Catholic, either. The faith is beautiful. The traditions are a marvel to witness. But I have my own variation of Christianity that does not fit easily into any organized box.”
This is nonsensical. No offense to the writer but this negates any advice you give as you’ve essentially made your own “church” much like every other Protestant.
“…Eastern Catholicism…”
Eastern Catholicism is still in union with Rome and agrees with papal infallibility and supremacy, many of them have also been very Latinized. Eastern Catholicism is not a safe haven from Rome.
Οι Καθολικοί κληρικοί είναι βουτηγμένοι μέχρι τα Μπούνος…
αμαρτωλοί και η απόφαση της Καθολικής Εκκλησίας δεν μας εκπλήσσει ….. εκείνο που μας εκπλήσσει είναι οι σχέσεις ορισμένων
κεφαλών της Ορθόδοξης Εκκλησίας που η σχέση τους με τους καθολικούς
είναι ανεπίτρεπτες σε σημείο που προκαλεί αηδία.
Pope Ratzinger was a good guy & the Vatican crucified him – Vatican is a depraved hornet’s nest of sexual deviants pushing the stupid Pope Francis to do this abomination
I have to agree 1000% with Petros’s comments, above. What is this bullshit? “I have my own variation of Christianity that does not fit easily into any organized box”??? And who are you, “Anonymous Catholic” sir, to disavow the Mother Church, that is Orthodoxy, as “beautiful” and “marvelous” as it is, and essentially “create” your own religion? Petros is right: he basically negated any advice he offered in his article. Nick, I totally understand why you chose to feature this piece in Helleniscope, but unfortunately, it’s a bit hypocritical on the part of the writer. This guy claims that he sees “the value of Orthodoxy to those Roman Catholics who may feel betrayed by the latest acts of a false Pope,” but nevertheless, Orthodoxy is just not “good enough” for him, is it? What a shame…