MORJENJE KATOLIŠKE VERE

"Ecclesia Delenda Est!" The Killing of the Catholic Faith During the protracted wars between Carthage and Rome, every oration in the Roman Senate ended with the phrase: “Carthago delenda est!” — Carthage must be destroyed. This exhortation was intended to keep before the minds of the rulers and the people the primacy of vanquishing Rome’s mortal enemy. All other public business, no matter how pressing, was to be subordinated to the campaign for survival. Peaceful co-existence was neither considered desirable nor possible. Roman politicians never spoke about the virtues of Carthage or the cultural enrichment that might follow social interaction between the two powers. And every Carthaginian youth was raised to hate Rome and to set his heart and mind on its destruction. Hatred lives in hell; but hatred layered in lies lives in the deepest circle of hell. Dante places in satan’s mouth those who pretended friendship, but plotted murder. There is a timeless poignancy in Caesar’s final words, “Et tu, Brute?” Nothing hurts like betrayal. All of this is preamble to what appears to be taking place in the Church now. Scarcely a day goes by without some commentator in the Catholic blogosphere or journalistic world registering “shock” at something Pope Francis has said or done that appears to contradict or call into question the immemorial teaching of the Church, including that of his immediate predecessors (see:  “Praise for Dr. Mirus”).  Francis uses every public event, every talk, every interview (especially what has been aptly called the “airplane magisterium”) to attack Catholic doctrine and to disparage and insult those who defend it and try to live by its precepts (see:  “The Airplane Magisterium and Its Consequences”).  Those who, for whatever reasons, are determined to defend Francis’ heterodox and heretical statements as capable of orthodox interpretation, are finding it increasingly difficult not to sound ridiculous. If Francis were to be completely honest, all his public statements would end with the phrase, “Ecclesia delenda est!” — The Church must be destroyed! The “Church” that Francis is intent upon destroying is the Catholic Faith and practice as it existed prior to the Vatican II revolution; one might even say, prior to his papacy, so sweeping is his explicit contempt for all that has preceded him (see:  “An Anti-Catholic Pope?”). Francis’ program is not essentially different from that of his recent predecessors, but he is less cautious, less concerned with the appearance of continuity. He also has inherited an institution ravaged by a half-century of doctrinal and liturgical upheaval and moral scandal, and he is not averse to exploiting the confusion and cynicism among Catholics trying to find their footing in the cratered landscape of the post-conciliar Church. And, to his added advantage, few Catholics are now taught their catechism, so Francis’ departures from orthodoxy go unnoticed except by older or more informed Catholics and clergy, some of whom are not averse to seeing one or another of the Church’s doctrines eclipsed by a more appealing and contemporary teaching. Francis appears determined to bring to a conclusion the work of demolition begun by Pope John XXIII and carried on steadily, incrementally, by Paul VI, John Paul II and Pope Benedict. It was, let us recall, the emeritus, now looked upon nostalgically as the embodiment of Tradition, who called for the “demolition of long-standing bastions” in the Church (see:  “The Demolition of Bastions”). Francis and his allies, swinging the wrecking ball with such happy abandon, appear intent upon leveling whatever remains of the edifice of Catholic orthodoxy. One might describe the overarching aim of the Bergoglio papacy as ecclesial euthanasia. Call it a mercy killing. The old Church — the pre-Francis Church — must be put down, like the sad, suffering dog it is. Why prolong its misery? No one wants it around anymore. And those who still want the comfort of religion, want it without any uncomfortable obligations attached. Let the people — meaning me — decide what’s Catholic, says Francis. Take marriage, for instance. Marriage is just a word, just a ceremony of dubious value and validity. Who can say whether these Catholic marriages are even real? (See:  “Debacle at the Lateran – Part I”.) If that’s the case, what sense does it make to talk about people “living in sin” just because they haven’t gone through some sham ritual whose meaning they don’t even understand? In fact, the unmarried may be more married than the married. Don’t ask for explanations of this seeming nonsense. As Francis says, he’s always been “irresponsible.” He likes it.  And, after all, who are we to judge? (See:  “A Tale of Two Synods”.) Near the end of his life, Father Gruner undertook a major work: Crucial Truths to Save Your Soul. Father knew that a time was at hand when the attack upon Catholic doctrine would become intense and sustained and that it would be led by those within the Church. It was to prepare us for this time that Father wrote his last book. We must fortify ourselves with the fundamental truths of the Faith if we are to stand with Our Lady during this final battle. The diabolical disorientation Sister Lucy warned us about is here. The only way to survive it with our Faith intact is to turn to Our Lady of Fatima. She is our only help, the only hope for the Church and the world.