Francis and offenses against truth and charity...

Father Dominic Mary, MFVA, in the first of three homilies which draws from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on the role of truth in the vocation of the Christian, explains that:


"In today’s Gospel Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”

I. To Live the Truth

CCC, 2466 In Jesus Christ, the whole of God's truth has been made manifest. "Full of grace and truth," he came as the "light of the world," he is the Truth. "Whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." The disciple of Jesus continues in his word so as to know "the truth [that] will make you free" and that sanctifies. To follow Jesus is to live in "the Spirit of truth," whom the Father sends in his name and who leads "into all the truth."

CCC, 2464 [To represent the truth correctly …] flows from [our] vocation [as Christians] to bear witness to God who is the truth and wills the truth. Offenses against the truth express by word or deed a refusal to commit oneself to moral uprightness: they are fundamental infidelities to God and, in this sense, they undermine the foundations of [our] covenan[tal relationship].

CCC, 2467 Man tends by nature toward the truth. He is obliged to honor and bear witness to it. [As the Second Vatican Council said]: "It is in accordance with their dignity that all men, because they are persons . . . are both impelled by their nature and bound by a moral obligation to seek the truth, especially religious truth. They are also bound to adhere to the truth once they come to know it and direct their whole lives in accordance with the demands of truth."

CCC, 2468 Truth as uprightness in human action and speech is called truthfulness, sincerity, or candor. Truth or truthfulness is the virtue which consists in showing oneself true in deeds and truthful in words, and in guarding against [the following which are very similar to each other]:

— duplicity: [“contradictory doubleness of thought, speech or action” (Webster’s Dictionary)]
— dissimulation: “to hide under a false appearance” (Webster’s Dictionary)
— hypocrisy: “to effect virtues that one really does not have” OR “the false appearance of the virtue of religion” (Webster’s Dictionary)

CCC, 2469 [As St. Thomas wrote,] "men could not live with one another if there were not mutual confidence that they were being truthful to one another." The virtue of truth gives another his just due. Truthfulness … entails honesty and discretion.

CCC, 2470 The disciple of Christ consents to "live in the truth," that is, in the simplicity of a life in conformity with the Lord's example, abiding in his truth. "If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth."

Bearing this in mind, what must we think of Francis in Rome, who warns of false prophets, duplicity and hypocrisy while exhibiting these very offended against truth and charity?

Is it not dishonest and duplicitous for Francis to suggest he maintains a "zero tolerance" policy toward sexual abuse only to ignore complaints regarding the same while asserting that he never received such complaints?

As Dr. Germain Crises explains, "If those who lack virtue and holiness simulate what they lack, they practice hypocrisy, seeking by mere outward show to keep their reputation and to receive undeserved honor.  As deceptive communication, all hypocrisy is at least venially sinful.  The New Testament, however, condemns as a most grave sin a certain kind of hypocrisy: the pretense of sincere Faith by those who sinfully reject or pervert Jesus' gospel.  While the enormity of their sin lay in their unbelief more than in their pretense, hypocrisy nevertheless can be a grave matter even without rejection of Faith.  For those who are role models, sinning gravely in ways others can observe, while hypocritically maintaining that their behavior is not sinful, clearly is grave matter, because it is scandalous."


Time and again Francis has railed against hypocrisy, pharisaism, duplicitousness and rigidity.

To which I would suggest: Physician heal thyself!

RISE: A call to embrace an authentic masculinity

A New movement (see here) is challenging men to, "rise up and embrace an authentic masculinity."

As reported by the Religion News Service:

"As male secular icons are falling almost daily, a group of Catholic men are issuing a 30-day challenge to all men to rise up and embrace an authentic masculinity. RISE: A 30-Day Challenge is co-authored by Chris Stefanick, host of EWTN’s 'Real Life Catholic,' and Bill Donaghy, a curriculum specialist at the Theology of the Body Institute.

'There’s never been a more important time than now for men to step up, lead their families and communities, and live an authentic masculinity rooted in understanding their identity as sons of God,' said Stefanick, co-author and video presenter.

'RISE is a unique 30-day series of videos and challenges that walks men through a battle plan for life. It’s simple, but the results are extraordinary. Whether they’re faithful or just seeking, RISE will profoundly impact their lives for the better,' said Stefanick.

RISE is an individual journey for each man with practical challenges based on their life situation. Men are encouraged to walk with a 'brother,' and to hold each other accountable through the 30 days, and there are resources provided for parish and group settings.

'RISE is all about stepping up and claiming your true identity as a son of God, embracing your natural and profound gifts as a man. That changes everything,' said Stefanick. 'Imagine if a million men in the Church were living intentionally as disciples of Christ. Families, parishes and communities would be transformed. That’s our goal.'

Men can choose to begin RISE at different start-dates throughout the year. Many are starting with Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Parishes may review RISE at no cost.

'This isn’t just a program, it’s a movement,' said Donaghy, co-author. 'RISE meets men where they are, and gives them practical tools to live their faith out every day. With men all around the world stepping up, RISE will be revolutionary.'

RISE is published by Cardinal Studios LLC, in collaboration with Real Life Catholic and in association with Ecce! Films.

To learn more about RISE, visit https://www.menriseup.org/

This represents a real critical need.  The Church has been infected by radical feminism and feminization and caters to women while ignoring masculine men.  See here.

Juda Myers: Living in the Truth?

After previously threatening me with a lawsuit because of my accurate Blog posts detailing her hateful comments about the Catholic Church, Juda Myers wrote me a new message on Facebook stating that, "..after direction from the Lord based on the bible, I am not going to pursue legal actions."

Translation: I spoke with an attorney who told me I have no case.

The legal definition of libel:

libel

1) n. "To publish in print (including pictures), writing or broadcast through radio, television or film, an untruth about another which will do harm to that person or his/her reputation, by tending to bring the target into ridicule, hatred, scorn or contempt of others. Libel is the written or broadcast form of defamation, distinguished from slander, which is oral defamation. It is a tort (civil wrong) making the person or entity (like a newspaper, magazine or political organization) open to a lawsuit for damages by the person who can prove the statement about him/her was a lie."

The statement has to be a lie. The problem for Ms. Myers is that I have copies of our exchanges.

Now Ms. Myers is attempting to demonize me on Facebook. She has accused me of being "angry" and is asserting that I need "someone to attack." The hypocrisy is so thick it's almost unbelievable. This from the woman who wrote, "I am sorry that you have been deceived to think that the CATHOLIC church killing, stealing, overpowering, ostentatious, and filled with the greed for supremacy has any resemblance of Jesus our humble Savior who DIED for His followers. He NEVER sat on a throne on earth and NEVER even suggested for anyone to sit on a throne and be kissed and bowed to...There is a way that seems right unto a man but the end leads to destruction. Their mouths honor me but their hearts are far from me (Jesus' words) Many will say in that day, 'Lord Lord didn't I do this in your name.' and He will say 'Depart from me. I never knew you!' You'd better be absolutely sure the god you serve will save you. Pope of any kind will answer to God almighty. I will go straight to the throne for my headship..." Yes, clearly I'm the one with the anger management problem who's looking for a fight.

This is most unfortunate. For, as the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us, "The Old Testament attests that God is the source of all truth. His Word is truth. His 'faithfulness endures to all generations.' Since God is 'true,' the members of his people are called to live in the truth." (CCC, 2465). And again, "Truth or truthfulness is the virtue which consists in showing oneself true in deeds and truthful in words, and in guarding against duplicity, dissimulation, and hypocrisy." (CCC, 2468).

This obligation is very serious. In 1 John 1:6, we are told that, "If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth."

I call upon Juda Myers to apologize for her hateful characterization of the Catholic Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. To accuse the Church of evil is to accuse Christ of evil. To attack the Church is to attack Christ Jesus Himself. When the Lord Jesus appeared to Saul, who had been persecuting the Church, He asked him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" (Acts 9:4).

La Salette Attleboro: The Fallout Spreads...

There has been much fallout since my Blog post exposing the emergence of New Age spirituality at the La Salette Shrine in Attleboro, Massachusetts. Michael Brown carried the piece at his website Spirit Daily and the Medjugorje Forum initiated a discussion thread. A Catholic woman posed a question for the experts at EWTN which may be found here.

For a little more background on Joyce Rupp from Donna Steichen (the author of Ungodly Rage, a favorite of mine which is published by Ignatius Press), go here. Ms. Steichen, writing about New Age influences upon St. Andrew's Parish in Fort Myers, Florida, notes how:

"...it was the school principal, Sister Elizabeth Dunn, who did most to reveal how deeply alien feminist theology had penetrated into St. Andrew's when, for Christmas in 1994, she gave each school staff member a copy of Sister Joyce Rupp's little book of self-centered feminist mediation, The Star in My Heart: Experiencing Sophia, Inner Wisdom. Rupp's bibliography cites notorious feminist authors from Merlin Stone (When God Was a Woman) through New Age pioneer Jean Houston to Rianne Eisler (The Chalice and the Blade) and Elizabeth Dodson Gray, keynote speaker at the annual Massachusetts WomenChurch meeting a few years ago.

Like many current feminist writers, Rupp personifies the figure of Divine Wisdom in the Old Testament Wisdom books as 'Sophia,' a name used because it is the Greek word for wisdom. Rupp echoes standard feminist rhetoric when she says:. . . it seems evident that Sophia is the feminine face of God. This aspect was eventually lost due to a highly male-dominated culture and a church that was very fearful of the goddess traditions of the past. That feminists seek to make a goddess of Divine Wisdom is ironic, since they have so noticeably failed to acquire even mere human wisdom, for which their need is clearly desperate. Surely some feminist scholars must know that the use of the feminine pronoun in Scriptural references to Wisdom is a matter of grammatical gender; in Hebrew and Greek, all abstract nouns are feminine. Divine Wisdom is not a Person but a perfection of the Holy Trinity, traditionally attributed to the Son because He is the Word of God."

Like most of feminist theology, this exercise is simply a propaganda campaign, exhibiting less intellectual honesty and scholarly objectivity than one might find in a public-relations campaign by the advertising council. The rising tide of feminist spirituality at St. Andrew's crested with an Earth Week observance in late April. All-school events are not routine at St. Andrew's. No services were held during Holy Week, for example, nor after Easter in celebration of the Resurrection. There was no all-school May crowning of the statue of the Blessed Virgin. The school does not assemble for May rosary devotions. Yet the faculty pulled out all the stops for Earth Week, a purely secular media event invented by members of the 1960s counter-culture to draw attention to their environmental concerns. Classroom teachers were urged to implement specific activities for each day of the week, and two major all-school 'prayer services' were scheduled.