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| Anyway, there's this website called 'Biblical False Prophet'... |
Is Pope Francis okay? I mean, is he okay? I know that we can all quite happily overlook our own sins and bothersome personality traits. We can all be a bit hypocritical and recognise in others more quickly those faults that are our own, but I agree with Veneremur Cernui that there is something about Pope Francis's homilies and speeches that almost demands some call for a papal 'reality check'.
Perhaps His Holiness is receiving some kind of 'reality check' from the crowds in Rome who, I am told by a priest who returned from Rome recently, received somewhat lukewarm applause from the Roman crowd, who saved their biggest cheer for the moment when the Pope Emeritus was brought out for the day. I must say I was a little alarmed when the Pope Emeritus says he only goes out when the Pope invites him but I guess we shouldn't read too much into whether that's a 'self-imposed' 24-hour curfew from the retired Pope or something else entirely. Let's face it. There are already enough conspiracy theories concerning Benedict XVI's abdication to keep those interested up all night. He did say he would live a 'hidden' life. The priest I talked to about his visit to Rome is, it has to be said, completely disillusioned and utterly depressed concerning this pontificate.
'The corrupt Christians, the mean Christians, the hypocrite Christians. No! These are not Christians! You know, when I was an Archbishop in Buenos Aires, you know what happened. Let me tell you the story. You won't believe it. There was another Bishop in another Diocese, eh? He shall remain nameless. Few people ever understood where he stood on any of the moral issues of the day. This is important for a Bishop, no? He always sowed confusion, eh? He was somewhat enigmatic in this regard...His Diocese had a seminary and there was a flourishing order with a wonderful charism rooted in faith, no? Men were flocking to their Order because of the charism and women too, to the convent they had established. Well, he disliked their charism and so you know what he did? You know what he did? He crushed the Order because he hated their charism. Just like that! And the seminary in his Diocese? Pah! He inherited a seminary full to overflowing, but after 25 years of his being the Bishop, nearly empty! How destructive are these mean, corrupt, hypocritical, authoritarian Bishops, eh? No? Let us pray for the grace to be good stewards of those we are given to shepherd. Lord, let us never be like that Bishop.'
I decided to take a screen-shot of the YouTube homily which you can view here today at Rome Reports because for Pope Francis to ask that question is bizarre and topical. It possibly hasn't filtered up to the top that there are now more than a few Catholic websites dedicated to 'Pope Francis: the False Prophet of Revelation' and hitherto perfectly reasonable Catholics are asking just the question that His Holiness asked today. Who is feeding this insatiable frenzy of Catholics going to such websites for consolation and answers to their bewilderment? Well actually, quite frankly, it is the Pope. His Holiness can hardly blame Maria Divine Mercy for her popularity. Perhaps His Holiness is her advertising agent. I guess its no worse an offer than Porsche.
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| Pope Emeritus Benedict: His mind is still as lucid and brilliant as ever it was |
There are light Christians, gray Christians and dark Christians. The 'light Christians' are full of light and serve God. 'Dark Christians' - I assume His Holiness is not alluding to African Bishops who refused to bow to the Kasper Doctrine - talk in a 'hypocritical, empty and obscene way'. I'll let His Holiness introduce the other character type to you...
"They are the Christians of gray areas. And these Christians of gray areas are on one side first and then the other. People say of these: 'Is this person with God or the devil?' Huh? Always in the grey area. They are lukewarm. They are neither light nor dark. And God does not love these. In Revelation, the Lord says to these Christians of gray areas: 'No, you are neither hot nor cold. If only you were hot or cold. But because you are lukewarm – always in the gray areas- I will vomit you out of my mouth'. The Lord has strong words for these Christians of gray areas. 'I am a Christian, but without overdoing it!' they say, and in doing so cause so much harm, because their Christian witness is a witness that in the end only sows confusion, it sows a negative witness".
Hmm...What a thoroughly exciting, terrifying, fingernail-biting Synod that was? Does anybody know yet whose side the Pope was on? I'm itching to know and I think I do know, but there's still this little hopeful part of me that hopes against all odds that the Pope is still Catholic, or, at least, the new one. I am so confused by this Papacy I don't have a clue what is going on, where the Pope really stands on anything. I'm still left a little confused. In fact, every day I find his comments and the lack of transparency in Rome confusing. I'm confused at the 'de-Ratzingerisation' of the Vatican. There is nothing terribly clear about this papacy. It's like driving in a dense fog. Even when his opinion is made clear something, you still have a nagging feeling that that is simply the opinion (life imprisonment, the death penalty, the Big Bang, evolution etc) of Jorge Bergoglio, the man, rather than that of the more hitherto carefully constructed and balanced positions of the Catholic Church.
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| Gradualism |
More worrying than what Pope Francis says is what Pope Francis does. More worrying than what Pope Francis says and does is what we are not told. More worrying than all of this is what Pope Francis says we should not do, he manifestly does with, seemingly zero problem for his conscience. This is the reason I ask, the question: Is Pope Francis okay? Is Pope Francis 'all there'? In the case of this Pope, I don't know what is more terrifying at this moment - the idea that the Pope has lost touch with reality or the idea that the Pope knows exactly what he is doing, and does and says what he does with meticulous fore-thought and knows its completely contradictory. Out of the two, I'd rather that His Holiness is, well, quite frankly, not of sound mind. Much was said that was negative of Benedict XVI within and without the Church. What could never be questioned was the clarity and soundness of his mind.
I know what you're going to say. You're going to say. "Sound mind? You're a fine one to talk!"
Well yes, but you see, I'm not the Vicar of Christ on Earth. The Church can deal with a layman who is a fruit-loop. You'll usually find a few in every parish. It cannot cope so easily with a fruit-loop Pope. Cardinal Kasper claimed that the Pope has a 'hundred year plan' for the Church. If true, you have to say that is both a mark of his humility and ambition. Josef Stalin only planned five years at a time. Happy Feast of St Simon and St Jude to all readers.
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