Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

To Give a Defense

Home
Catholic
Even My Book Reviews Worry Protestants, & Other Quick Takes: 7QT XVIII Seriatim

Even My Book Reviews Worry Protestants, & Other Quick Takes: 7QT XVIII Seriatim

Last updated on: March 4, 2018 at 1:08 pm by Scott Eric Alt

Even My Book Reviews Worry Protestants, & Other Quick Takes: 7QT XVIII Seriatim 2018-03-04T13:08:11-04:00 Scott Eric Alt

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

G.K. Chesterton in 1909 (public domain)

Some people think that comboxes are their blog. You know, like this guy. (I’m guessing it’s a guy; who knows; I could be wrong.) He was so out of sorts at my review of Devin Rose’s The Protestant’s Dilemma that he couldn’t wait long enough to start his own blog to respond, so he wrote a blog article in the combox at Free Republic. (He posted a link to it in my comments, which is the only reason I know of it.)

Have you ever seen anyone attempt to refute a review, rather than the actual book? I’m not sure whether to write a review of the review of the review. What do you think? Mind you, it’s full of sentences like this one:

In addition, adherents of SS cannot claim to be little pope, having assured infallibility, which is the height of “sola individuala,” but making the church to be the supreme authority over Scripture simply takes the problem of individual interpretations being supreme to a institutional level. For rather than one person leading others astray based on elitist claim of assured veracity, an entire church overall can be led into error based upon such. And thus Rome has become as the gates of Hell for multitudes.

Before I could refute the argument here, I would need to refute the poor man’s syntax.

II.

Fred Phelps has gone to his reward, whatever that might be. The man’s heart was a cesspool of hatred of Catholics, homosexuals, and soldiers. I hope he repented. I hope he found mercy. I hope no idiot pickets his funeral, or wants to.

I have no more to say about it than that, because I need mercy too. And if Fred Phelps did find the mercy he so needed, I hope that he will pray for me.

III.

Dale Ahlquist asks what the actual Chesterton quotation was that Francis was thinking of when he said, “A heresy is a truth gone mad.”

Mr. Ahlquist proposes some possibilities, but I would suggest this one from Orthodoxy: “The modern world is full of the old Christian virtues gone mad.”

What Chesterton meant by that was that sin is nothing more than virtue gone wrong. Only God is original: Satan cannot create evil; he can only pervert the good that God has already created.

I think this helps us to understand Fred Phelps. He took hatred of war and hatred of sin and perverted it into hatred of people.

Which is why, particularly in his death, we must not hate Fred Phelps.

IV.

Recently it was reported that the real reason photos of bin Laden’s body have not been released is because Navy Seals pummelled him with over one hundred bullets.

At some point, well before that, the man was dead.

Whatever the argument in favor of killing bin Laden—I agree we needed to kill him—the need was only to kill him, not to engage in excessive savagery upon his body. Revenge is not justice and it is not national security. Revelling in bin Laden’s death is evil.

The same Christ who died for me and for you died for Osama bin Laden.

V.

I do not understand the gnashing of teeth some engage in over the prospect of canonization for John Paul II, or John XXIII, or Paul VI.

What canonization means is that these popes are in heaven. To be so adamant that it is wrong to say they are saints, is to say that you are certain—against the judgment of the Church—that they are in Hell.

Really? Has it come to that among the über traditionalists? They permit themselves to stand in judgment, not only against the living pope, but against dead popes?

If John Paul II is not in heaven, God help all the rest of us.

VI.

I am going to dare and make a prediction on what is going to happen with the question of communion for divorced and remarried Catholics. I am not a prophet, so take this for what it is worth.

My guess is there may be some adjustments made to the criteria by which an annulment can be granted. That is where it will begin and end.

The pope is not going to change the Church’s teaching on divorce and remarriage, because the pope can not do any such thing, and the Holy Spirit protects the Church from error. To be divorced and remarried without an annulment is to be in a state of mortal sin. To receive communion in the state of mortal sin is another mortal sin.

Therefore, the only changes, if any, will be to the annulment process itself.

VII.

Here is how I approach these kinds of questions when they come up: If Pope Francis were to wake up tomorrow morning and say to himself, “Today I am going to undo all of Church teaching,” it wouldn’t happen.

Read more of this week’s quick takes at Conversion Diary. H/T to Nicole DeMille for reminding me of the Styx song.

***

If you like the content on this blog, your generous gift to the author helps to keep it active. I remember all my supporters in my Mass intentions each week.

Book Reviews

In the News

Pope Francis

Radical Traditionalists

Seven Quick Takes

Previous Post

March 18, 2014

The Protestant's Dilemma by Devin Rose: A Review

Next Post

March 24, 2014 The Catholic Men's Bible: Devotional, Call to Holiness, and Study Bible

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion About Me Answers for Calvinists Answers to Media Fictions Answers to Objections Anti-Catholicism Apologetics Apostolic Succession Atonement Authority of the Church Baptism Benedictines Biblical Exegesis Blogging Book Reviews Books & Writing &c. Calvin's Institutes Capital Punishment Catholic Church Chastity Christology Church Fathers Church Social Doctrine Confession Contraception Conversion Stories Crusades Debates Depression & Suicide Deuterocanon Development of Doctrine Ecumenism English Language Eucharistic Adoration Exorcism Extra Ecclesiam Fisks & Rebuttals Freedom of Religion Freedom of Speech Fundamentalism Gender Politics Gender Theory Good Works Homosexuality Humor Idolatry Immaculate Conception In the News Inquisition ISIS Islam Just for Fun Just War Justification LCWR Limbo Liturgical Abuse Liturgical Year Magisterium Marriage and Family Mary Mortal Sin New Evangelization NFP Papacy Papal Documents Papal Infallibility Personal Narrative Politics Pope Francis Pope Francis Derangement Syndrome Population Control Praying to the "Dead" Priesthood Primacy of Peter Protestant Denominations Purgatory Radical Islam Radical Traditionalists Real Presence Right to Conscience RIght to Life Saints Same-Sex "Marriage" Seven Quick Takes Social Justice Social Media Sola Scriptura Spirit of Vatican II SSPX The Eucharist The Mass The Resurrection Traditionalism Vatican II Year of Mercy

Select a Month August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 November 2018 October 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 April 2018 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 May 2013 April 2013 February 2013 January 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, "To everything there is a ______."

Select your answer to see how you score.

Purpose Season Time limit Blessing