THE SCANDAL OF DISUNITY AMONG CHRISTIANS. (Homily for May 8, 2016. Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year C.) In the wake of several attacks against Christians in very recent times in this country, time has come for us to face certain hard truths for ourselves. And one of these hard truths is the fact that we are NOT UNITED. The divisions that exist within Christendom as a religion of its own are far greater and far more complex that those that divide Christians from adherents of other religion. And as if this is not enough, we are not just divided, we basically fight each other constantly, trying to prove to one another that we are the sole owners of the truth or that we alone have the keys to heaven. It is not enough that we do all we can to discredit our fellow Christians on issues of doctrine and so on, we are actually extremely jealous of each other. It is like we enjoy seeing our fellow Christians go down just to prove that we were right after all. Today’s first reading captures the nature of this scandal of disunity. And it goes to show that the walls of division among Christians go all the way to the very beginning of Christianity itself. Why was Stephen stoned to death? Was it because he said he saw heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God? First, you must ask, what brought him before the tribunal? Wasn’t it the jealousy and false accusation by his fellow Christians? Let us read for ourselves beginning from Acts 6, verse 1. It all started when the Hellenistic Christians complained that their widows were being cheated in the daily distribution of food. To solve the problem, the apostles needed to ordain seven men of good repute who would assist in the distribution while they focus on prayer and the ministry of the word. One of those chosen was Stephen. Stephen, however had a gift. He wasn’t just serving at tables, he could perform miracles and God used him to do great wonders among the people. This was where his problem began. Some men from the synagogue of Freedmen, from Cilicia and Asia arose and disputed with Stephen but they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. Instead of them to accord Stephen the respect he truly deserved and just let him be, instead of them to recognise the presence of the Holy Spirit in him and consider him as their teacher, they secretly instigated men to lie against him saying: “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” And they stirred up the people and the elders and scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council and set up false witnesses who said: “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law.” Is this behaviour not characteristic of Christians today? And guess what, when we Christians fight each other, we end up presenting ourselves before non-Christians to pass judgement! This is exactly what happened to Stephen. He was chosen from a Christian community to serve Christians and when out of jealousy he was falsely accused, he was presented before a Jewish tribunal. The Jews do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God and so, after all that Stephen had say, the moment he mentioned seeing Jesus standing at the right hand of God in heaven, it was just too much for the Jews to swallow. That was when they rushed at him, cast him out of the city and stoned him to death. If Stephen had said the same thing before his fellow Christians, it would have been a course for rejoicing and no one would have had to stone him for it. Otherwise, what is the difference between what Stephen said and what we read in the second reading? Did anybody stone John for writing his visions in a book he called the Revelations? Aren’t we glad to read what he saw in his visions? How many Christians today are being sacrificed on the altar of politics by their fellow Christians in this country? How many are being used as scape goats and made to face the wrath of non-Christians? I once saw an article written by a Christian convert wherein he analyses the evils Christians mete out to each other in the name of making money or scoring electioneering points and he used the phrase “useful idiots” in describing the actions of such Christians. For him, they are useful in the sense that adherents of other religions need them as pawns in the game but they are also idiots in the sense that they do not know their actions ultimately lead to the destruction of the Christian faith itself. When are we Christians going to start seeing ourselves as brothers and sisters? When are we going to allow the prayer of Jesus in today’s Gospel passage come to pass? When are we ever going to be one? Even Jesus himself tells us: “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.” Mark 3, 24 to 25. Disunity is a scandal. It is a free weapon in the hands of the enemy. Students of colonial history will tell us that the success of the British Colonialism in this country was simply based on the principle of divide and rule. Or do we talk about Rwanda? Many have written articles about how Christianity was wiped out of North Africa many years ago and how fully Christian nations became Islamic nations. It is important to mention that disunity played a key role. There were great factions in the church itself as a result of heresies (distortions in doctrines by persons who just wanted to be popular). And when we take an honest look at the factions and walls that exist in Christianity in this country, we cannot but see history repeating itself. The question is not “what led us to this point?” I think the real question we should be asking ourselves today is “What is the solution?” It all begins from home. It all begins right here. Let this ethnic issues cease within the church. Let this rivalry between charismatic and non-charismatic cease. Let this issue of son-of-the-soil-must-be-bishop cease. Let this issue of favouring one language over and above other languages cease. If we cannot be one within a station, or within a group or a society within the church, how can we be one within a parish, how then can we be one within a diocese, or within a province or within a church not to mention being one with non-Catholics? Yes, we have a long way to go but I say the journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. Take that step today. Let us pray: Lord Jesus, use me to bring your prayer to reality that I may be an instrument of unity wherever I find myself. Amen. http://dailymasses.blogspot.co.uk/2016/05/the-scandal-of-disunity-among.html
There's true ecumenism and false ecumenism. True ecumenism was that practiced prior to VII: convert all thing to Christ and His Church, that Church being the Catholic Church. False ecumenism is false because it confirms people in their error and tells them that conversion isn't necessary, that they can get to heaven just as easily as a Protestant as they can as a Catholic. True ecumenism is a moral imperative. False ecumenism is diabolic.
I'm beginning to think that neither St. Peter nor St. Paul wouldn't have been considered worthy for the priesthood in today's Church. They wouldn't have been politically correct enough to make it through the seminary.
That poor priest doesn't realise that disunity is ok so long as the heretics are supporting the right political party. You might want to make him aware that his distrust of people using Religion to promote a political anti-Catholic agenda are highly favoured in the Vatican: "During our three day visit we had 15 meetings, including several with senior Vatican officials. We met with three of the main authors of the Encyclical on the Climate that is just now being released; we met with the Deputy Secretary of State charged with drafting Pope Francis's remarks when in the US speaking to Congress and the UN; we met with Cardinal Turkson, who is both a close advisor to the Pope and oversees Justice and Peace and with Bishop Sánchez Sorondo who leads the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. The Pope honored us with a personal greeting but did not have time to meet with us on substantive issues. For some reason, his meeting with Mr. Putin last Wednesday trumped our visit! Our visits were dialogues. We conveyed our view that the Pope is a World leader of historical significance; that his message of exclusion, alarm over rising inequality and concern about globalized indifference is important for the U.S. to hear and see animated during his visit; and that we intend to amplify his remarks so that we have a more profound moral dialogue about policy choices through the election cycle of 2016. In our meetings with relevant officials, we strongly recommended that the Pope emphasize – in words and deeds – the need to confront racism and racial hierarchy in the US." https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/20368 This report in the Washington Times sums up PICO's (the group that organised the Vatican visit and its fifteen meeting in three days with Senior Vatican Officials) agenda and the value Soros got for his money. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/aug/30/george-soros-catholic-useful-idiots/ For Mr. Soros, the Church is a gift that keeps on giving. His choice for President of the USA and her self-styled "Pope Francis Catholic" running mate will most likely be elected, giving them carte blanche to promote their abortion agenda worldwide, no doubt to the applause of Pope Francis so long as each abortion comes with a food parcel. But all is well because the Pope and Luther's statue made for a great photo op. Instead of Catholics standing foursquare behind Christian bakers and photographers being persecuted for observing their faith, our Church is playing footsie with the persecutors.
Is all the above supposed to have something to do with Christian Unity? That's a rhetorical question. The answer is NO.
Don't shoot the messenger, David. You priest friend talked a whole lot about politics dividing Christians, except that he was talking about different denominations. I gave you an example of the Church at the highest level being used by people whose aim is to destroy the Church. The Pope allowed himself and the Church to be used as a political pawn by people claiming that he is reforming the Church and calling themselves "Pope Francis Catholics". Perhaps he needs to take care of his own back yard before putting on a show for the Lutherans. I hope he wasn't aware of the conspiracy to "modernise" Catholicism - a willing tool of these "reforming" Catholics. Christian unity will come when the Lutherans accept that there can be only one truth and that truth was rejected by Martin Luther.
No, Dolours, unity will come when Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, Lutherans and Evangelicals learn humility and love and begin to follow Christ's request that we be one in Him. This is what Pope Francis teaches and practices. Sadly, man prefers to follow his own ways and will reap its reward.
With respect, David, there can only be one truth. How can we have unity with a sect that treats homosexual unions on a par with marriage? I'm not sure that they even regard marriage as a sacrament. Among other things, they don't believe in purgatory or transubstantiation. Pretend unity is as much a lie as false mercy. There's some hope of working out the differences with the Orthodox over the filioque and Papal supremacy, but I think that even Martin Luther would have a problem with how far the Church he founded has drifted from the faith. We will get unity when we pray enough, fast enough, do enough penance and stop trying to twist the faith to match the culture. We need to get back to basics and treasure what we've got. If we belittle it we can't expect others to value it.
Sorry David, to me that is apostasy. Kumbaya. Meaningless words. Jesus said, "“You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”
I repeat, unity will come when Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, Lutherans and Evangelicals learn humility and love and begin to follow Christ's request that we be one in Him. Unfortunately the devil provides us with endless excuses to persuade us that we are better than our neighbour. Don't buy them. Penance and prayers are worthless without love.
Meaningless words, picadillo? That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. John 17:21
"For Mr. Soros, the Church is a gift that keeps on giving. His choice for President of the USA and her self-styled "Pope Francis Catholic" running mate will most likely be elected, giving them carte blanche to promote their abortion agenda worldwide, no doubt to the applause of Pope Francis so long as each abortion comes with a food parcel. But all is well because the Pope and Luther's statue made for a great photo op. Instead of Catholics standing foursquare behind Christian bakers and photographers being persecuted for observing their faith, our Church is playing footsie with the persecutors." Excellent. Don't forget global warming as the new great sin. But hey, who am I to judge.
It isn't about we as humans being being better than our neighbour. It is about the CHURCH that Jesus founded being the one, true Church. The Church is perfect, people are not. Changing the faith to accommodate imperfect churches founded by imperfect men will not bring us unity.
Oh but it IS all about us. WE, individually, need to learn humility and love. If we keep looking over our shoulders and thinking others are sinning we are sure to forget about our own sinfulness.
Again, I need to point out that all that has nothing whatever to do with the scandal of disunity among Christians.
I highlight one paragraph from Pope Pius XI's encyclical Mortalium Animos: 7. And here it will be opportune to expound and to reject a certain false opinion which lies at the root of this question and of that complex movement by which non-Catholics seek to bring about the union of "Christian" Churches. Those who favor this view constantly quote the words of Christ, "That they may be one... And there shall be one fold, and one shepherd" (John 17:21, 10:l6), in the sense that Christ thereby merely expressed a desire or a prayer which as yet has not been granted. For they hold that the unity of faith and government which is a note of the one true Church of Christ has up to the present time hardly ever existed, and does not exist today. They consider that this unity is indeed to be desired and may even, by cooperation and goodwill, be actually attained, but that meanwhile it must be regarded as a mere ideal. The Church, they say, is of its nature divided into sections, composed of several churches or distinct communities which still remain separate, although holding in common some articles of doctrine, nevertheless differ concerning the remainder; that all these enjoy the same rights; and that the Church remained one and undivided at the most only from the Apostolic age until the first Ecumenical Councils. Hence, they say, controversies and long-standing differences, which today still keep asunder the members of the Christian family, must be entirely set aside, and from the residue of doctrines a common form of faith drawn up and proposed for belief,in the profession of which all may not only know but also feel themselves to be brethren. If (they say) the various Churches or communities were united in some kind of universal federation, they would then be in a position to oppose resolutely and successfully the progress of irreligion. Read the rest of the encyclical at the following link: http://www.salvemariaregina.info/Reference/MORTALIUM.htm
Yes indeed! But Pope Francis is not doing any of that. He is calling us to love each other in humility. We are incapable of uniting but God is able to do it and will do it. But we must cooperate with Him.
I think unity will be the work of God rather than the work of man. Since Christ prayed 'Father that they might be one' we can be assured that His prayer will be heard by the Father.
