Sermons

Summary: Vatican 2 made a difference. For better or worse, a form of unity has set in. Protestants and all religions flock to Rome while many others leave her for good. When the dust settles: A one-world church, and a true church...

SIXTY-FIVE: VATICAN TWO

Far more grim a perspective than one more nation having Catholic rule is what may have been the beginning of total world control at the Vatican Council of the 60's. To introduce you to that meeting, I give this clip from the Random House Encyclopedia, p. 2653:

"Vatican Council, Second (1962-65). 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church under Popes John XXIII and Paul VI. Designed to reform and revitalize the Church, the Council redefined the duties of bishops, the relationships of the Catholic to other churches, and the nature of the priesthood and the mass. It condemned anti-Semitism while calling for Christian reunion."

Whoa now! The changeless church is changing? A thousand questions come. What about re-defining the duties, positions, and authority of the Pope? How is it that Rome's relationship to the churches can change now? Was the Reformation wrong, or not? What of Bishop Sheen's warnings? Can the mass really be redefined at this late date? Is there really to be no more anti-Jewish policy in Rome, including a hands-off policy in the land of Israel? If Christians are being called to reunite, what will be the basis for that unity, and what the price?

A person growing up after Vatican II must see the things I have recorded in this book up until now as pure nonsense plus paranoia, or perhaps as ancient history not to be confused with the real Catholicism, espoused today. Others will see this as hate literature.

I certainly understand these criticisms, and am even tempted to agree. Things have been so different in Rome!

Oh the head spins with confusion! Will the real Roman church please speak? 1600 years of repression, 400 years of Protestant-bashing, and now you tell us no discrimination is to be tolerated! You say we are simply different, but we can get along? That really our marriage need not end in divorce after all?

For nearly 30 years [in 1992], this indeed is the message coming out of Rome, though you can read between the lines and realize that Rome will accept those parts of non-Catholicism which are Catholic, and continue to repudiate the rest.

DeRosa (op. cit., p.21) describes the radical change which concerns the Catholic teaching, "There is no salvation outside the church."

"It was first formulated to exclude all the un-baptized, such as Jews and unbelievers. Even babies born of Christians who died before baptism were said to be excluded from Heaven. Today, John Paul still teaches there is no salvation outside the church but 'church' and 'salvation' are so widely interpreted that all people of goodwill, even atheists, can be saved. This linguistic trick stops Catholics seeing that traditional teaching has been reversed. To admit change would expose too much of the past as a bad dream...the Catholic Church refuses to admit she has changed in essentials, even when she has improved."

His further opinion is that "almost every document of Vatican II would have been condemned as heretical by Vatican I..."

In reference to the about face on the Jewish question, he quotes John XXIII, opener of the Council, in his prayer of repentance:(p.5)

"The mark of Cain is stamped upon our foreheads. Across the centuries, our brother Abel has lain in blood which we drew, and shed tears we caused by forgetting Thy love. Forgive us, Lord, for the curse we falsely attributed to their name as Jews. Forgive us for crucifying Thee a second time in their flesh. For we knew not what we did."

For less than 2% of her existence as a body (if we look to Constantine as her first head) she gives to the world a message of peace, trying to make us forget the 98%.

She has all but silenced the great men of God throughout the world, who fear to come against one speaking such peaceable things. All but forgotten are the warnings of the great Reformers, the messages regarding Rome by giants of the faith from the Middle Ages until Vatican II. Check the "Christian" air waves, and you will find that the prince of the power of the air still controls there. You can speak about the cults, and sins of most any sort, but speak a word against the Babylonian mistress, and trouble ensues.

John, you knew not what you did. We know not what you are doing now, but it seems to be working.

And of course I must add, some of what was done is pure gold. Some people have been set free. Some have found the Lord. With this we must rejoice!

SIXTY-SIX: THE CHARISMATICS

To compound the problem of confusion created by this conciliatory tactic, along comes a movement pounced upon by Rome with all the excitement of a starving feline.

The charismatics descend from Pentecostalism, which I believe to be a genuine outpouring of God's Spirit on hungry hearts secretly searching for more of God. I believe there was a sovereign work of God here and throughout the world. I believe, further, though, that the experience gave rise to problems, just as the first outpouring of the Holy Ghost did:

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