To JKirk,
Hi,
I appreciate your comments, but I think we overgeneralize when we blanketly say that our Protestant friends and our Eastern Orthodox friends are merely “material” heretics or “material” schismatics.
For example, our Orthodox friends have the same scriptures and the same Patristic writings which we have, which affirm the primacy of Peter and of the Bishop of Rome. Rather than accepting these things (as we Catholics do), they dismiss them or explain them away. Go to the Eastern Christianity forum and read Father Ambrose’s posts, for example. That is not material heresy, that is deliberate. Each generation is renewing the schism and heresy of 1054 A.D.
Our Protestant friends, many of whom are converted former Catholics, let’s not forget!!, also cannot be generalized as “material” heretics. They too have easy access to the same scriptures and patristic evidence that we Catholics have, and which bear sound witness to the Truth of the Catholic position.
These also ignore, dismiss, or explain away this testimony, thus renewing in our generation the act of schism and heresy that was committed in the 16th century.
And the Protestants have continued to ADD more heresies to the original heresies and sins of the 16th century. They allow artificial birth control (since 1930) and now many of them, in direct disobedience to their own scriptures, approve of Homosexual behavior and abortion. This is not mere material heresy. It is true that some protestants do not support the gay agenda or abortion, but they ALL allow for easy divorce and remarriage, again condemned explicitly by their OWN scriptures.
It is not right or accurate to simply and blanketly say that the Orthodox and the Protestants are merely “Material” heretics and schismatics. For the adults at least, this is not true.
As for the SVs, a person who believes in the papacy but who, in good faith sincerely believes that a particular claimant to the throne is heretical in his teaching, and has evidence to back that up, is not actually guilty of formal schism. Schism is recognizing the pope and rejecting his authority, like the SSPX does, or , like the Orthodox, rejects the office of the Papacy altogether in spite of Scriptural and Patristic evidence in support of it (not to mention the testimony of the Holy Spirit to the truth of these things).
God bless,
Jaypeeto3