Pope and One World Religion

[TheHem]

I recently read a post on Facebook by a noncatholic Christian. To me its absurd but I want to respond in a respectable and informative manner. To me it’s an opportunity to evangelize about Catholicism and the Truth. I’d love for an apologist to tear apart this article and respond not necessarily line by line but dissected sufficiently to to prove it’s error. infowars.com/in-new-york-pope-francis-embraced-chrislam-and-laid-a-foundation-for-a-one-world-religion/

 

[ProdglArchitect]

I’m going to preface this by saying that this will likely be a waste of time. People who buy into this sort of nonsense are rarely persuaded by insignificant details like facts and context.

I’d also like to preface this by pointing out that the article does not reference specific Vatican sources for the Papal messages. ABC may have gotten it right, but it’s always good to go and check with the real source.

With that said, I’ll focus on the quotes I can get to.

The first statement by Pope Francis is him expressing his heartfelt grief for the loss of life after the crane collapse at Mecca. Any Christian, and any decent human being, should reflect this sentiment wholeheartedly. The article then asserts that referring to God as all-merciful is something Muslims do, which would indicate that the Pope is somehow a closet Muslim for using Muslim expression for God. What this shows, however, is that the person who wrote this article is horrifically misinformed, or willfully ignorant. It is true that Muslims refer to God as “The all merciful.” What is also true, however, is that Christians, and especially Catholics, also refer to God as All Merciful, All Powerful, etc. It’s not a strictly Muslim thing.

The next portion tries to attack the Pope who acknowledging that Muslims worship the God of Abraham, just like Jews and Christians. Their worship may be improperly formed, but it is still directed towards God. This is not an issue.

The next quote deals with His statement about Christ’s life ending in failure. From the secular perspective, it did. He was killed in literally the most horrific manner available at the time. Had he not been resurrected, he would have been forgotten by history, or remembered only as some false messiah who was killed. I’d image that the follow up sentences to this statement clarified this fact, but that the author didn’t include them because they didn’t suit his agenda.

That’s all I can hit for now, I have to run. Someone else, please feel free to pick up the topic.

 

[DavidFilmer]

It is the expressed mission of the Catholic Church to evangelize and convert the world to Christianity. This is no secret. It would be a scandal if the Church did NOT have this goal. It is the fulfillment of the Great Commission:

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. [Matt 28:19-20]

It is the goal of the Church to eradicate Islam and all other non-Christian religions, just as She eradicated paganism from the Roman Empire and has eradicated many heretical sects.

Here is where the guy goes wrong, basing his arguments on this thesis:

Catholicism and Islam are the two largest religions on the entire planet, and so any one world religion would need to incorporate both of those belief systems.

History proves there is no such “need.” The world was once overwhelmingly pagan, and the Catholic Church was insignificantly tiny. In the span of just 300 years, that Church had conquered the paganism of the known world. The pagan-born Emperor of the Roman Empire accepted Christian Baptism (and convened the first Ecumenical Council).

It is not the goal of the Church to merge with other faiths (which is what this guy is talking about), but to utterly eradicate them from the face of the earth. The Church conquers. She does not compromise.

Certain individuals may not understand this, and may seek compromise (or, on the other end of the spectrum, to spread Christianity through violence and coercion). The Church strives to spread the Gospel through love and peace, not compromise or coercion.

 

[Memaw]

So…do Catholics think Muslims worship a different God??

If that’s true, then those who believe this are saying there is more than one God out there.

.

There is only ONE God, but that doesn’t stop people from believing all kinds of untrue things about HIM ! God Bless. Memaw

 

[friardchips]

So…you agree that Catholics and Muslims worship the same one God?.

There is only one Creator and Christians understand that people of all faiths are trying to reach the one Creator; however, within many other systems, the believers apparently seem to imagine many details about the One Creator, that when compared with the revelation of Holy Scripture, appear to be false. This is not to say that our Creator cannot be found in the lives of individuals in those religions because the Creator Himself knows all people of faith are trying to reach Him. And furthermore, no one but our Creator can know the inner dispositions of the heart of another individual based on external practices alone, so if people behave with compassion, then who is to tell what other people really believe and how close people are to our Creator. IOW, Christians respect other people’s reach for the Divine but without renouncing the faith of the Church. The inescapable difference is the part where Christians can attest to the fact that our Creator walked as one of us. This is knowledge that allows for more than just abstract understanding and instead invites the faithful into an up close and personal relationship.

 

[DavidFilmer]

Oh, boy.
I bet the words you say above would never come out of the mouth of the current pope.

Yeah, you’re probably right (can you imagine if he said it?) But he knows it’s the goal, and he never forgets it.

Eradicate? As in, destroy?

Destroy suggests force or violence. I prefer eradicate (like a disease).

Besides, paganism and all other non-Christian religions and other Christian sects haven’t been eradicated at all.
Over the last few centuries, they’ve been growing.

I think Shinto is barely holding on

But, yeah, it appears that six other faiths are growing faster than Christianity. This has more to do with differences in population growth than evangelization and conversion. But it shows the Church has work to do!

 

[friardchips]

Yeah, you’re probably right (can you imagine if he said it?) But he knows it’s the goal, and he never forgets it.

Destroy suggests force or violence. I prefer eradicate (like a disease).

I think Shinto is barely holding on

But, yeah, it appears that six other faiths are growing faster than Christianity. This has more to do with differences in population growth than evangelization and conversion. But it shows the Church has work to do!

I think in the long run, the entirety of things, ‘eradicate’ is probably not the wrong word but it does sound a bit as if it is our duty to eradicate people’s faith. It is not up to us to crush people’s faith because if we do that we could be causing bitterness to that individual and therefore pushing them further away from Love. We participate in faith but it is our Creator who does the eradicating, of any nonsense. We are called to love and share. It is through love, surely, that the devil is vanquished. In terms of a just war, I could see how the word ‘eradicate’ could be better applied, but not so much to human beings and rather applied to what they/we sometimes represent. The CCC speaks clearly about how we are to approach people of other faith-systems. And we are to respect their reach for the Divine. We cannot know the inner dispositions, the motions of another individual’s heart, absolutely, as we can only go by external assessment. That does not mean we have to agree or show agreement with some things they might believe about Him, after all, we have knowledge of true revelation. ‘Eradicate’ does sound a bit severe, IMO!

 

[DavidFilmer]

I think in the long run, the entirety of things, ‘eradicate’ is probably not the wrong word but it does sound a bit as if it is our duty to eradicate people’s faith.

If their faith is in error, we are doing them a favor. It is the goal of the Church and the divine Will of God that each and every person on earth willingly accept Christian Baptism and that all other religious practices cease forever.

If it were in the power of the Pope to wave his hand and make that happen, every Pope would have done so. Even the worst of Popes would have done so. Not one single Pope would exclude one single person or faith. Other faiths would be remembered only in history museums.

It’s possible this will never actually happen. But quite a lot of Catholic theologians have speculated that it will.

 

[friardchips]

If their faith is in error, we are doing them a favor. It is the goal of the Church and the divine Will of God that each and every person on earth willingly accept Christian Baptism and that all other religious practices cease forever.

This sounds a bit presumptious. You are proclaiming that you know the faith of another’s heart. And that it is your right as a human to take it away. Are you sure you don’t mean ‘their belief system is in error’?

If it were in the power of the Pope to wave his hand and make that happen, every Pope would have done so. Even the worst of Popes would have done so. Not one single Pope would exclude one single person or faith. Other faiths would be remembered only in history museums.

A Pope’s magic wand would not have the power to do so because our Creator allows for freewill. To zap people would be to force them into a conclusion or hypnotise them.

It’s possible this will never actually happen. But quite a lot of Catholic theologians have speculated that it will.

Faith comes by ‘realisation’, by ‘enlightened reasoning’ and ‘conversion of heart’.

 

[DavidFilmer]

This sounds a bit presumptious. You are proclaiming that you know the faith of another’s heart.

No, I was using “faith” in the sense of a belief system - the Catholic faith, the Muslim faith, the Jewish faith, etc.

And that it is your right as a human to take it away. Are you sure you don’t mean ‘their belief system is in error’?

Correct. It is not only my right but my Christian duty to help guide them from darkness (falsehood) into light (the fullness of truth).

 

[steve_b]

I recently read a post on Facebook by a noncatholic Christian. To me its absurd but I want to respond in a respectable and informative manner. To me it’s an opportunity to evangelize about Catholicism and the Truth. I’d love for an apologist to tear apart this article and respond not necessarily line by line but dissected sufficiently to to prove it’s error. infowars.com/in-new-york-pope-francis-embraced-chrislam-and-laid-a-foundation-for-a-one-world-religion/

Think about this quote John 17:20-23

• [20] And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me;
• [21] That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
• [22] And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, as we also are one:
• [23] I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect in one: and the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast also loved me

Jesus established His Church Matthew 16:17-19. He therefore, wants EVERYONE in it. Union in His Church as He said is to be perfect at all levels, as in ZERO division from His Church. Because division from His Church there is no salvation. Only one Church qualifies, only one religion, qualifies. The one He instituted on Peter, the one who was there from the beginning, that pope Francis is over today. The Catholic Church. 34

 

[openmind77]

Yeah, you’re probably right (can you imagine if he said it?) But he knows it’s the goal, and he never forgets it.

Destroy suggests force or violence. I prefer eradicate (like a disease).

I think Shinto is barely holding on

But, yeah, it appears that six other faiths are growing faster than Christianity. This has more to do with differences in population growth than evangelization and conversion. But it shows the Church has work to do!

If their faith is in error, we are doing them a favor. It is the goal of the Church and the divine Will of God that each and every person on earth willingly accept Christian Baptism and that all other religious practices cease forever.

If it were in the power of the Pope to wave his hand and make that happen, every Pope would have done so. Even the worst of Popes would have done so. Not one single Pope would exclude one single person or faith. Other faiths would be remembered only in history museums.

It’s possible this will never actually happen. But quite a lot of Catholic theologians have speculated that it will.

I think you are quite right. Pope Francis is a very firm believer in Catholic dogma and mission. We should not misunderstand his showing respect for other faiths.

He is as eager to evangelize and spread the Gospel as any of his predecessors. He is not at all suggesting that different faiths should merge and form one religion.

However, a One World Religion may actually become a reality when the Christ Returns - this will happen pretty soon, maybe next year.

It will be very interesting to see how Catholics as well as the Catholic Church will react to such an event. What if the Christ, when he returns, teaches something new that contradicts current Catholic beliefs? Will Church change its dogma or will many Catholics leave the Church? It will be very interesting!

 

[friardchips]

I think you are quite right. Pope Francis is a very firm believer in Catholic dogma and mission. We should not misunderstand his showing respect for other faiths.

He is as eager to evangelize and spread the Gospel as any of his predecessors. He is not at all suggesting that different faiths should merge and form one religion.

However, a One World Religion may actually become a reality when the Christ Returns - this will happen pretty soon, maybe next year.

It will be very interesting to see how Catholics as well as the Catholic Church will react to such an event. What if the Christ, when he returns, teaches something new that contradicts current Catholic beliefs? Will Church change its dogma or will many Catholics leave the Church? It will be very interesting!

Dogmas are divinely revealed truths. Dogmas will not change because they are eternal. Dogmas guide and illumine, not deceive and implode.

Dogmas are sacred truths that express the love of, and bring us closer towards, Heaven.

 

[DavidFilmer]

However, a One World Religion may actually become a reality when the Christ Returns - this will happen pretty soon, maybe next year.

It has been “pretty soon, maybe next year” since the Biblical Age. St. Paul thought they were living in the “last days:”

But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. [Heb 1:2]

Of course, we are all living in the “last days” (and have been for the past 2000 years).

It will be very interesting to see how Catholics as well as the Catholic Church will react to such an event. What if the Christ, when he returns, teaches something new that contradicts current Catholic beliefs? Will Church change its dogma or will many Catholics leave the Church? It will be very interesting!

Jesus could teaching anything NEW. For example, he could declare that the Church has the divine authority to confer (priestly) Holy Orders upon women. That would be “new” and run contrary to the infallible teaching of the Church. It would be presumed that this authority had been recently conferred.

But if “Jesus” attempted to fundamentally change doctrine then no Catholic would think it was actually Jesus. After all,

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! [Gal 1:8]