Finally, a priest who dares to speak out: "A Christian Duty in the Face of Terror"

This article by the New York priest, Father George Rutler, should be read by all people who still care about Western civilization. Here are extracts from the article:

After another devastating ISIS attack in France, this time against a priest in his 80s while he was saying Mass, the answer isn’t just, “Do nothing.” As racism distorts race and sexism corrupts sex — so does pacifism affront peace.
Turning the other cheek is the counsel Christ gave in the instance of an individual when morally insulted: Humility conquers pride. It has nothing to do with self-defense.

The Catholic Church has always maintained that the defiance of an evil force is not only a right but an obligation. Its Catechism (cf. #2265) cites St. Thomas Aquinas: “Legitimate defense can be not only a right but a grave duty for someone responsible for another’s life, the common good of the family or of the State.”
A father is culpable if he does not protect his family. A bishop has the same duty as a spiritual father of his sons and daughters in the church, just as the civil state has as its first responsibility the maintenance of the “tranquility of order” through self-defense.--

Were it not for Charles Martel at Tours in 732 and Jan Sobieski at the gates of Vienna in 1683 — and most certainly had Pope Saint Pius V not enlisted Andrea Doria and Don Juan at Lepanto in 1571 — we would not be here now.  No Western nations as we know them — no universities, no modern science, no human rights — would exist.--

The dormancy of Islam until recent times, however, has obscured the threat that this poses — especially to a Western civilization that has grown flaccid in virtue and ignorant of its own moral foundations.

The shortcut to handling the crisis is to deny that it exists.
On the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, there were over 60 speeches, and yet not one of them mentioned ISIS.
Vice has destroyed countless individual souls, but in the decline of civilizations, weakness has done more harm than vice. --

The priest in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvrary in Normandy, France, was not the first to die at the altar — and he will not be the last.
In his old age, the priest embodied a civilization that has been betrayed by a generation whose hymn was John Lennon's "Imagine" — that there was neither heaven nor hell but "above us only sky" and "all the people living for today." When reality intrudes, they can only leave teddy bears and balloons at the site of a carnage they call "inexplicable."

Swedish historian: "climate alarms of the early 21st century resemble pre-modern ideas about divine punishment"

Ph.D. David Larsson Heidenblad
Department of History, Lund University

The Swedish historian David Larsson Heidenblad has published a study in which he shows the striking similarities between late modern notions of anthropogenic climate change and premodern ideas about divine punishment.

Below are a few excerpts from the summary of Heidenblad's interesting thesis "Our own fault":

In the late autumn of 2006 the topic of climate change had its major breakthrough in Western media. The impending threat of global warming was transferred from the cultural sidelines to the newspapers headlines. Throughout the public sphere the same basic message was, almost unanimously, carried out: ”Humanity is in grave danger, and it is our own fault”. Everyday practices, such as driving and meat-eating, were depicted as direct causes to the crisis. Urgent calls were made for individuals to alter their energy-intensive lifestyles.

The future of mankind depended on our everyday choices, on our moral behavior. From a historical standpoint neither the threat of climate change nor the urgent calls for individual change were new. Rather, they had been put forward in the public sphere since the late 1980s. But in the autumn of 2006 the calls were more frequent and the public at large was markedly more responsive. Climate change was no longer considered a green issue in the margins of high politics. It was increasingly becoming an everyday concern. From a cultural historian’s viewpoint the calls for individuals to alter their way of living in order to avoid future catastrophes is a distinctly familiar pattern. The theme was an ever-recurring feature of the pre-modern Judeo-Christian World where wars, famines, and epidemics were repeatedly depicted as God´s punishment for the sins of man. According to this biblical explanatory model man was habitually seen as responsible for his own misfortunes. Calls for individuals to change their sinful ways and do penance was hence repeatedly decreed as a means to avoid future calamities. Divine punishments was, in much the same way as anthropogenic climate change, considered to be our own fault. The striking similarities between the near present and the distant past begs the question if history is repeating itself. Have man throughout the ages continuously envisaged connections between collective moral behavior and looming disasters? Can these ideas be seen as a deeply entrenched cultural pattern in the Judeo-Christian World? Is the threat of climate change a late modern variation on an ancient mythological understanding of man’s relation to his surroundings?  --

 Why do the climate alarms of the early 21st century resemble pre-modern ideas about divine punishment? The line of argument advocated in the study is that there are four points of structural similarities which, when taken together can provide an explanation for the remarkable cultural parallels. All four points exist in both the pre-modern setting and in its late modern ecological counterpart, but not in the historical time periods in between. The first point is that man is seen as having a moral responsibility to his surroundings. Some courses of actions are deemed detrimental while others are deemed beneficial. Everything man does affects his surroundings, which in turn affect man. The abstract greatness which man stands in a direct relation to – Nature and God respectively – is not the same. But structurally there is an overall similarity in that man is not deemed to be self-sufficient. The second point concerns how the individual’s everyday actions are thought of as relating to the well-being of the collective. This is in both cases a fundamental point of departure. No man is an island. Everyone is linked together in the great chain of being. The third point is that both late modern ideas about anthropogenic climate change and pre-modern ideas about divine punishment are based on the strongest knowledge authority of their time – the natural sciences and theology respectively. Both these fields share pretensions of universal validity for their knowledge. Hence neither threatening climate change nor ideas about divine punishment have been portrayed as a matter of individual interpretation, but instead as indisputable realities – truths. The fourth point is that every individual is seen as being a part of the problem. In the pre-modern religious worldview no man was free from sin and in the present times of climate change no man is free from carbon dioxide emissions. The individual ecological footprint can be greater or smaller, but it is nevertheless a footprint. No one, at least not in the West, is seen as free from guilt.

The entire summary in English can be downloaded here.

Only 19 % of U.S. pastors age 18 - 44 believe in man made global warming

A clear majority (54%) of U.S. protestant pastors doubt the existence of man made global warming, according to a fresh report by LifeWay Research. What is encouraging is that younger pastors are the biggest skeptics. Only 19% of pastors in the age group 18-44 agree with the statement: "I belive global warming is real and man made". 

The LifeWay poll also shows that only seven percent of Republican pastors believe in man man made global warming, while 76% of their Democrat colleagues say said "they strongly agreed that global warming is real and man made". One can only hope that the misled Democrat pastors will soon discard the fake global warming religion and refocus on their original religious task. 

On taboos and political correctness in Germany (and Europe in general)

Focus magazine columnist Thomas Wolf has written a brief, but so true article on political correctness in Germany:

There are taboos in Germany. The person who is against the euro and makes it know publicly, will almost always have a hard time. Do-gooders of all colors denounce people with eurocritical opinions in talks shows as anti-European and revanchist.

Also the person who questions human caused climate change is not likely to find apologists. "Such people do not have any sense of responsibility for the future of our children" is the killer argument. And the person who thinks that the victims themselves are to blame for poverty and social problems, is callous and totally lacking solidarity. You are only allowed to reject Christianity. Because the Pope forbids the pill and priests live a celibate life. However, any criticism of Islam is forbidden. It would be xenophobic. 

When differing opinions are not expressed anymore, because their holders are castigated as immoral, every debate runs dry. 

Political correctness and taboos have created a climate without any alternatives in the German Federal Republic, which the philosopher Peter Sloterdijk describes in this way: "Whether you confess to social democracy or not, has for long ceased to mean anything, because there cannot really be any non-social democrats among us, the society is per se social democrat, and the person who is not, is either in a madhouse or abroad ..."

Wolf's and Sloterdijk's descriptions are, of course, not only applicable in Germany. Exactly the same taboos and political correctness prevent any meaningful discussion and debate in many other European countries. 

Catholic Bishops´ Conference of the Philippines endorses "Mother Earth"?

Strange things seem to be happening within the Catholic Church. Earlier today we reported about the San Jose bishop calling his parishioners to participate in the Earth Hour and "reduce our climate change impact". In the Philippines the Catholic Bishops´ Conference appears to have adopted a new deity, Mother Earth:

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) called on Filipinos to take part in the global campaign to combat climate change and promote energy conservation.

In a release, CBCP’s Commission on Youth (ECY) executive secretary Fr. Conegundo Garganta urged Filipinos, specially the youth to observe the Earth Hour on March 31, 2012 (Saturday).

Meanwhile, the cleric also urged young Filipinos to join the “I Will If You Will” campaign, wherein ECY will change its office light bulbs to compact fluorescent lights if others will switch off their lights on March 31.

“This campaign empowers people to share to the world their own personal contribution on how they can willingly do ways to save Mother Earth,” added Garganta.

Read the entire article here

The fundamentalists of the global environmentalist religion centered on Gaia worship and the uniting of all life forms around the goddess of "Mother Earth" certainly welcome the catholic bishops of the Philippines to their ranks, but one wonders whether the Vatican gives blessing to such a move?

Catholic cult of climate change celebrates Earth Day in California

The cult of climate change seems to have replaced traditional theology in at least one Catholic diocese in California. In a letter posted to the diocesan website, San Jose Catholic Bishop Patrick McGrath asks his parishioners to join in the Earth Day celebrations:

It is fitting that on Earth Day, April 22nd, we ask our parishioners to renew their commitment to the Saint Francis Pledge. By taking this pledge we agree to:

Pray to reflect on our responsibility to care for God's creation and protect the poor and vulnerable;

Learn about and educate others about climate change;

Assess how we contribute to climate change in our homes, our schools, our parishes and in the chancery;

Act to reduce our climate change impact;

Advocate Catholic principles in climate change discussions and policy work.

Our Catholic Social Justice Teaching impresses upon us that nature is not something to exploit; rather, is God's creation to preserve. We are called to celebrate the splendor of God's handiwork, to be good stewards of creation, and to safeguard the integrity of all that God has made. Prayerfully consider how you can join us in this important initiative.

With every best wish and kind regard, I remain,

Sincerely yours,

Patrick J. McGrath
Bishop of San Jose

It is interesting to read the comments to Bishop McGrath´s letter. The great majority of them are extremely criticial of the bishop´s teachings. Here is one of my own favourites:

Posted Saturday, March 17, 2012 10:16 PM By Anton L Seidl
The Green Movement is poorly disguised paganism. Celebrating "Earth Day" during a Catholic church service, which has happened in the San Jose Diocese, is an abomination. To state that "nature is not to be exploited" but rather "to be preserved" is in direct contradiction of common sense. Do we not plow fields, dam up rivers, dig for minerals, raise animals for food and fell trees for fuel and for building homes? These activities distinguish man from animals. The ultimate objective of the greens is to return the natural world to its pristine wilderness, tear down dams, preserve swamps by calling them wetlands. This movement is anti-progress and essential anti-human. I want no part of it and resent being preached to by people who should know better. The Green Initiative has nothing in common with the good Saint Francis; it is left-wing agitprop of the worst kind.

Putin - A "miracle of God"?

It is sad to see the head of the Russian Orthodox church and other religious leaders praise Russia´s ruler, former second rate KGB agent Vladimir Putin as a "miracle of God":

The head of the Russian Orthodox church on Wednesday called the 12 years of Vladimir Putin's rule a "miracle of God" and criticised his opponents, at a gathering where religious leaders heaped praise on the prime minister.
Putin wants support from spiritual figures for his campaign to win his third term in the Kremlin in a March 4 election. He is facing a growing protest movement and needs to consolidate his core support to avoid a runoff.
Putin has built his campaign on a contrast with the turbulent 1990s, when millions were thrown into poverty after the collapse of the Soviet Union while ethnic conflicts such as the war in Chechnya threatened to tear Russia apart.
Patriarch Kirill, a bearded cleric seen as a modernising figure in the Russian church, the largest in Orthodox Christianity, compared the period preceding Putin's ascent to power to the 1941 Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union.
"What were the 2000s then? Through a miracle of God, with the active participation of the country's leadership, we managed to exit this horrible, systemic crisis," Kirill told a meeting at the ancient St. Daniel's monastery.
"I should say it openly as a patriarch who must only tell the truth, not paying attention to the political situation or propaganda, you personally played a massive role in correcting this crooked twist of our history," Kirill said.
--
Kirill's speech was echoed by leaders of other faiths.
"You had it right, the fact that they (opposition protests) took place on Saturday suggests that it was not a Jewish business," Russia's chief rabbi, Berel Lazar, told Putin.
"We joked in the synagogue that it would have been better to come for a prayer on that day."
The gathering was also attended by four muftis from predominantly Muslim Russian regions, a Buddhist lama, an Armenian bishop and representatives of Roman Catholics and other Christian churches.
"Muslims know you, Muslims trust you, Muslims are wishing you success," said mufti Ravil Gainutdin. Mufti Ismail Berdiyev from the turbulent North Caucasus added: "You are the only person who has shown the United States its place."

Read the entire article here

One sect, led by a former prisoner who now calls herself "Mother Fotinya" goes even further in her praise of Putin:

"Miracle" in the village of Bol'šaja El'nja, Nižnyj Novgorod, Russia: icon of current Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said to shine and cry myrrh.

A few days ago Mother Fotinya (real name: Svetlana Frolova), the leader of a 'Putinist' Christian sect officially called Chapel of Russia's Resurrection, announced on her web page that a Putin’s icon had begun to мироточить (literally: to seep myrrh), meaning a religious phenomenon where the faithful believes to see myrrh appearing like tears in the eyes of an icon.

Mother Fotinya's all-female sect worships Putin as the reincarnation of Grand Prince Knyaz Vladimir and of apostle Paul.

PS

The Russian Orthodox church of course has a long tradition of co-operation with the Communist regime and the KGB, so maybe one should not be too surprised by the open praising of Putin.

The persecution of Christians continues in China

The persecution of Christians by China´s communist regime continues unabated. Sadly, western political leaders, who only seem to care about trade and economic ties , are turning a blind eye to  China´s repressive policy.

The Catholic Online reports about the worsening situation for Catholics in China:

With our growing economic reliance and dependence upon the Regime in China: Are we sacrificing our fundamental obligation to defend human freedom and human rights because we depend on the economic assistance of a repressive regime? We should also ask the candidates running for public office their view on the right to religious freedom and our relationship with mainland China.

We have followed with alarm and concern the heavy handed efforts of the Regime in mainland China against the legitimate leadership of the Catholic Church in China. Though there appeared to be a warming in relations for a while, reports out of China in 2010 confirmed that the situation for faithful Catholics looked ominous.

The Chinese Regime forcibly coerced Catholic Bishops faithful to the magisterium of the Catholic Church to attend an illegitimate gathering of the Regime-sponsored "Patriotic Association" (PA) and "Council of Bishops". They used violence against Catholic Bishops, priests and lay faithful.

Like many deceptive governments, the regime in mainland China presents a public face of tolerance but acts with impunity against Catholics, other Christians and other religious believers. They use coercion and violence against Catholic Bishops, priests, deacons, religious and lay faithful.
For example, in 2010, in order to coerce his attendance at the illegitimate meeting Bishop Feng Xinmao was seized by 100 police officers and government agents. His priests and members of the lay faithful reportedly fought for hours to prevent his arrest. Eventually, the Bishop was arrested by Police and placed in isolation.

The Bishop was rescued by the faithful and returned to his home. However, the representatives of the Regime did not give up. They attempted to again seize the Bishop once again and the faithful fought for hours to prevent violence against him but were unsuccessful. The Bishop was then dragged to Beijing and forced to attend the illegitimate gathering.

Read the entire article here

Asia News comments on the unwillingness of western leaders to confront China:

A rosé of presidents further encourages this attitude (including the Italian president) as well as Secretaries of State, who visiting China never fail to eulogise the "positive path" taken by Beijing on human rights, while – beyond bishops and priests - thousands of activists, petitioners, artists and writers are imprisoned and forcibly silenced.

As the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had to admit on her first trip to China "with Beijing we can talk about everything, including human rights, but without jeopardizing our economic relationship."

It is not just a case of simple greed, of interest in the Chinese market, it is a matter of short-sightedness in not seeing that attacks on religious freedom, sooner or later, become attacks on all freedoms. The Chinese workers, enslaved and under paid, the farmers cheated of their land, the children and disabled people forced to work in brick factories, in preference to adults because "more docile”, know this all too well. But even economic freedom is beginning to choke: by now there is not even one entrepreneur left who, having invested in China, was sooner or later robbed of his patents, or forced to pay bribes of up to 25 per cent of his turnover to be able to set foot on the Chinese El Dorado.

There is also short-sightedness in the Chinese leadership who instead of responding to the lack of political reform and respect for human rights with the change, prefers oppression and a police state and thus prepares the ground for an increasingly explosive social conflict. The 180 thousand riots that break out in the country every year are just a drop in the ocean of what might happen if China and the world continue to pat each others backs to exploit the Chinese people and together suffocate their human and religious rights.

Read the entire article here

Pope Benedict: "Technology can't replace God"

(image by wikipedia)


This is Pope Benedict´s message to Richard Odingo ("If we could experiment with the atmosphere and literally play God, it's very tempting to a scientist,") and other believers of the climate change religion:

Reuters) - Pope Benedict led Roman Catholics into Holy Week celebrations, telling a Palm Sunday crowd that man will pay the price for his pride if he believes technology can give him the powers of God.
Under a splendid Roman sun, the German pope presided at a colorful celebration where tens of thousands of people waved palm and olive branches to commemorate Jesus' entry into Jerusalem the week before he was crucified.
The pope, who turned 84 Saturday, wove his sermon around the theme of man's relationship with God and how it can sometimes be threatened by technology.
"From the beginning men and women have been filled -- and this is as true today as ever -- with a desire to 'be like God', to attain the heights of God by their own powers," he said, wearing resplendent red and gold vestments.
"Mankind has managed to accomplish so many things: we can fly! We can see, hear and speak to one another from the farthest ends of the earth. And yet the force of gravity which draws us down is powerful," he said.
While the great advances of technology have improved life for man, the pope said, they have also increased possibilities for evil, and recent natural disasters were a reminder, if any were needed, that mankind is not all-powerful.
If man wanted a relationship with God he had to first "abandon the pride of wanting to become God," said the pope, celebrating his sixth Easter season as the leader of the world's some 1.2 billion Roman Catholics.

Read the entire article here

Persecution of Christians increasing in China and many other countries

Pastor Wang Zhanhu was hit by a police baton and went into a coma. (Photo by Wang family, published by ChinaAid)

The persecution of Christians continues in China. ChinaAid reports about the latest cases:
Two house church leaders in Huaxian, Shaanxi Province and Fanxian, Henan Province were harassed by police. When the former attempted to prevent the police from disturbing an assembly,  the police hit him with an electric baton and the brother went into a coma on the spot. He is currently still under treatment in the hospital. And police blocked up the haentrance to the latter’s home with bricks again, so he and his family could not enter or exit their home.

Read the entire article here

ChinaAid has recently published a report which makes it clear that China´s communist government, despite its promises to improve its human rights record, allows the persecution of Christians to escalate:

For the fifth straight year, the government’s persecution of the Church in China has continued to escalate, according to an annual report by ChinaAid Association, one of VOM’s partners. The March 31 report was based on 90 known cases of persecution against Christians in China throughout 2010. As ChinaAid President Bob Fu noted, the Chinese government’s stranglehold on information makes it impossible for all of the instances of Christian persecution to be documented and taken into consideration. This report is helpful, however, in revealing the widespread extent of opposition facing believers, as the incidences came from throughout China and involved people from all levels of society. It also highlighted three new alarming trends: the full-scale suppression of Christian human rights lawyers groups; use of abuse, torture and mafia tactics; and a severe crackdown on official Three-Self Patriotic Movement churches that do not accept government control. “China still has a long way to go toward true religious freedom and rule of law,” said Fu.

Read the entire article in the Canada Free Press here

You can download the entire report here


Christians are also persecuted in the neighbouring India:

Reports of violence against believers, village churches being destroyed and church leaders being threatened by local Hindus continue to be a daily reality in India. Other persecution faced by Christians is more subtle, as converts to Christianity are often cast out of their families, denied inheritance rights and face poverty and ostracism.

Read the entire Persecution.net India country report

As a matter of fact, Christians are persecuted in a great number of countries - particularly in many muslim countries -  but this is often ignored by mainstream media in Western countries. This CBN report explains why:

About Merkel´s Christian values - and the EU Commission´s lack of them

It is encouraging that German Chanchellor Angela Merkel has began to speak out for Christian values in Europe:

"We have too few discussions about the Christian view of mankind," Merkel claimed in a recent speech. She then stressed that Germany needs to reflect more upon "the values that guide us, about our Judeo-Christian tradition." It was one way, Merkel maintained, of bringing "about cohesion in our society."

Samuel Gregg, Director of Research at the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty offers this commentary:

On one level, Merkel is surely stating the blindingly obvious. How can Europeans ask Muslim immigrants to integrate into European society and respect European values without Europeans themselves being clear in their own minds about what values are at the core of European identity and where these values come from?

And as much as significant portions of European society would like to deny it, it's simply a historical fact that the idea of Europe and European values such as liberty, equality before the law, and solidarity did not suddenly appear ex nihilo in the late seventeenth-century with the various Enlightenments. Central to the formation of European identity and such values was the synthesis of Athens, Rome, and Jerusalem achieved by Christianity following the Roman Empire's collapse in the West in 476 A.D.

Indeed there's plenty of evidence that the antecedents of most of the various freedoms and genuine achievements of the various Enlightenments are to be found in Christianity. There is increasing recognition, for example, that the idea of human rights was first given concrete expression by medieval canon lawyers.

PS
The European Commission does not seem to share Merkel´s view. It has printed more than three million copies of a planner for secondary schools that includes Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Jewish holidays, without at all mentioning Christian holidays!

The GalliaWatch blog comments:

The page for December 25 is empty and at the bottom is the following message:

"A true friend is someone who shares your worries and your joy". It would be hard to find something more "religiously" correct!

The calendar includes Muslim Hindu, Sikh, Jewish holidays. Among others... Not to mention Europe Day and other key dates of the EU. No Christian holiday is mentioned even though Christianity is the religion of most Europeans. Johanna Touzel, spokesperson for COMECE (Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union) found the planner "unbelievable". A spokesperson for the European Commission spoke of an "error". He pointed out that future editions of this planner would not mention any religious holiday...
Remove everything rather than speak of Christmas!