Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Stop The "Sheep Stealing" It's Politically Incorrect!

In a recent statement the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops is calling for an end to evangelizing... they have claimed this is an effort to have Christian unity. The USCCB has said:
Proselytism, or the deliberate targeting of another Christian or group of Christians for the sole purpose of getting them to reject their church to join another, is not allowed. Some people may feel called in conscience to change from one tradition to another, but “sheep stealing” is unacceptable! The term proselytism originated in the context of Judaism, in which the term proselyte referred to someone who, coming from the gentiles, had passed into the Chosen People. So too, in the Christian context, the term proselytism was often used as a synonym for missionary activity. More recently, however, the term has taken on a negative connotation, to mean the promotion of a religion by using means, and for motives, contrary to the spirit of the Gospel; that is, which do not safeguard the freedom and dignity of the human person. It is in this sense that the term proselytism is understood in the context of the ecumenical movement."

Second Vatican Council Says:
Our separated brethren, whether considered as individuals or as Communities and Churches, are not blessed with that unity which Jesus Christ wished to bestow on all those who through Him were born again into one body, and with Him quickened to newness of life-that unity which the Holy Scriptures and the ancient Tradition of the Church proclaim. For it is only through Christ's Catholic Church, which is "the all-embracing means of salvation," that they can benefit fully from the means of salvation. We believe that Our Lord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is the head, in order to establish the one Body of Christ on earth to which all should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the people of God … When the obstacles to perfect ecclesiastical communion have been gradually overcome, all Christians will at last, in a common celebration of the Eucharist, be gathered into the one and only Church in that unity which Christ bestowed on His Church from the beginning. We believe that this unity subsists in the Catholic Church as something she can never lose, and we hope that it will continue to increase until the end of time … Baptism therefore establishes a sacramental bond of unity which links all who have been reborn by it. But of itself Baptism is only a beginning, an inauguration wholly directed toward the fullness of life in Christ. Baptism, therefore, envisages a complete profession of faith, complete incorporation in the system of salvation such as Christ willed it to be, and finally complete in grafting in Eucharistic communion. Catholic Culture
Catholic Femina Speaks: In a Nut Shell: It is not politically correct to have a religion..."Christianity" is just a general term that expresses you believe in the Trinity and a version of the Bible with an Old and New Testament. It gives no commitment to a set of traditions or a set of moral parameters that a religion sets down. People want to think that their conscience formed or unformed is enough of a spiritual compass to lead them to salvation. Right and wrong is not politically acceptable; everyone is right in one way or another. Furthermore since everyone is right then every religion is right and anyone who disagrees with this is in the wrong.
The Truth Revealed: Ecumenism (or non-Catholic religions) is a large part of the world... Christ told us to preach the good news to all the world. Now the USCCB is telling us not to "sheep steal;" because it is not politically correct. This is in contradiction to the Vatican Decree on Ecumenism and is also in opposition to the Second Vatican council as quoted above. We are called by Christ to share our faith, "let your light shine," "proclaim the good news," etc. Understanding other faiths is a challenge, we understand that Christ established the Catholic Church and He said "I am the way, the truth, and the life..." this is the way to heaven that has been revealed to us. Christ gave us the responsibility to be the shepherd to St. Peter; and through apostolic succession this is carried down to our present pope: Benedict XVI. There was never a Shepherd's clause that read don't save those sheep that are following a false shepherd! The USCCB has called "Christian unity a goal that won't happen over night." Even though the Catholic church has successfully reunited millions of Christians with the fullness of the faith annually. I have never considered leading Christians to Christ "sheep stealing," and I never will. Following the commands of Christ and the teachings of the Church are the best way to find a path to heaven. Sharing the faith is not politically correct, but it is the best way to live out the gospel.

3 comments:

  1. Gotta love moral relativism... You're okay, I'm okay, we're all okay... yikes...

    I'm glad this didn't come out four years ago! What if my then boyfriend (now husband) had listened and hadn't tried to convert me. I don't even want to think about that!!!

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  2. Other Christian religions only partake in a portion of the graces bestowed on the Church; who has the fullness. Obviously we don't want to force the faith on others but are we to deny our Christian brothers and sisters complete union with Christ?

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  3. Excellent.

    God converted me. I converted my wife. We converted our Children.

    Without the help of God, impossible; the same one true God Who said, "Go, teach the nations..."

    Theresa, a true 'Woman of Ephesus' in our time.

    This site goes on The Orate Frates...

    james mary evans

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