Those watching the Vatican at the time Pope Francis was elected knew that there would be some changes. Whether they expected changes of the level and depth that this pope has instituted might not have been known. But there is no question that he has upset Christians both within and outside the Roman Catholic Church.
Here is what set off the latest controversy:
Poland’s leading archbishop deplored on Sunday comments by a senior conservative priest who had wished Pope Francis a quick death if he does not open to “wisdom.”Krakow Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski said he heard about the comments with “great pain and regret” and has discussed them face-to-face with Msgr. Edward Staniek, who made them in a Feb. 25 church speech in Krakow.
Krakow was the seat of Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, the late Pope St. John Paul II. Poland’s church remains attached to John Paul’s conservative stance, which largely differs from Francis’ inclusive message. A majority of Poland’s bishops see their mission as preserving the traditional Catholic values from the pressure of secularization.
In his speech, Staniek, who is a prominent theologian, said he was praying for wisdom for Francis and a “heart open to the Holy Spirit, and if he does not do that, for a quick passage to the House of the Father,” meaning death.
He said that Francis has departed from the teaching of Jesus and was wrongly interpreting mercy as opening up to Muslims and allowing communion for divorced Catholics, who, according to the church, live in mortal sin and are not allowed communion.
A former seminary rector, Staniek suggested Francis was an “alien body” in the Catholic Church and said his words were used by media that are hostile to the church.
His superior, Archbishop Jedraszewski, insisted in his statement that the full Krakow diocese was praying ardently every day with the best intentions for Francis.
Marek Jędraszewski
Pope Francis has spent his pontificate doing a fine job of upsetting the faithful. Note the following:
Pope Francis is calling for “a one world government” and more “political authority”. But, that was hardly his most controversial statement made since he took the ‘throne’. Pope Francis shared some prepared statements in front of a cheering crowd of 33,000 in Rome stating that having a “personal relationship” with God is “harmful and dangerous”.
Here is what the Pope said, verbatim [in New York]: “The cross shows us a different way of measuring success. Ours is to plant the seeds. God sees to the fruits of our labors. And if at times our efforts and works seem to fail and not produce fruit, we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus Christ and his life, humanly speaking, ended in failure, the failure of the cross.”
And here he appears to claim that all religions worship the same god. A belief that is utter heresy, and which would shock even those members of other religions:
“Most of the planet’s inhabitants declare themselves believers,” he states in the production released on the Feast of Epiphany. “This should lead to dialogue among religions. We should not stop praying for it and collaborating with those who think differently.”
“Most of the planet’s inhabitants” are wrong. Pope Francis is wrong. To the degree that one wishes to believe in papal infallibility, at least under certain conditions, this man blows that out of the water.
Pope Francis is profoundly at variance with so many plain teachings of the Church, that one has to wonder what his agenda is. To put a more sharpened point on it, if this pope believes all religions worship the same god, that Christ failed on the cross, and that having a personal relationship with Christ is “dangerous,” then historic doctrine would place Pope Francis outside of the Christian Faith, branding him a heretic.
If that’s true, then what is he?
Source: CBS
There is no desire to start a religious battle here.
No need for these apologetic type statements. They will be viewed as weak. Just be super upfront and bold!
While not a Catholic I agree with the major philosophy of the church on certain key points. I have watched this pope begin to slowly move the church away from the concept that Christ was a failure, which in my opinion is blasphemy plain and simple.
I realize that he is or was a radical when he was living in Argentina. As I stated previously while not a Catholic I would hate to see desruction of the church brought about by this pope. Anyone who believes in the concept of a One World Government is someone to be very leary of, be they pope or president.
I made a grammatical error I should have said that his moving the church to the belief that Christ was a failure. Not moving it away as he is espousing just the opposite . I apologise for my error.