The end of those days can't come soon enough.
Wow 40% :( Maybe the Catholic (American) church isn’t the place for me.
I’d like the church to take the idea of a “warrior priest” a step further, if not into actual combat.
All over the world, there are Catholic (and many other Christian) communities that are sorely oppressed by the people around them. More than anything else, they need practical guidance of “how to protect themselves from their oppressors, so they do not have to defend themselves from their oppressors.”
Imagine a large lay organization of Catholics trained as soldiers, with “warrior priests” as chaplains, that would travel the world to such communities to teach them ways to protect their community, each other and themselves from attacks by hostile outsiders.
This would be at times an unofficial and discreet effort, and at times under full diplomatic license from the Vatican.
First, experts would examine a community to evaluate it and what it could reasonably do to protect itself. Skilled military people can be very adept at this, as well as imagining inexpensive and pragmatic ways to adjust to improve security. At the same time, the “warrior priests” would evaluate and assist the local clergy and act as liaisons to the community leaders.
Next, they would network the people of the community so that they know how to mutually support each other. Much of this would be in the creation of communications and “emergency services” as it were. Standing together is much stronger than facing the enemy alone.
Then finally, every able bodied, willing person in the community, and the children, could be taught basic unarmed martial arts. This is based on the principal that even modest resistance to an attacker makes the attack much harder. Such attackers tend to be cowardly and to want an easy attack, so if it is made more difficult, they are less inclined to continue or try again.
In any event, the cost of creating such an organization is small compared to the enormous benefits it can provide around the world.
The warrior part is when all of us of faith fight - through letters, vigils, demonstrations, prayer. We have to drive our church leaders where they won’t go: to oppose the open sin and scandal of “Catholics” who support abortion and gay “marriage” and unneeded wars. We need a church militant in this time of immoral descent.
I'll believe it when I see it! I've been hearing for years that this is the year/time/election that the bishops are finally going to start standing up for what they're suppoded to believe. As I said, I'll believe it when I see it.
And I guess what I’m saying is that there is a lazy part of me that prefers comfort and wishes it never had to come to blows like this surely will…but there is another part of me that realizes God is doing something in the hearts of faithful priests and Catholics and I think we’re on the edge of something that will be unlike anything we’ve seen in our lifetimes.
Again. I'll believe it when I see it.
Father Hollowell has some good points here. There is going to be a time very soon that priests and bishops will know that being tough and assertive may be the most loving, Christian act they will ever have to do. The greatest act of mercy may be to correct an injustice, bearing in mind the future of the souls of their flocks.