Posted on 09/26/2015 11:31:49 AM PDT by Jan_Sobieski
The greatly heralded Pope Francis, beneficiary of 24 hour news coverage from all news networks, has once again given us insight into his inner self in a sermon at St Patrick's Cathedral in New York City (Transcript of Sermon) . After starting the service, Pope Francis gave a heart warming shout-out to his "religion of peace", Muslim brothers and sisters when he said this:
I would like to express two sentiments for my Muslim brothers and sisters: Firstly, my greetings as they celebrate the feast of sacrifice.
The Pope clearly understands that for the last 1400 years, Islam has held that Christians and Jews are not brothers and sisters, but rather infidels worthy of death. Islam's god, Allah, states in Surah 19 of the Koran that he has no son. To say so is blasphemy against Allah and his prophet, Mohammed. However, despite what Muslims believe, the Chrislamic Pope Francis has demanded that the Christian nations in Europe and America receive all Muslim "al hijrah" immigrants, while the Vatican has the strictest immigration policy on earth. Perhaps the syncretic Pope believes that by paying obeisance to Islam he can bring the irrational religion under his cognitive dissonant sphere of influence? His later words in the sermon seem to dignify the Islamic view of Jesus' failure on the cross when he stated:
"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.
The Bible foretells in Revelation 13 that in the last days before the return of Jesus, an international religious figure will rise on the scene. The religious figure will look like a self-sacrificing, philanthropist. A real lover of man and the earth! He will appear harmless as a lamb, but when he speaks, he speaks like a ravenous dragon. He may feign faith in Christ, but in reality will direct everyone to worship another political figure who will be promoted to help solve the world's problems. Somehow this religious figure is so intertwined with politics and the economic system, he is able to promote a new worldwide economic order where all must have the the political figure's mark on their person in order to purchase, and to show loyalty to the "new world system". The Bible is also clear that whoever receives this "mark" will be damned to hell, with no hope of redemption.
I am not sure if Pope Francis IS this religious figure. If not, he is certainly a wonderful forerunner. Every time he opens his mouth, he continues his foray into the world political and economic orders and his consistent promotion of homosexuality, Allah as God of the Bible, and Marxism/Socialism betraying his "inner dragon"...
Victory in Jesus, by Eugene Monroe Bartlett, Sr.
I heard an old, old story
How a Savior came from glory
How He gave His life on Calvary
To save a wretch like me
I heard about His groaning
Of His precious blood's atoning
Then I repented of my sins
And won the victory
O victory in Jesus
My Savior, forever
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory
Beneath the cleansing flood
I heard about His healing
Of His cleansing pow'r revealing
How He made the lame to walk again
And caused the blind to see
And then I cried, "Dear Jesus
Come and heal my broken spirit,"
And somehow Jesus came and brought
To me the victory
O victory in Jesus
My Savior, forever
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory
Beneath the cleansing flood
I heard about a mansion
He has built for me in glory
And I heard about the streets of gold
Beyond the crystal sea
About the angels singing
And the old redemption story
And some sweet day I'll sing up there
The song of victory
O victory in Jesus
My Savior, forever
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory
Beneath the cleansing flood!
You mean speaking as a Secular Humanist. See my previous post. If you view Jesus as a secular humanist and one who thinks that Jesus mission was to make the world a political utopia, then you would have to conclude, as the Pope apparently does, that Jesus' true mission was cut short because he was crucified before he could set up a human paradise.
The Pope's apparent mission is to finish the job that Jesus could not finish due to his premature death in the cross.
LOL! When all else fails, cry BIGOT! That shuts down the discussion and makes you feel better about yourself. Arguing with you is like playing chess with a pigeon. The pigeon will just knock over all the pieces and then strut around like he won the game.
Nice try, Padre. FAIL!
I just googled your statement and I could not find a single Christian theologian who has ever lived who has referred to Christ's death as a "temporary victory for a sinful world over the Son of God."
Maybe I should google it in Latin?
You have called those of us who disagree with your interpretation of what the Pope clearly stated as Bigots. That means you have no legitimate argument. That means you lose.
Now if you can show us just one Christian theologian who claims that Jesus' death on the cross was a failure, then maybe we can take that theologian's arguments and put it to the test.
To say that every single Christian Theologian who has ever lived agrees with Pope Francis is a really big step in hyperbole when I'm betting you can't even find one.
Look up Anselm.
What did he say?
You’re such a whiz with Google. You look him up.
1 Pet 3:15
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
What did he say?
You didn’t ask me about the hope that is in me. You asked me about theologians.
I think you hope that Pope Francis is not a pretender to the throne.
So you're not willing to even attempt to back up your assertion that "Every Christian theologian who has ever lived has called Christs death a temporary victory for a sinful world over the Son of God."?
Instead you answer the question of even requesting you provide me with the statement of even one Christian Theologian who buys into the idea that Jesus was a temporary failure by calling the questioner an Anti-Catholic bigot?
Is that the way all Catholic priests respond to critical questions, or are you just an anomaly?
If I were to come to you at your parish and ask you to name just one Catholic Theologian who thought Jesus death on the cross was in any way a "failure", would you throw me out of your church and call me a bigot? Or would you follow Peter's admonition and give unto every man an answer?
I’m not Catholic, but intellectual honesty is important to me. Your explanation of the pope’s comments in full context is on target. He was saying not to look at circumstances with mere human eyes, because God sees them differently, according to his plan, which he reveals in his time, for instance as he revealed in the Resurrection.
I’ve been asked jokingly if I’m PC or sumthin’. Many of the people on this thread have imposed a Christian form of PC that boggles the mind.
“How do you account for the unassailable fact that these defeated, depressed disciples, scattered back to their homes after the crucifixion, shaking like frightened rabbits, behind locked doors, are shortly thereafter launching an all-out assault upon Caesar’s empire...”
— William H. Willimon, “American theologian and bishop in the United Methodist Church,...one of the two most frequently read writers by pastors in mainline Protestantism...”
Humanly speaking the disciples saw themselves as defeated. How did they view the crucifixion? As a failure of their leader, Jesus. But God had seen it differently from the beginning, and had other plans for them. After spending 40 days with Jesus, they saw the victory that God had in mind all along.
Should this be so hard to grasp?
Very well stated ....thank you....a good read!
I also think Francis’s Jesuit background comes into play in a big way in how he’s approaching “The World” leaders...and how he believes the World should be.
I listened again to the Popes speech at the UN and before our Congress....When Pope Francis, spoke to our congress....(our nations representatives “under God”) this man, promoted as “Vicar of Christ”, didn’t open up in prayer. ...He did not invoke God in any way, shape or form..... Instead he brought up Dorathy Day...Lincoln, King and others to support his socialist/political positions .. in other words the Ladicean gospel of socialism .....Jesus never even got an ‘honorable mention” in our Congress anymore than at the UN General Assembly....wrapping his speeches up in ‘God bless America’ is fast wearing thin on the lips of socialism.
Was reminded as I listened that the message of ‘the cross’ is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18....which does see to evade this Popes speeches entirely....
...Stunning when he is seen among members as the Vicar Of Christ, and the whole world is watching him, yet he miserably fails to give the Gospel message he’s been appointed to give.
If the Pope was addressing human failure, as some are attempting to explain, then why did he NOT follow with the Gospel Message and invitation? It was an ideal opportunity as the eyes of the world were watching.
Jesus said that if you will not acknowledge me before men I will not acknowledge you before my father....the Pope has crowds of crying yelling followers who NEED the Gospel...and instead the Pope talks of Globalism and the World uniting as one....as if man alone can erase the sins of the world.
He was worse than a fool saying that ‘the cross’ was a failure....’The blood of the cross’ is the very meeting place between God and man.....we come to “the Cross” for repentance and faith...that is where we meet...apart from that there’s nothing to save us... If you are not under the blood you are simply doomed by your own sins....the resurrection did not give us forgiveness...ONLY his shed blood in our place gave us that....and that was given by his blood shed for us there...at the Cross.
The Gospel message is the ONLY message that changes the heart and man...this Pope is not giving it.
One of the first signs of intellectual honesty is the ability, and willingness, to restate your opponent’s position ACCURATELY, before disputing it.
You will note that the anti-Catholics on this thread argue by distorting their opponent’s position as egregiously as possible. I noted one person who paraphrased what the Pope said as: “The death AND RESURRECTION of Jesus was a failure.”
I note that, at this point, the anti-Catholics are no longer discussing anything, but just shrieking insults and abuse. At this point, it’s time to just let the inner demons exhaust themselves.
I have not seen the quote in which Francis says Christ’s dying on the cross was a failure. I’ve not googled it. I’ll believe you all on this thread that it was said.
I have seen the post on this thread in which it is disputed that all theologians have agreed that the ‘death’ was a failure. I would challenge those theologians, also.
We CANNOT ignore prophecy. Prophecy clearly indicates the resurrection. We can go to those scriptures if necessary, but even the ‘gospel’ spelled out in 1 Co 15 shows that it was “Good News” that “Christ DIED for our sins according to the scripture, that He was buried, that He rose...”
The DEATH of Christ WAS the sacrifice that paid for our sins. God accepted that sacrifice and proved that to the ages to come by raising Jesus from the dead. He was dead, he was truly dead and buried, and He has Risen!
Is it possible that Satan and his minions danced a victory dance for a few until the resurrection? Yes. That did not make a failure the PLAN God had implemented as early as Eve when it was declared that her unique seed would bruise the head of the serpent. God made His plan more evident over the ages through the mouths of the prophets. And then His plan came to pass. As Jesus would say ahead of time, the Son of Man had to go to Jerusalem to be killed.
It was part of the eternal plan, so it would be in error to view it as a failure.
The failure occurred in the Garden. The failure of Man.
The Victory occurred at the cross. The Victory of Christ.
I never hurled any personal insults at you, but you chose to throw insults (Anti-Catholic Bigot) at everyone who disagreed with your point. I asked you to show me one single instance in which a Christian theologian said that the Cross of Christ was a failure. You told me to google it.
You are the one who cut off the discussion by calling people bigots. When you do that, you are the one who has stopped the debate.
You're just an Anti-Catholic Bigot.
Right on! Thank you.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.