Alert to Developing World Catholics: chasm between orthodox believers and radicals in western power

C-FAM ^ | Tuesday, May 27, 2003 | Austin Ruse

[Sergio]

save for later

[huskyboy]

Oh yeah. If a non-Italian is chosen, he is likely to be an older prelate, so as to "limit" his power. The Church is a huge, cumbersome institution, change comes slowly. My bet is on an Italian, but Card. Arinze is making great points with the "conservatives" in the College. (Labels inside the College of Cardinals are about useless, but I use "conservative" and "orthodox" as interchangeable. Some, like the odius Card. Kasper are AT BEST heretics, others like Card. Arinze are quite orthodox, but the office makes the man, so to speak. Even Card. Kasper (Heaven forbid his election!) would likely be "orthodox" in many ways as Pope.

It's about time someone handed it to the ultraliberal schools. The question is, where are these kids getting their catechesis from? That's the only way we can explain the phenomenon at places like Georgetown.

Cardinal Biffi is an apparent possibility. No matter how you look at it, though, being "conservative" is not good enough. One must observe what these folks say and do out there: saying that the do-it-yourself "mass" has ended is not necessarily going far enough in my opinion. Issuing a universal indult won't cut it. Mandating a change in textbooks used in catechism classes - going back to the Baltimore and Roman Catechism, for instance - is significant enough to give people hope.

If anyone knows how I can contact either of the two, please let me know. And also those responsible for backing away from the truth, stating something like, "if this is made public then the French and German bishops will declare a schism". I have to tell these people somehow that such cowardly behavior will foster schism anyways. So let them have their schism and we'll work on finding our way back onto the narrow path once again.

[DPB101]

Such is the nature and history of the Christian faith. Always side stepping this way and that but with the core always enduring. Did you catch Philip Jenkins Atlantic Monthly article last October entitled The Next Christianity ? Huge demographic changes afoot. Africa is nearly 50% Christian, up from 10% a century ago--the community of Christian faith, as it did in medieval times, supercedes the nation states of the continent (which are failing as we know). There are more Catholic baptisms in the Philippines than in Italy, France, Spain and Poland combined. Pentecostals, nearly 400 million strong, may reach 1 billion in the next 35 years. They too, are heavily represented in the developing world.

Jenkins also goes into details about the perversions of faith you mention. Some weird "Christian" religions popping up in Africa and South America.