Posted on 03/19/2026 7:15:38 AM PDT by ebb tide
Editor’s note: This article by Bishop Joseph Strickland originally appeared as a post on his X account.
(LifeSiteNews) — In these days of great confusion, many faithful Catholics are feeling unsettled – some even shaken – by the intensity of political pressure, public accusations, and the growing hostility toward those who simply hold to the perennial teaching of the Catholic Church.
Let me speak clearly, as a shepherd of souls:
If you feel that the ground beneath you is shaking, it is not because the truth has changed – it is because many have unknowingly anchored themselves to things that cannot hold.
Political parties cannot save us. Governments cannot define truth. And no earthly movement – no matter how powerful – can replace the Kingship of Jesus Christ.
Our foundation is not found in Washington, nor in any administration, nor in any political identity. Our foundation is Jesus Christ.
As Our Lord Himself declares: “Every one therefore that heareth these my words, & doth them, shall be likened to a wise man that built his house upon a rock.” (Matthew 7:24)
That Rock is not a party. That Rock is not an ideology. That Rock is not a geopolitical agenda. That Rock is Christ – and Christ alone.
READ: Ted Cruz doubles down after backlash for sharing article that attacked Traditional Catholics
We are now witnessing a troubling trend: faithful Catholics are being labeled as “anti-Semitic” simply for refusing to adopt certain theological or political positions – particularly those tied to forms of modern Christian Zionism.
Let me be absolutely clear:
The Catholic Church rejects hatred of any people, including the Jewish people. Anti-Semitism is a sin. It is unjust. It is contrary to the Gospel.
But it is equally unjust to accuse Catholics of hatred simply because we do not accept theological positions that are foreign to the Catholic faith.
The Church does not teach that the rebuilding of a temple or adherence to a particular political program is necessary for the return of Christ. Our Lord has already fulfilled the covenant.
The People of God are not defined by ethnicity, nor by political alliances, but by faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to His will.
The Catholic Church does not cheer for war. She does not sanctify violence. She does not ignore the suffering of innocent people – anywhere. Whether in Gaza, Israel, or any part of the world, every human life is sacred.
To speak of suffering, to mourn the loss of innocent life, to call for justice – this is not hatred. It is the Gospel. Our Lord said: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
A Catholic conscience must never be silenced by political pressure or fear of accusation.
READ: Carrie Prejean Boller calls out leaked USCCB memo ‘on Jews’ as misrepresenting her testimony
Many Catholics today are experiencing turmoil because their identity has become too closely tied to a political party or movement. This is a dangerous mistake. No political party fully represents the truth of the Gospel. No administration is the Kingdom of God.
When we anchor ourselves to politics, we will eventually be shaken – because politics always shifts. But when we are anchored in Christ, we remain firm, even when the world trembles.
If you feel uncertain …
If you feel pressured …
If you feel accused or misunderstood …
Hear this clearly:
You are not on shaky ground if you stand with Christ.
You are only shaken if your foundation is elsewhere.
Return to Him. Remain in Him. Stand firmly in the truth of His Church.
This is not a time for fear. This is a time for clarity. We must reject hatred. We must reject false accusations. We must reject every attempt to force the Church into conformity with worldly ideologies.
And we must proclaim, without compromise:
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD.
Not Caesar. Not any party. Not any movement. Christ alone.
Therefore, stand firm in Him. Do not be shaken, do not be silenced, & do not be led astray. Remain faithful, remain rooted, & hold fast to the truth – no matter the cost.
+Joseph
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Ping
Happy Name Day, Bishop Strickland, and thanks for all you do.
As usual, Strickland is right. We are seeing evangelicals like Ted Cruz make outrageously ignorant claims such as that referring to Christ being “King” is some kind of antisemitic code. And Mark Levin who really should have no dog in the fight in Catholic vs. Evangelical theological disputes brands Catholics as “kooks” whenever they point out that Zionism isn’t part of our faith.
These two factions within Judaism differed so much in their interpretation of Scripture, they split into two different religions.
Since then, their antagonism has always been mutual; never the one-sided "Christian anti-Semitism" that Jews complain of in their narrative.
It's not "hate" to recognize that. It's just history.
I don’t think it’s SCOTUS. I think that Cruz has never given up his presidential aspirations and sees an opening in 2028 in positioning himself as the field’s most ardent champion of Israel. There are some GOP mega-donors (Mrs Adelson chipped in more than $100 million to Trump’s campaign in 2024) for whom Israel is the top issue, and Cruz likely hopes to use that donor class to catapult himself into the White House. (I personally think that Cruz will never be elected president due to his off-putting personality but obviously he doesn’t seem himself in the same way).
Since Israel is already a country, “zionism” is no longer relevant. When the brits were running things there, they divided the region into Israel for one group and Jordan for another.
The “zionist/anti-zionists” continuing to argue this history in the current context of wanting the US to stop fighting w/iran sounds a lot like race-baiters in the US demanding “reparations” for slavery.
Both groups are full of shit and are fundamentally anti-American
The Church is at its best and serves the faithful best when it holds a strong countercultural stance. When it stands against the neo pagan ,hedonistic decadence of modern times it is true to Christ and serves the people. Sadly the current hierarchy seem to read polls more than canon law. would not be suprised to see the Cardinal of Los Angeles attending the Academy Awards in clerical garb and applauding wildly.
"Chrstian Zionism" is being used as a scapegoat. Evangelical and Catholic theologies are mutually exclusive yet each claims to be the objective truth. It is impossible to avoid all conflict.
Also, Evangelicals have long been hostile to the Catholic Church's embrace of higher Biblical criticism and evolution. But you never heard about this. You're only hearing about those ee-vil Israelis.
Political parties cannot save us. Governments cannot define truth. And no earthly movement – no matter how powerful – can replace the Kingship of Jesus Christ.
But it's not a literal kingship, is it? It's a "social kingship" . . . whatever that means. The Catholic Church has always been (at least since St. Augustine) fanatically hostile to the idea that the chrstian messiah will one day the the literal king of the earth. But the "emperor of the last days" or the "great Cathoic monarch" will be.
This split between Catholics and "Evangelicals" (I prefer to call them Fundamentalist Protestants) was inevitable. There are several areas of disagreement where one position is the antithesis of the other. You're only hearing about it now that "Zionism" can take the blame for all of it.
A shovel is not inherently a murder weapon. But if you use a shovel to whack someone on the head it can become a murder weapon.
No one, not even Ted Cruz claims saying “Christ is King” is inherently antisemitic.
But are some people using this phrase in vain to cloak antisemitism? Yes, yes they are.
People misuse proper doctrine and teachings all the time. This is but one of the latest examples of the Devil twisting scripture as a weapon against us all. It’s his original trick, done as a serpent in the garden.
Other recent headlines from this deceptive rag:
Keep in mind that in 2018, Cruz barely won re-election to the U.S. Senate against Beto O'Rourke. In 2024, he won by a nine point margin, but he underperformed when compared with Trump, who won Texas by 13 percentage points. Large donors of whatever persuasion want results for their money, and they will not see Cruz worthy of their opening their checkbooks.
Well said.
Well, who is saying what, exactly? Then it should be a simple matter of what scripture says.
There is no cardi cardinal of Los Angeles.
According to your logic, anything christian is antisemitic.
A severe case of paranoia.
And, while Fundamentalism started as a reaction to higher criticism, there is plenty of overlap between Evangelicalism and higher criticism, as well as with much stranger ideas, like the "prosperity gospel".
This is really a particular flavor of Protestantism, premillennial dispensationalism, singling out Catholics for attack. There are a great many Fundamentalist Protestants who reject premillennial dispensationalism. Many very conservative Presbyterians, for example, would not object to being called "fundamentalists," but are staunchly amillennial in their eschatology.
It seems Cruz is pointing at demonic leftists and fake Christians like Candace Owens, who does not believe a word of the Gospel and is using "Christ is King" for clicks and to help spread her hatred of Jews.
The Zionists/Dispensationalists accuse everyone who disagrees with them of *antisemitism” these days. It’s so common on FR now, it’s actually become boring.
They don’t seem to realize that by tossing that accusation around so often and so indiscriminately they have robbed it of its meaning and power. Which is a shame, really, because when the real thing rears its ugly head ...
It’s like lefties calling everyone who disagrees with them of *racist”. They’ve done it so often and for so long, it’s become the stuff of jokes and memes. Now if/when real racism occurs, the word used to condemn it has become meaningless. It’s sad. The same is happening with “antisemitism”.
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