Replies

netmilsmom,

Hope you don't mind my posting it in full -- didn't see OSV listed as publication that needed to be excerpted....

FReegards,

- ConservativeStLouisGuy

____________________

Online Anti-Catholicism Rears Its Ugly Head: Web Surfers Seeking Catholic Church Info Are Often Targeted By Fundamentalist Sites

Rosalie and Michael (not their real names) are a Catholic husband and wife from the Northeast who run an upscale hair salon in the South; they have long been what might be called "perpetual parish shoppers," ever looking for a church community that perfectly fits their spirituality.

Not long after Rosalie began attending an evangelical Christian mega-church whose spirituality emphasizes Biblical fundamentalism, church members directed her to a plethora of Internet sites aimed at revealing to Catholics the "truth" about the Catholic Church.

One example of the sort of misinformation present on such sites: The back of the pope’s chair in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome is inscribed with an upside-down cross — proof that the pope is allied with Satan, right?

Perhaps a poorly catechized Catholic like Rosalie would fall for that explanation, but others will remember that St. Peter asked to be crucified upside-down because he did not feel worthy to die in the same way his Lord did.

The upside-down cross, then, is a symbol of the humility of the "servant of the servants of God" and a reminder that he is to lay down his life for his flock.

Sadly, Rosalie now talks about the "Vatican’s link to paganism," the "real" purpose of the Crusades and how to avoid the "mark of the beast" (don’t let the government implant a bar-coded national-identity device under your skin).

How can some Catholics be so gullible?

"There is something that can’t be explained, some basic human thing, that if it is printed then it seems to be true," said Brother John Raymond, co-founder of the Venice, Fla.-based Monks of Adoration and author of "Catholics on the Internet" (out of print), a guide to some 10,000 Catholic-related websites, many of which he recommends.

But as the Internet becomes the most powerful — and sometimes the only — source of research, especially for the under 40 population, a number of anti-Catholic websites are playing on the naiveté and curiosity of marginal, disillusioned or confused Catholics, according to experts.

Old story, new venue

"The Internet is just full of this material," said Carl Olson, editor of Envoy magazine and a former fundamentalist Christian who grew up reading the kinds of claims that now inform the anti-Catholic websites.

"There are a number of specific fundamentalist groups whose primary focus is trying to convince Catholics that their church is not Christian, that it is pagan, the whore of Babylon," Olson told Our Sunday Visitor.

Many of the websites have telling addresses, such as freedomfromcatholicism.com; others are more deceptive, such as justforcatholics.org and catholicconcerns.com.

The content tends to reflect the already-familiar anti-Catholic thinking of a pack of writers well known to Catholic apologists: James McCarthy, Jack Chick, Lorraine Boettner, Dave Hunt.

"We certainly are aware of the sites out there, because Catholics troubled by them send us links to those sites or we find them used against us by non-Catholics who want to ‘save’ us," said Jan Wakelin, of Catholic Answers, a San Diego-based publication.

"Sometimes they throw out so much material, and hundreds of charges — all of which could be responded to, but it would take forever to do it," she said.

Engaging those who run the anti-Catholic websites might be quixotic, according to those who have trod that ground. Civil engineer Mel Damewood, a cradle Catholic and native of Eugene, Ore., first spotted anti-Catholic websites back in the mid-1990s.

After identifying numerous falsehoods in the content, he e-mailed some of the sites, presenting Catholic positions, but "they would go off on another tangent," Damewood said. "They tend to go after Catholic teaching on the Eucharist, on the Virgin Mary and the whole structure of the Vatican."

Alarmingly effective

Envoy’s Olson said his experience with people who run the anti-Catholic websites is that once they discover you are someone who really knows the faith and can beat them at their own game, they will cease talking.

"They either bail out or change the topic and bury you with other information. That is really one of the problems and challenges of the Internet — without seeing people face to face and seeing their humanity, it is easy to hurt people and throw these flaming darts," Olson said.

Fundamentalists trying to target Catholics have seen the Internet as a great opportunity to put forward their beliefs, he added, and it has been alarmingly effective with people who don’t know their faith.

"They get on the Internet, they are alienated from their parish or may be poorly catechized, and they see this or that group is passionate about Jesus, and they get caught up in the emotional aspect of it, about sharing their love for Jesus," Olson said.

Emilio Chavez, assistant professor of sacred scripture at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, Fla., who is active in interfaith relations, recalls a 1993 document from the U.S. bishops that calls biblical fundamentalism a form of intellectual suicide. Chavez sees some common characteristics among anti-Catholic church groups and what it is that would attract people to them.

"They tend to be intimate societies where everyone is equal and participating with a central, charismatic leader, with an emotional approach to the scripture, and where a direct link to God is emphasized," Chavez said. "There is also an emphasis on predictions and interpreting the secrets of the world."

Chavez thinks having good Bible studies at the parish level is one way of minimizing the impact of misinformation.

"We have to promote biblical study and devotion in a Catholic way, to put the Bible in the forefront of Catholic life so people do not have to turn to the sects which are putting the Bible at the forefront in a way that is dangerous and that is not Catholic," he said.

Fighting fire with truth

Here is a list of recommended resources for solid Catholic apologetics:

Books:

- "The Catholic Answer Bible" (OSV, $21.95)
- "Where is that in the Bible?" by Patrick Madrid (OSV, $10.95)
- Why Is that in Tradition?" by Patrick Madrid (OSV, $10.95)
- "Answer Me This" by Patrick Madrid (OSV, $11.95)
- "The Catholic Response" by Father Peter Stravinskas (OSV, $11.95)

Internet sites:

Several Catholic mega-sites provide links to solid, Catholic resources online:

www.catholicity.com

www.catholicexchange.com

www.catholic.org