from reply from 1052: Good luck with that.
Thanks for the clarification.
But true is still true even if you don’t have universal agreement. Like Paul said, let God be true, and every man a liar. Romans 3:4. Consequentialist speculation, OTOH, is the methodology of relativism. Deciding what is ethically, morally, or theologically true based on earthly consequences. That’s really the opposite of the notion of divine truth, which was true even when only 7000 remained who had not bent the knee to Baal, true even when the Son of God was being nailed to a cross, and will still be true when He returns in glory, though faith has nearly died out altogether.
So truly, I have never understood why Catholic apologists use the consequentialist argument for Sola Ecclesia, though they avoid it studiously with respect, say, to abortion. If you don’t judge a human life disposable, regardless of pragmatic consequences, why use a different measure for the work of the Spirit of God, Who is Himself the builder of His Ecclesia, not fallible man.