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Francis attacks Catholic proselytism

In the most recent papal video Francis emphatically attacks Catholic proselytism and affirms that every apostolate should be based on "an encounter."

He understands "an encounter" as the apostolate a Catholic makes by his exemplary life.

Although this neologist "encounter" emits the bad odor of Progressivism, there is essentially nothing new about it: The Catholic Church has always taught that we must give good example.

What is strange is that by condemning proselytism, the Pope seems to deny the two other traditional methods of apostolate, which bring people to the Faith by persuasion and by discussions.

When Our Lord ordered the Apostles to teach all nations by preaching the Gospel (Mt 28:19), the supposition of this commandment is that they should persuade pagans to accept the truth of the Catholic Faith, engaging in lively discussions if necessary to achieve this end. So, by denying proselytism, Francis basically is denying the commandment Christ gave to the Apostles. This is a very bold denial...

The gravest part is that this denial is not something new to the scene. Since 1991, John Paul II, Benedict XVI and now Francis have been systematically opposing proselytism.

What is the reason? The explanation for this position is that, after the 1989 change of direction in Communism, Catholics in the Ukraine, Slovakia and Romania were taking back their churches, which Stalin had given to the Schismatics. The movement was so strong that, in the first six months alone, Eastern Catholics had taken back 1,300 churches. Since the Schismatics had a false and weak faith, along with this movement many of their followers, including their priests, were converting en masse to Catholicism.

This quick landslide of the so-called Orthodox people into the Catholic Church caused the Schismatic hierarchs in Ukraine and Russia to panic. Unable to contain the movement, they blackmailed the Vatican, threatening that unless the Pope put an end to the initiatives of those Eastern Catholics, they would put a stop to Ecumenism with the Vatican. Unfortunately the Pope gave in and condemned the actions of those good Catholics. Check here and here.

This is the reason why JPII started to attack proselytism. The landmark document was issued in March 1991 by the due Vatican organ: Uniatism as a Method of Union. Thenceforth, the progressivist Popes multiplied their condemnations of proselytism and the Schismatics hierarchs increased their wailing over it. (Check here)

This practical reason – which by the way is unjust since Ecumenism is wrong – does not attenuate, but aggravates the denial of the commandment of Our Lord. We see that it is not only Francis who is acting like a Pope opposed to Christ, but that his predecessors did the very same thing.

Photos from the Vatican video

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Posted October 3, 2021

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