The heresy of the ecumenists

Louie Verrecchio has a very revealing post on Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission for Religious Relations with Jews – thus, the Vatican’s chief ecumenist.  Cardinal Koch routinely makes statements that would have unquestionably been viewed as heresy just a few short years ago. And since Church Doctrine can never change………..(I add emphasis and comments):

If the most recent Holy Roman Pontiff to have been canonized, Pope St. Pius X, could suddenly be placed in the Holy See of today, like a frog dropped in a pot of boiling water, he would leap into action, the anathemas and condemnations flying from his mighty pen so fast it would make even Cardinal Burke’s head spin. [As much as I love Cardinal Burke, I think Pope St. Pius X might have more than a bit of concern about him. And yet he is as good a Cardinal as the Church has at present.  That shows where we are at.]

As it is, the majority of Catholic prelates are doing backstrokes as the souls in their care perish from lack of a shepherd.

Enter Cardinal Kurt Koch.

According to a report in the Tablet,  Cardinal Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission for Religious Relations with Jews, on a recent visit to Jerusalem, stressed “no conversion for the Jews,” saying:

“We Christians must not bear witness in relation to the Jews to a path of salvation which is completely foreign to them, as we do with other religions. This is because the New Testament is built up totally on the basis of the Old Testament. The Catholic Church therefore does not have an organized Jewish mission, as certain Evangelical groups do.”

In light of Aquinas’ definition of heresy as “a species of infidelity in men who, having professed the faith of Christ, corrupt its dogmas,” this would make Cardinal Koch a material heretic.

In speaking of “a path of salvation which is completely foreign” to the Jews, clearly His Eminence is referring to none other than Jesus Christ, who alone is the Way to everlasting life. [Both of these preceding statements are objectively true. Cardinal Koch is one of the most troubling prelates in the Church.  Little surprise, then, that he is German (well,, German Swiss).]

How is it even remotely possible for anyone who holds the Catholic faith, much less a Prince of the Church (a title that means less with every passing day)  [Ouch, but so true. That hits them where they hurt] to refer to Jesus Christ, Son of David and long-awaited Messiah, as “completely foreign” to the Jews? If a candidate for Confirmation said this, the bishop would be duty bound to deny him the sacrament!

And while it is true from the standpoint of formal structure that the Church does not have “an organized Jewish mission,” it is to the everlasting shame of all of her members that this is the case, especially those in the hierarchy who, like Cardinal Koch, place diplomacy and warm sentiments above the mission that Jesus Christ gave to His Church……..  [And that is exactly, precisely right.  Koch, Dolan, Mahony, Ravasi, O’Brien,Tagle, Daneels, the list goes on and on, almost every single prince of the Church has either publicly declared heresy at some recent point, engaged in hideous scandal, failed to defend the Faith, or all three. It’s a triple crown of massive fails!]

………in suggesting that the Jews stand in no need of conversion, Cardinal Koch is guilty of precisely the indifferentism condemned by Pope Pius VII, wherein “truth is confused with error, and the Holy and Immaculate Spouse of Christ is placed on the same level as heretical sects and even as Jewish faithlessness” (Post Tam Diurturnas)

[We must remind……] our fellow Catholics that the Church has been praying for the conversion of the Jews for many centuries, and for one simple reason. In the words of the Council of Florence:

The Catholic Church firmly believes, professes, and proclaims that those not living within Her, not only pagans, but also Jews, heretics, and schismatics, cannot become participants in eternal life but will depart ‘into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels’ (Mt. 25:41), unless before the end of life the same have been added to the flock… (Council of Florence, Dz 714).

Given the fact that Cardinal Koch no longer believes as much, I would suggest in all charity that we must pray for his conversion, that he might one day return to the Catholic faith.  [I agree.]

——————–End Quote———————

There is a little hook at the end of Verrecchio’s post that I won’t paste, because he definitely deserves the hit.  Go to his site and scroll down to the end, and see if you get the joke.  It’s delicious irony.  Brilliant.

Can anyone dispute what Mr. Verrecchio says?  I can’t even begin to, and must admit I agree with all he says.

And Mr. Verrechio’s prescriptive advice for the faithful is spot on: we must pray for all our shepherds, from our parish priest to the highest princes, for their sanctification, conversion, and humble submission to God’s Will and acceptance of ALL the Truth He has revealed through His Church.  More than that, we must also condition our bodies, will, and minds to accept mortification, and offer that mortification up for the conversion of all prelates or perhaps one particular cardinal or bishop.  Such would be a tremendous work of spiritual mercy, and very edifying for your soul, irrespective if that Grace moves the soul of a particular prelate. I think a very large part of the reason we are in our current crisis is because lay Catholics (myself certainly included) haven’t been offering enough prayers and sacrifices on behalf of our spiritual leadership.  I will try to do more.

One final note, I just thought to add after I hit the publish button!  The reason I entitled this post the heresy of the ecumenists is that Cardinal Koch’s views are extremely common among those engaged in the modern, post-Vatican II “ecumenical” effort in the Church.  Those involved, from priests to cardinals to lay people, routinely make statements revealing at least a marked indifferentist attitude, if not outright heresy.  This statement from Koch is just the latest example. And, incredibly, such statements can even be found at the very highest levels of authority, at times.  But it is critical to keep in mind that none of these statements is doctrinal, none of them are binding on a Catholic’s conscience, so we can and must remain free to disagree, even stridently. That’s all.