Posted by
AudiR10TDI on Monday, September 18, 2006 7:39:40 PM
Recently the Holy Father gave a talk to an academic audience in which, as you may remember doing when you were at University, he combined quotations from different sources with different points of view, and created with their aid a dialogue on a set topic. In this case, he discussed the question of whether there is a place for force and violence in spreading the Faith, and he concluded that since God is a reasonable Being, He would not need to use the sword, the gun, the bludgeon or the screaming temper tantrum to encourage humanity to follow Him. Of course He could if He wanted to, but being reasonable and having endowed His creatures with free will, He didn’t think that was necessary. Well, surprise, surprise! There has been a flame war in the Muslim world demanding that the Pope take back that quotation that Mohammed was violent and especially that he commanded conversion by the sword – or they’ll slit our throats and blow up our churches and burn our buildings down.
Apologize? For what? For doing the job God tasked him with when He hired him?
The Pope is charged by God as Defender of the Faith. His duty which was tasked upon him by God is to speak out to Christians and on behalf of Christians (particularly Catholics of course but all Christians in the aggregate) to point out where we are correct and where we are off the rails. Currently in Canada there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth because the Pope pointed out that CATHOLIC politicians who claim they can put their Catholic religion in a box while they practice their politics are tragically mistaken and they need to choose either one or the other and stand by it or else. That is his duty. Instead of realizing this, the GLBT and the pro-choice people are bawling that the Pope is violating "The Separation of Church and State" which is not even a CANADIAN concept in the first place. His Holiness is practicing that task given him by God. He is calling the faithful to BE faithful and pointing out the danger to their immortal souls. That's what he's supposed to do.
Likewise it is his task given him by God to defend his flock from the ravening wolves outside the sheepfold. This he is doing with the army that he has. That would be us. He is standing up and showing us by example what we need to do, and proving the old Army maxim "You can't push a string." That is, you have to lead by getting out in front.
The Muslims are behaving like the teenager who reacts to her mother's decree that she's not old enough for all-night parties by throwing a screaming tantrum. By their behaviour they are proving exactly the point His Holiness made. And we all remember the forced conversion of the Fox reporter and photographer (cowards that they were -- they will pay dearly for their cowardice in the future, I bet). How's that fit in with what His Holiness said? Pretty well, I’d say.
Look, either we're going to have to fight them or they're going to kill us. When are we going to realize that and put on the whole armour of God? And where do we get that armour and who’s going to lead us into the battle? God’s Rottweiler, His Holiness the Pope, God’s representative on Earth. Because his job is Defender of the Faith. And that’s what he’s out there in the front of the army (that would be us) pointing out the way.