"Going"
THE EVOLVING CATHOLIC CHURCH
Yes, it is an appropriate title in more ways than one. The Catholic Church has not opposed the godless teaching of evolution for decades, if ever. USA Today published an article on October 28, 2014 in which the current pope (Francis) made these statements:
When we read about Creation in Genesis, we run the risk of imagining God was a magician, with a magic wand able to do everything. But that is not so.
He created human beings and let them develop according to the internal laws that he gave to each one so they would reach their fulfillment.
The first statement borders on blasphemy. We do not imagine God as a magician; we understand that He is God—all powerful. Has Francis never read of the power of the Word of God? Perhaps he should consider these two verses from the Psalms:
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth (33:6).
For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast (33:9).
God does not need a magic wand; His Word is powerful (Heb. 4:12)—and eternal (Matt. 24:35). The second statement above is correct when it says that God created human beings, but God did not create them as monkeys or apes first. Human beings have always been in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27)—different from and over all the animals (v. 28). This truth flatly contradicts evolution. The USA Today article pointed out the historical friendliness the Catholic Church has had with Darwin.
Unlike much of evangelical Protestantism in the U.S., Catholic teaching traditionally has not been at odds with evolution. In 1950, Pope Pius XII proclaimed there was no opposition between evolution and Catholic doctrine. In 1996, St. John Paul II endorsed Pius' statement.
It looks as though the Catholic Church is not going to challenge the theory of evolution any time in the near future. They do not gain anything with their current stance. Even though they have capitulated on what they should have challenged, evolutionists do not appreciate the concession.
However, this article is not about Catholicism’s weak position on evolution, which Protestants have effectively denounced. It is only mentioned to show that Catholicism is practicing evolution of their own; they are changing positions they have historically held, and it is unsettling their adherents.
Must One Be a Catholic to be Saved?
According to Catholic Online, Francis declared that all people, not just Catholics, are redeemed through Jesus—even atheists. What? According to the May 30, 2013 post, even atheists have an opportunity to be saved—although there is a teensy-weensy “catch. Those people must still do good.”
Did not Martin Luther accuse the Catholic Church of teaching salvation by works? It seems he was right on that count. Atheists can be saved by doing good works! Now how much further can one get away from the truth? No one is saved by works of merit. Could Ephesians 2:8-9 be any more clear? But consider the ramifications of this doctrine.
If anyone can be saved without being a Catholic, then why be a Catholic? This seems to be a radical departure from what the Catholic Church has historically taught. Luther and others (who at least taught that in order to go to heaven one must believe Jesus to be the Son of God) were excommunicated from the Catholic Church, but atheists who do not believe Jesus to be the Son of God make it to heaven by doing good deeds. Such a doctrine is incredible!
Furthermore, the notion raises more questions than it answers. How many good deeds must an atheist do in order to get into heaven (even though he spends his whole life denouncing the Bible and Christianity)? Apparently doing good deeds has as much atoning power as the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Who can believe it?
The fact is that atheists are lost, period. Jesus Himself said, “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). He also said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). He did not give “doing good” as a second option for coming to the Father.
This new view is probably a response to the current public mood that God saves everyone. Francis has joined the sentiment that no one is lost. But this idea runs counter to what Jesus taught about the majority of people being lost (Matt. 7:13-14). If atheists can be saved by doing good works, why can’t Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and assorted idolaters? We wouldn’t want to omit anyone, would we?
Perhaps the Catholic Church, in trying to run away from the now embarrassing and shameful inquisitions they once conducted, have traveled so far that they are falling off the cliff in the other direction. It was a capital crime, punishable by death, not to be a Catholic in the past; now it is totally unnecessary. Yes, an evolution in ideology is very much in evidence.
Homosexuality
According to CNN’s story posted on May 25, 2018, the pope met with Juan Carlos Cruz, “a survivor of clerical sexual abuse in Chile.” Among other things Cruz confided to Francis that he is a homosexual. He claims the pope told him, "It doesn't matter. God made you like this. God loves you like this." Does this sound shocking? Perhaps, but only mildly so. Some in Catholicism have been defending homosexuality for more than four decades.
To be fair, however, according to CNN, “The Vatican neither confirmed nor denied the Pope's words, saying they ‘do not normally comment on the Pope's private conversations.’" So did it happen or not happen? If the pope did not speak these words, then Cruz is a liar and made up the comments to try to make it look as though the Catholic Church was sympathetic to homosexuality. One wonders why, however, if Francis did not speak these words, did he not simply issue a flat-out denial?
Of course, regardless of what may or may not have been said, it is the case that God did not make anyone a sinner. He did not make fornicators, idolaters, alcoholics, adulterers, or covetous individuals. How could He condemn these sins if people cannot help themselves? Could Judas not help being a betrayer? Paul called homosexuality a “vile affection” and said that it was “against nature,” which is the truth.
The Catholic Church seems to be wetting its index finger and sticking it in the air to see which way the wind is blowing in setting forth church policy. They seem to have even less use for the Bible than they have historically (or no one would claim to be the earthly head of the church in the first place—Matthew 28:18; Ephesians 1:22-23). Each year they seem to bow more and more to the opinions of men, which is the wrong way to “evolve.” One wonders how long it will take to abandon their pro-life stance?
The Latest—Capital Punishment
According to Dennis Prager (posted on Townhall for August 7, 2018), Francis has “changed the Catholic Catechism.” After centuries of teaching that capital punishment for murder constitutes proper Catholic teaching, the new pope now disagrees with Thomas Aquinas and other “Catholic theologians.” In 2015 he wrote that “today capital punishment is unacceptable, however serious the condemned’s crime may have been.” Prager rightly asks: “Unacceptable to whom?”
Francis went on to say that the death penalty “entails cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment”—to which many would respond, “Aww.” Why do people have so much compassion for cold-blooded killers and so little for the victims? Even on practical terms, this attitude makes no sense. However, Francis not only disagrees with common sense, he disagrees with God’s Holy Word, revealed by the Holy Spirit.
God did not exercise capital punishment for the first physical murder on earth, in which Cain, in cold blood and totally unprovoked, killed his brother Abel. Instead He set a mark upon Cain so that wherever he went, people would recognize him as a murderer. True, the mark was placed upon him for protection (that no one would kill him), but it also called to mind the reason for the protection—the fact that he had killed. Most would probably not want to have a whole lot to do with him.
In fact, no record exists of a general law concerning the taking of a human life prior to the Flood. We read that the whole world was filled with violence (Gen. 6:11), and presumably that included murder. After the Flood, the earth having been cleansed, God now stated a principle to be applied throughout the Patriarchal Age, but it would also become part of the Law of Moses and the Christian system as well. He declared to Noah:
“Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man. Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man” (Gen. 9:5-6).
God Himself gives the reason for the practice of capital punishment—because a murderer has put to death someone made in the image of God. Under the Law of Moses, capital punishment was prescribed for murder and about 30 other offenses, including kidnapping and rape. Under the Christian covenant, God gave the state the right to execute evildoers (Rom. 13:1-7). The Word of God is as clear as it can be on this subject.
The writer of the article, Dennis Prager, points out the folly of disagreeing with the Scriptures. Norway has the same policy as Francis. Recently, a man there murdered 77 people, mostly children, and received [wait for it, GWS] “a 21-year prison sentence.” That computes to less than 1/3 of a year per victim. What respect does that show to people made in the image of God? And what message does it send to other would-be killers?
Yes, many in the United States think the same way. In July of 2007, for example (Prager reports), two men broke into a home and with baseball bats beat the homeowner nearly to death. They raped his wife before strangling her, sexually assaulted their 11-year-old daughter while photographing it on a cellphone, and then tied her and another daughter to their beds before dousing the house with gasoline and setting it on fire. These depraved men did not respect human life and should have been put to death, but the Connecticut Supreme Court said that capital punishment violated the constitution of the state of Connecticut.
Francis may not have an opinion on Connecticut law, but he agrees that those men should not be put to death. The Catholic Church is evolving the way many Protestant churches have—loosening morality and the few Biblical doctrines they had retained over the centuries. How much better off would all true seekers after God be if they put their trust in God rather than in men (Psalm 118:8)? True Christianity does not evolve. The teachings of the Bible remain the same year after year, no matter what is popular in any particular culture. God possessed the very first Degree in Communications Skills; all can read His Word and understand Him.