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Author Topic: Judging the intentions of enemies  (Read 520 times)

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Offline Telesphorus

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Judging the intentions of enemies
« on: December 14, 2011, 01:14:56 AM »
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  • I am not going to judge the subjective culpability of those who are manifestly enemies, but I do think it is quite absurd to presume that an enemy is not trying to destroy you, that his evil intentions should not be gauged, that his word should be doubted as a matter of course.

    When someone like Hans Urs von Balthasar writes a book called Razing the Bastions - that he means to destroy the means by which Catholics shield themselves from a world that is ruled by the Prince of this World - then we have to see that intention for what it is.  The evil intention to destroy the safeguards of our Faith.  That which is derided as  "Baroque Theology"

    I'm not going to judge his subjective culpability for this manifestly anti-Christian spirit.  I'm not going to pretend it isn't manifestly anti-Christian.

    Now, when someone goes back again and again to deal with people who are manifestly anti-Christian, and then justifies it on the basis that we mustn't judge intentions, there's a problem.  A serious problem.  At first we might have hopes for it.  We might put some stock in apparent signs of good faith.  In time though, when one recognizes what is being set up - it's time to sound the alarm.  

    A manifestly anti-Christian spirit is guided by evil intentions towards Tradition.  We must doubt the good faith of those who pretend otherwise, against all evidence.  

    The sort of people who want to tear down your defensive walls, your bastions, it is not Christian charity to pretend we must forever consult them in the hopes that they will appreciate and see a place for our defensive engineering.  It's flat-out crazy to do so.


    Offline nadieimportante

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    Judging the intentions of enemies
    « Reply #1 on: December 14, 2011, 06:05:02 PM »
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  • "When the shepherd changes into a wolf, the first duty of the flock is to defend itself. Normally, without doubt, doctrine descends from the bishops to the faithful, and those who are subjects, in the order of the faith, are not to judge their superiors. But in the treasure of revelation there are some essential points which every Christian, by the very fact of his title as Christian, is bound to know and defend" (The Liturgical Year, Vol. IV, Dom Guéranger; Feast of St. Cyril of Alexandria).
    "Wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it.
     Right is right even if no one is doing it." - Saint Augustine