TIA’s attempt to draw an analogy between Archbishop Lefebvre’s ministry to the indigenous women of Gabon, and John Paul II’s decision to allow a topless savage to read the Gospel at Mass, is despicable.
“Every analogy limps,” precisely because the circuмstances of two instances are never exactly identical, and it is the circuмstances which form one of the three determinants of the morality of human acts (alongside object and intention, which also differ in the case of Lefebvre).
If the ministry to immodestly dressed (or even nude) savages is objectively sinful, or a per se occasion to sin, or scandalous, then the historical accounts (and ecclesiastical permission) of the African, North American, and South American savages becomes incomprehensible.
See this book, in which the Jesuits ministered to completely nude savages:
https://www.wyandotte-nation.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/History-of-the-Catholic-Missions.pdfThe scandal of the JPII incident is because the nudism was given a platform at Mass (problem 1), and was a gesture intended to promote ecuмenism (problem 2), whereas Lefebvre was ministering to the women.
If one looks at the remarkable progress and effectiveness of Lefebvre’s apostolate in Gabon, it is abundantly clear that he was Catholicizing the savages, and was not content to leave them in their degenerate state (as JPII was).
Lefebvre the missionary followed in the footsteps of his missionary predecessors, and the attempt to compare him to JPII (as though the only criterion to consider was that both were in the presence of savage nudism -if it was even that, per Mithrandylan’s comment above) reflects either a remarkable rashness and ignorance on the part of TIA (the the most charitable explanation), or a cheap shot at an enemy meant to score points.
Either way, I see their credibility deteriorating at an alarming rate with these contrived attacks becoming more and more common, such that I am quickly losing interest in their editorials on pretty much any subject.
Topic: Taking a picture and running with the conclusion,Calumny anyone ? (Read 2344 times)