Sunday, November 20th on the Novus Ordo calendar marked the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
In his homily, Francis described it as “the crown of the liturgical year;” a nice turn-of-phrase to be sure, but make no mistake about it, in his eyes, Christ Himself remains crownless.
As his preaching that day suggests, the Bergoglian image of Jesus is born, in part, from what appears to be a practical denial of the resurrection:
‘The Christ of God, the Chosen One, the King’ (Lk 23:35,37) appears without power or glory: he is on the cross, where he seems more to be conquered than conqueror. His kingship is paradoxical: his throne is the cross; his crown is made of thorns; he has no sceptre, but a reed is put into his hand; he does not have luxurious clothing, but is stripped of his tunic; he wears no shiny rings on his fingers, but his hands are pierced with nails; he has no treasure, but is sold for thirty pieces of silver.
While one may rightly speak of the “throne of the Cross” where Our Lord appeared (NB: past tense) “to be conquered,” it would be a most grievous error to imagine that this is where the story ends.
Though Francis said, “His kingship is paradoxical,” he never seems to get around to the “other side of the coin” by extolling to the extent of Our Lord’s authority, His infinite power, and His social reign.
Rather, he consistently speaks as if to gaze upon Our Lord even now is to look upon one who “seems more to be conquered than conqueror.”
Missing entirely from the Christology of Francis is any indication that he believes in One who is clothed in majesty, sovereignty and glory. It’s as if the resurrection never happened!
This presumably is why he can only manage to preach a crucified king whose throne is a cross as opposed to the Risen Lord who said of Himself, “I am set down with my Father in his throne.” (cf Apocalypse 3:21)
In establishing the Feast of Christ the King, Pope Pius XI taught:
After His resurrection, when giving to His Apostles the mission of teaching and baptizing all nations, he took the opportunity to call himself King, confirming the title publicly, and solemnly proclaimed that all power was given Him in heaven and on earth. These words can only be taken to indicate the greatness of His power, the infinite extent of His kingdom. (cf Quas Primas 11)
How different this image of Christ is from the one espoused by Francis and those who think as he does!
Consider, for example, the words of Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, the man handpicked by Francis to lead the cardinals advising him on the Curia’s reorganization:
The function of the hierarchy is redefined in reference to Jesus as Suffering Servant, not as “Pantocrator” (lord and emperor of this world); only from the perspective of someone crucified by the powers of this world it is possible to found, and to explain, the authority of the Church.
Apart from a Jesus Christ who is Pantocrator indeed, the authority of the Church that He established is effectively rendered nil, and the function of her sacred pastors is thus reduced to that of a therapist who is called to do little more than “accompany” sinners on the way to Hell.
And isn’t this exactly what is promoted in Amoris Laetitia as interpreted according to the explicit input of its author?
If one simply takes Francis at his word, it is evident that he worships a false god of his own making – an itinerant first century doer of good deeds; a live-and-let-live liberal who judged nothing and no one, only to be left beaten, bloodied and belittled by those who hold earthly authority.
It is this paltry substitute for Christ the King that Francis urges his listeners to follow; as if the mission at hand primarily concerns finding a remedy to temporal poverty and social inequalities.
An honest appraisal of the last three-and-a-half years makes it difficult to deny that the lord of Bergoglianism bears a striking resemblance to Jesus as viewed through the eyes of most modern day self-described Jews; a rather well-meaning social worker with a revolutionary spirit, who, at the end of the day, was really just an ordinary man.
This, my friends, is the Christological heresy upon which Bergoglianism is founded; namely, a failure to recognize the Divinity of Our Lord.
As I write, the dubia is front and center in the minds of most Catholics, and the questions that it poses can be summarized into just one:
Do you, Francis, recognize the Divinity of Christ?
If the answer is clearly yes, then the five questions presented in the dubia would pose no difficulty whatsoever.
On the other hand, if the answer isn’t quite so black and white, then Our Lord’s words concerning adultery would appear to be up for revision; likewise Catholic teaching concerning intrinsically evil acts as based upon Sacred Scripture and the Tradition of the Church would seem negotiable on a case-by-case basis.
In fact, it’s not difficult to imagine that presenting the dubia to one who doubts the Divinity of Christ just might be enough to render him boiling with rage.
Revelation 3:15-17
I know thy works, that thou art neither cold, nor hot. I would thou wert cold, or hot.
But because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold, not hot, I will begin to vomit thee out of my mouth.
Proverbs 1:7
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Several instances of Bergoglio’s behavior have already convinced me that he does not believe Jesus is God:
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His continued attacks on traditional Catholics.
Presenting his mis-interpretation of Jesus’ miracles of the loaves and fishes as an episode of sharing.
Refusing to kneel before the Blessed Sacrament.
Accepting the blasphemous hammer-and-sickle crucifix.
Scolding a young boy for praying with his hands folded.
Placing words of doubt on Mary’s lips.
Givng Communion to adulterers
His embrace of Luther’s heresies.
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He seems to delight in destroying the Church, and seeking the approval of the enemies of the Church.
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The man appears to have zero fear of the Lord.
Michael F Poulin
It seems then that Francis is Unitarian, from which it follows no need to convert Jews or Mohammedans, since we all “worship the same God.”
Here’s another good dubia yes or no question. Can a Pope be a heretic?
How does a meditation on the suffering of Christ on the Cross equate to a denial of His resurrection??
Did not all the Saints emphasise the need to reflect on the Passion ?
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“The Passion of Jesus was an excess of the love of God, so anyone who meditates on it, will follow Him to the end.
If you wish to advance in your spiritual life, think of the Lord’s sufferings every day, because by thinking of It, it is impossible not to be overwhelmed with love capable of making other effects relative when compared to his own, and strength to overcome with joy the inevitable burdens and trials of life.
Saint Teresa lamented that some books had advised her to stop meditating on the passion because the humanity of Christ could prevent the contemplation of His divinity; aware of the error, she exclaimed: “O my good Lord, Jesus crucified, I seemed to have betrayed you so greatly, since, whence all blessings came to me but from your cross?”
St. Paul said that his sole ambition was to know the science of the cross, referring to the love that it contains: “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified (1 Co 11,2)”.
When Saint Bonaventure was asked where he got the copious and abundant doctrine that was found in his works, he said, showing a crucifix: “This is the book that tells me everything I write. Here I have learned what little I know”.
Would you hesitate to consecrate yourself entirely to your Redeemer if you really knew the mystery of the cross? How having He loved you to madness, still has not yet attained to govern over your heart? Keep in mind that, “He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised”.»
St Alphonsus Liguori
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“Take up your cross, therefore, and follow Jesus, and you shall enter eternal life. He Himself opened the way before you in carrying His cross, and upon it He died for you, that you, too, might take up your cross and long to die upon it. If you die with Him, you shall also live with Him, and if you share His suffering, you shall also share His glory.
Behold, in the cross is everything, and upon your dying on the cross everything depends. There is no other way to life and to true inward peace than the way of the holy cross and daily mortification. Go where you will, seek what you will, you will not find a higher way, nor a less exalted but safer way, than the way of the holy cross. Arrange and order everything to suit your will and judgment, and still you will find that some suffering must always be borne, willingly or unwillingly, and thus you will always find the cross.”
Thomas a Kempis
Yes
The antipope False Prophet must deny the Divinity of Christ to form the one world religion which will worship the antichrist. Bergoglio is totally consistent. Coming soon.
Francis is not an antipope but something beyond that. Francis actually believes he is a new revelation that supplants Our Lord. He’s obviously nuts, of course, but he has a lot of supporters (the 1970s-80s crop of evil ones) that he has revived and empowered, so they’re not going to mention that inconvenient fact. And they don’t care anyway, because none of them believe in the Divinity of Christ.
“Strange that so much suffering is caused because of the misunderstandings of God’s true nature. God’s heart is more gentle than the Virgin’s first kiss upon the Christ. And God’s forgiveness to all, to any thought or act, is more certain than our own being.”
St Catherine of Siena
Ever mindful–beautiful quote of St. Catherine of Siena. However, let us not forget the severe JUSTICE of God. Forgiveness is for those who beg for it with a contrite heart. The wrath of God awaits those who persist in their sins. There is nothing GENTLE about Hell.
So a non Catholic can be the Vicar of Christ and the Bishop or Rome?
It all depends on how you define your terms. Anyone who denies a dogma in his heart is a heretic. A Pope can deny a dogma in his heart, become a heretic, yet remain Pope. If not, you would never know which popes of the past have been true popes and which have not, since we have no way of knowing how many (if any) denied dogmas in the heart.
Louie, you say that the dubia is front and center in the minds of most Catholics, but I’m not sure about that. I talked to a devout Catholic from the Lincoln Diocese in Nebraska and he had no clue about the dubia, or even the document AL for that matter. I’m worried that the vast majority of Catholics have no idea what is even going on within the hierarchy of our Church. I have a feeling that there are relatively few of us who frequent sites like yours and know what is happening.
The hersies of Arianism and Lutherenism are looking better and better compared to the extreme Bergoglian apostasy.
Soobs, I think your suspicions are correct. I always used to wonder how the Great Apostasy could occur, fooling so many Christians. I have now seen first hand exactly how. Most Catholics/Christians are so busy with other things that even those who faithfully attend Mass and pay attention to the evening news have no idea what’s going on because it’s not mentioned from the pulpit in most places nor from the news desk. I know, were it not for my desire to know Truth, I would not be reading these sites and learning the behind-the-scenes story. Thank God for them and all those who publish them!
Soops and Dennis-you are so right. The Catholics in the pew will not learn about the Dubia from the pulpit. Sadly (from my experience) even the Traditional Catholic Churches do not mention this at all. The Catholic Church is in crisis not only from heresy, but from ignorance. Whose fault is that????
Yes indeed…forgiveness is for those who beg for it with a contrite heart
No man deserves the consolation of heaven unless he persistently arouses himself to holy contrition.
Thomas a Kempis
@Soobs & Dennis : I agree that most people aren’t even aware of the dubia and the fact that members of the College of Cardinals are calling the Pope to account for the contents of the papa; exhortation. We owe a great debt of gratitude to sincere Catholics such as Louie for his coverage of this important issue.
On the topic of the article, I concur with Louie in that the Pope appears not to dwell on the majesty of Jesus Christ. While the Pope is correct to point out Jesus apparent “defeat” by Holy Saturday, where is the marvel and awe at what transpired on Easter Sunday, when the very laws of natural were not only suspended but reversed at His bidding? Where is the wonder? Where is the awe? Where is the gratitude? The biblical account of the scourging and the punishment given to Jesus in that awful day of Good Friday makes the wonder of Easter Sunday all the greater.
Satan cannot suspend or reverse the laws of nature. Only God can. The majesty of Jesus Christ is that in spite of His greatness – something which our human minds cannot even begin to comprehend – He comes to us at each Mass and wants to be with every single one of us, each a sinner. How great Thou art cannot justify how great God is!