Discord Among the Brethren

“There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.” (Proverbs 6:16-19)

In a previous series we talked about the Protestant Revolt and the fruit that that movement has produced among its adherents and in the world. That seed of discord that was sown in 1517 now has deep roots and has borne bitter fruit. I wish that the Protestant Revolt was the extent of the problem, but that would be dishonest.

Among Evangelical Christians there are certain divisions that people have created by which they feel superior or “more spiritual” than their brethren. Those who believe that they have received “the Baptism of the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in tongues” view themselves as more spiritual than their Baptist fellows who deny it. Those who refuse to call God by that name use “G-D” in referring to the Almighty or they may call Him “Yahweh” and the Lord “Jeshua” rather than Jesus. In a culture where private interpretation is the rule of the day one would expect this sort of thing…but not within the One True Church. Sadly, such is not the case,

The Seed

The seed of discord that is being sown among the brethren of the Church centers on the language and order of the Mass. For centuries the Mass was celebrated in only one language: Latin. Then Vatican II in 1964 establish a new order of the Mass which allowed it to be said in the local language of the people. The Latin Mass was (and is) still an option for any congregation that wishes to use it. In fact, in many of the larger Cathedrals, such as Saint Patrick’s in New York City, quite a bit of Latin is used in the Sunday Mass when Timothy Cardinal Dolan is officiating. The “Pater Noster” is used rather the English “Our Father” and the “Agnus Dei” in place of the “Lamb of God”. There is nothing wrong with someone preferring the Latin Mass nor if they prefer it in their language (such as Bisaya here in the part of the Philippines where we live).

The seed is sown when one starts to look on themselves as “true Catholics” based on their preference. This normally takes the form of those who prefer Latin looking down on those who don‘t do so. In fact, I have seen posts online that not only do that consider themselves “true Catholics” but even speak of the Cardinals who were present at Vatican II as being “tools of the devil” bent on destroying the Catholic Church. They have even gone so far as to say that Pope Francis “isn’t our pope”.

This brings up the question: Do we believe that the Lord Jesus Christ established a Church and that He ordained men to preside over that Church? Do we believe in Apostolic Succession? If the answer to those questions are “Yes” then by what right do we usurp that authority and declare that the duly ordained Council of the Church are in error based on nothing but preference? More than that, if we rebel against that duly ordained authority what makes us any different than the Protestants? They too refuse the authority of Rome. Do those who say these things look to start another “Catholic Church” in their own image?

Why Are We Here?

The Lord established a Church with the express mission to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to everyone. The Mass is His principal provision for edifying and empowering His children to fulfill that mission. He didn’t establish a secret society with special handshakes and language only the “insiders” can understand. We are here to reach the world for Christ and people are best reached in languages they can understand. It was the Lord’s prayer on the night He was betrayed that His people would be one even as He and the Father are one. We shouldn’t divide over language. That is an abomination to the Lord in His own words!