"Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?" (Lk 11:17) We are all aware of the division within political groups, but today we also see a growing division among Catholics in the Church. Over the past few weeks, certain news outlets have posted divisive headlines about Pope Francis and the Catholic Church. I read these articles and quickly noticed that if something Francis says fits into the belief system of that political party, he is praised by the author. Of course, if it is not the party's belief system, he is mocked and criticized. Theologians do not usually write these articles, so the authors primarily look at the Church through a political lens.
Great reflection! Christ prayed for us to be one. However, as Church history has borne out, division does occur (just look at the rifts created in the defining the Holy Trinity) but must always lead to honest discourse, led by the Holy Spirit, and ultimate unity. Faith is not politics. Whenever the two get mixed up ... beware! Evil, by its nature seeks division. Love always seeks unity.
Mar 16, 2023Liked by Jonathon Fessenden, Chantal LaFortune
And yes, Martin is right. Let us pray for Pope Francis and the Church🙏🕊But instead of praying change Pope Francis or change the Church in such and such ways, we should place the Pope, the Church and those who both agree and disagree with the Pope into Jesus hands, and pray "not will my will but thy will be done"🙏🕊
I believe that our core moral and religious values influence the direction of our political values. Catholics-in-name-only tend towards the left. Those who are more serious about their Catholicism tend to be politically conservative. We see this same pattern among Protestants. I believe that those who are closest to Christ will have greater unity among each other.
Who Do We Serve?
Revelation 3:16 - The lukewarm will be spit out of his mouth.
You can’t have a foot in both camps.
Thanks for writing this!
Great reflection! Christ prayed for us to be one. However, as Church history has borne out, division does occur (just look at the rifts created in the defining the Holy Trinity) but must always lead to honest discourse, led by the Holy Spirit, and ultimate unity. Faith is not politics. Whenever the two get mixed up ... beware! Evil, by its nature seeks division. Love always seeks unity.
Very true.
And yes, Martin is right. Let us pray for Pope Francis and the Church🙏🕊But instead of praying change Pope Francis or change the Church in such and such ways, we should place the Pope, the Church and those who both agree and disagree with the Pope into Jesus hands, and pray "not will my will but thy will be done"🙏🕊
I believe that our core moral and religious values influence the direction of our political values. Catholics-in-name-only tend towards the left. Those who are more serious about their Catholicism tend to be politically conservative. We see this same pattern among Protestants. I believe that those who are closest to Christ will have greater unity among each other.
Bravo to you Jonathan! Very well said!!
Agree. Agree. Agree. Prayers for Pope Francis and unity with the Church 🙏🙏🙏