I have no intention of writing a book in reply to Mr. Robert
Sungenis and his various assertions concerning Pope John Paul
II, and will have to content myself with these observations.
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I repeat here that I am not in agreement with Mr.
Sungenis’ criticisms of Pope John Paul II and [Sungenis'
opinions on] the
Assisi Interfaith Prayer Meetings.
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Mr. Sungenis is mistaken in thinking that I "will not
question any of his words or actions" and that I must support
every single thing he says and does. I have not and
do not. The Pope can well be mistaken with regards to his
personal opinions on doctrinal matters and can be wrong in
his decisions regarding the pastoral administration
and government of the Church and in disciplinary and
canonical measures as well as on matters outside the sphere
of faith and morals. Every informed Catholic knows
this. What I will not do is what certain so-called
"traditionalists" and "non-traditonalists" delight in doing,
i.e., engaging in PUBLIC CRITICISM AND DENUNCIATION
of the Vicar of Christ on earth – which only adds to
furthering the ignorance and confusion concerning Catholic
doctrine that is already pandemic.
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Those who engage in such PUBLIC CRITICISM of the Pope, even
questioning his orthodoxy may not be among the formal
dissenters who dissent from definitive Catholic teachings but
they too do a serious disservice to the Church in also
weakening the spirit of fidelity and unshakeable obedience
due the Pope as the visible head of the Church Militant. In a
Letter to a troubled correspondent, the saintly convert-
founder of CUF, H. Lyman Stebbins, wrote:
"What you say is certainly true about those within the
Church who are weakening it most dreadfully. You go on to
say there is nothing to be feared from intense research if
it is done in a spirit of sincerity and honesty! I
would add, ‘AND IN PRIVATE’."
It is this latter comment which reflects the spirit of
"reverence" due the pastors of the Church and especially him
who is the Chief Pastor, together with "consideration
for the common good and the dignity of persons". (Canon 212-2,
3 as quoted by Mr.Sungenis).
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However, with regards to Canon Law provisions and CDF
documents justifying the laity bringing their doctrinal
concerns to the attention of the Church’s sacred
pastors, such do not envisage broadcasting one’s
theological difficulties and perplexities coupled with
criticisms of the Pope over the Internet! The laity
are to bring their doctrinal problems to Church authorities
using the Church’s own institutions and procedures.
There is always, moreover, the recourse of forwarding private
correspondence to the Pope and discussions with those Roman
Congregations that have the appropriate competence on
specific issues.
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Mr. Sungenis notes: "The warfare of today against the
Catholic Church is worldwide." Indeed, it is. But this ought
not to be translated into warfare also against the Vicar of
Christ on earth and accusing other Catholics of "papolatry"
for refusing to take part in public protests against him, and
especially when all too many "traditionalists" appear fixated
in an "hermeneutics of suspicion" that enhance outrageous
charges about an "Evil Pope".
The wise words of the Servant of God, Cardinal John Henry
Newman are apropos here:
"There are kings of the earth who have despotic authority,
which their subjects obey indeed but discover in their hearts;
but we must never murmur at that absolute rule which the
Sovereign Pontiff has over us, because it is given to him by
Christ, and in obeying him, we are obeying his Lord. We must
never suffer ourselves to doubt that, in his government of the
Church, he is guided by an intelligence that is more than
human. His yoke is the yoke of Christ; he has the
responsibility of his own acts, not we; and to his Lord must he
needs account. Even in secular matters it is ever safe to be on
his side, dangerous to be on the side of his enemies. Our duty
is to look at his formal deeds, and to follow him, however we
may be tried, but to defend him at all hazards, and against all
comers, as a son would his father, and as a wife a husband,
knowing that his cause is the cause of God."
It is this spirit of "docile reverence" towards the Successor
of Peter that has always motivated the members of CUF, and not
allowed them to ever raise their voice publicly to denounce and
"resist" the Vicar of Christ for allegedly violating the
prescriptions of Holy Scripture, Vatican II, and The Catechism
of the Catholic Church regarding prayer and pagans.
Mr. Sungenis’ grievances against Pope John Paul II:
"There is no Tradition supporting Assisi. Not even Vatican II
supported Assisi. The issue is whether Pope John Paul II has
the authority, based on Scripture, Tradition and the
Magisterium, to teach and encourage pagan religions to pray to
their false gods for worldly concerns, and to force Catholics
to participate alongside of them. Since [pagans] have received
the ‘mystery’ of Christ in the Incarnation, they
have no more excuses for worshiping and praying to their false
gods. We heard the pope tell him [the Voodoo priest] to
continue in his pagan arts, and to consider his prayer as
already being in communion with God, and not a word about him
having to repent and accept the God of Christianity. In fact,
the pope apparently believes that the pagans have no need to
convert, since they already know God well enough to pray to Him,
via their own gods, for world peace, and need not be concerned
about whether they have received salvation in the first place.
Isn’t the definition of a ‘pagan’ one who
does not have communion with ‘god’? If he has
communion with God, then he would not be a pagan, would he? The
very reason we call them ‘pagans’ is that they
don’t have communion with God. They have communion with
their false gods. According to [St.] John, we’re not
supposed to let these people in our house or give him a
greeting, let alone pray with them. And if we do not abide by
John’s advice [2 Jn. 9-11] , then we ‘participate in
his evil deeds’. That is precisely what the pope is doing
at Assisi – forcing Catholics to participate in their
evil deeds."
The above constitutes a severe indictment. One may wonder
whether Mr. Sungenis prohibits his non-Christian friends from
entering his home or giving them a greeting. But are his
criticisms of the Pope for violating the injunctions of
Scripture and Tradition true? Is it true that "According to
Pope John Paul II, there is no difference in praying to the
true God as opposed to praying to one’s false god, since
both prayers apparently go the same individual"? Is it true
that for Pope John Paul II, "In essence, pagan idolatry is not
really pagan idolatry any longer. It is just another means to
reach the true God, in whatever form it comes. No wonder the
pope didn’t tell them to convert to Christianity. Why
should they if they already have access to God and all His
blessings via their false god?"
The teaching of Vatican II and the many addresses of Pope John
Paul II concerning evangelization and the Church’s
missionary obligations are the best answer to Mr.
Sungenis’ distortions concerning the Church’s
outreach to pagan idolaters in today’s world. They, too,
including Voodoo practioners, are included in "the universal
design of God for the salvation of the human race". In Vatican
II’s Decree on the Church’s Missionary
Activity, there is a deepened recognition that the
religious strivings of non-Christians represent human endeavors
to find God, but that they do involve the workings of Divine
Providence, and serve as a "preparation for the Gospel" (
AG 3). True, "these initiatives need to be enlightened
and purified" but the religious rituals and practices of
non-Christians possess "elements of truth and grace" and
constitute "a sort of secret presence of God" (AG
9). Catholic missionaries must make themselves
"familiar with the national and religious traditions" of the
peoples to whom they have been sent, "and gladly and
respectfully uncover the seeds of the Word which lie
hidden in those traditions" (AG 11). These and
other passages in Vatican II indicate that there is a working
of the Holy Spirit in the religious traditions, teachings,
rules, and practices of non-Christians and Who may already have
sown "the seeds of the Word" that are to be actualized by
missionaries into a complete act of faith in Christ and His one
Church. These positive "seeds of the Word" may be mixed with
serious errors such as belief in many gods but the profound
religious sense exhibited by some pagans can serve as "pedagogy
toward the true God".
Contrary to Mr. Sungenis’ unduly monolithic, harsh, rigid,
and severe appreciation of pagans (ignoring certain positive
indications of the "rays of truth" found among them which
Fathers and theologians across the centuries have acknowledged)
, Vatican II’s Nostra Aetate, 2, stated:
"The Catholic Church rejects nothing which is true and holy in
these religions. She looks with sincere respect upon those ways
of conduct and life, those rulings and teachings which, though
differing in many particulars from what she holds and sets
forth, nevertheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which
enlightens all men. The Church therefore has this exhortation
for her sons : prudently and lovingly, through dialogue and
collaboration with the followers of other religions, and in
witness of Christian faith and life, acknowledge, preserve, and
promote the spiritual and moral goods found among these men, as
well as the values in their society and culture."
In line with previous Catholic thought noting that pagan
religions contain worthwhile elements and that there are
mysterious invisible bonds of grace which relate them to
the Source of all grace, our Savior Jesus Christ, Pius
XII in his encyclical Divine Praecones declared that "
The Church has never treated the doctrines of the pagans with
contempt and disdain; rather she has freed them from all error,
then completed them and crowned them with Christian wisdom."
Moreover, Vatican II and the post-conciliar Popes have not
compromised the need of Catholics to preach the entire Gospel
to both non-Catholics and non-Christians. On May 31, 1995, Pope
John Paul II delivered an Address, noting:
"For those who are not ignorant that the Church has been
established as necessary by God through Jesus Christ, there is
an obligation to enter the Church and remain in her in order to
attain salvation (cf. Lumen Gentium, 14). For those, who have
not received the Gospel proclamation, ..salvation is accessible
in mysterious ways, inasmuch as divine grace is granted to them
by virtue of Christ’s redeeming sacrifice, without
external membership in the Church, but nonetheless always in
relation to her (cf. n. 10). It is a ‘mysterious
relationship" : mysterious for those who receive the grace,
because they do not know the Church and sometimes even
outwardly reject her; it is also mysterious in itself, because
it is linked to the saving mystery of grace, which includes an
essential reference to the Church founded by the Savior.
With respect to the prayer of pagans, the comments of a great
traditional theologian, Cardinal Jean Danielou, on prayer are
applicable:
"The essential religious act is prayer. It is through prayer
that we reach up to God and that we make proper response to the
signs coming from God. Prayer, a protestation against the world,
an avowal of our helplessness, is the act by which we ask
God’s assistance to help us rise out of our misery and
provide for our wants. Prayer is the primordial religious
fact.
All pagan religions attain some knowledge of God. However,
since they have not the Revelation of God Himself, they focus
on the wrong object and often turn out to be gross caricatures
of religion, although they sometimes arrive at truly noble
ideas. All that is good in these religions come from God, in
respect to whatever intuition they can have of Him through the
signs that He gives to them. On the other hand, all their
vagaries and all their inadequacies ensue from the uncertainty
and confusion which is endemic in them. There is something
immeasurably moving in the thought of this great portion of
humanity, religious at heart, groping after God but seeking
Him in darkness,’ in tenebris’, as the
Canticle of Zacharias says, and sometimes failing to find Him
because those whose mission it is do not bring Him to them, or
present Him only in caricature." (The Salvation of the
Nations, 1949).
Mr.Sungenis’ views of paganism simply focus on the dark
and negative aspects of pagan religion- those aspects which
betray the influence of sin and the devil — and fail to
emphasize the "rays of Truth" which reveal the presence of that
"Unknown God" (Acts 17: 23) who has not totally
abandoned these "offspring of God" (Acts 17:
28-29). Across the centuries God our Father did not
"leave Himself without testimony [among the pagans], bestowing
blessings, giving rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,
filling hearts with food and gladness" (Acts 14:
16).
What then of the false charge hurled against Pope John Paul II,
that he has failed to preach the Gospel to the pagans at Assisi,
and has perverted the Gospel of Christ? It is a pity that Mr.
Sungneis has been unaware of the teaching of the Church
concerning evangelization which was so splendidly set forth in
Paul VI’s seminal encyclical "Evangelii Nuntiandi"
(On Evangelization in the Modern World). Therein the Pope
explains the meaning and content of evangelization and all
the latter’s "richness and complexity". He writes that
"It is impossible to grasp the concept of evangelization
unless one tries to keep in view all its essential elements."
He speaks of an "initial stage of evangelization" wherein the
Christian gives witness to a fundamental human solidarity
with others who are in need of an encounter with Christ.
"Above all the Gospel must be proclaimed by witness. Take a
Christian or a handful of Christians who, in the midst of their
own community, show their capacity for understanding and
acceptance, their sharing of life and destiny with other people,
their solidarity with the efforts of all for whatever is noble
and good. Let us suppose that, in addition, they radiate in an
altogether simple and unaffected way their faith in values
that go beyond current values, and their hope in something
that is not seen and that one would not dare to imagine.
Through this wordless witness these Christians stir up
irresistible questions in the hearts of those who see how they
live. Why are they like this? Why do they live this way? What
or who is it that inspires them? Why are they in our midst?
Such a witness is already a silent proclamation of the Good
News and a very powerful and effective one. Here we have an
initial act of evangelization." (21)
Pope Paul VI explains further that this "first stage of
evangelization" is "insufficient because even the finest
witness" needs the explicit proclamation of "the name, the
teaching, the life, the promises, the Kingdom and Mystery of
Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God." From all the above, it
should be clear that with the Assisi encounters Pope John Paul
II as the Successor of the Fisherman has engaged in a
legitimate "initial act of evangelization" manifesting the
Church’s reaching out in love to assist in the
"development and liberation" of man. His predecessor Paul VI
had already recalled that "it is impossible to accept that in
evangelization one could or should ignore the importance of the
problems so much discussed today, concerning justice,
liberation, development and peace in the world. This would be
to forget the lesson which comes to us from the Gospel
concerning love of our neighbor who is suffering and in need."
(E. N. 31)
The theological tradition of the Church, as clarified and
deepened by Vatican II and modern Popes concerning
Evangelization and its various stages, makes allowance for
prudence and patience as to the time and manner of
explicitly proclaiming Christ’s conversion-bringing
message of repentance and salvation to pagan peoples. The
stage of "an initial act of evangelization" is not to be
despised by those with an intemperate zeal to convert people
who are, moreover, harshly accused of having no knowledge of
the true God at all. At Assisi, Pope John Paul II was merely
putting into practice the teaching of Pope Gregory the Great in
his letter to the Bishop of Naples in 602 :
"Those who sincerely desire to bring those outside the
Christian religion to correct faith should be earnestly engaged
in displays of courtesy, not harshness, lest hostility drive
away those whose minds a clearly thought out reason could
challenge. For whoever acts otherwise, and wants to keep them
away from their customary practice of rites under this pretext,
is shown to be more concerned with his own interests than those
of God." (Denz.-Hun, 480).
Moreover, in fact, Pope John Paul II has not failed to take an
appropriate opportunity to preach the Gospel to those at
Assisi. In his January 24, 2002 Address to the representatives
of the World Religions (posted on the Vatican Website), John
Paul II openly declared:
"In his death on Golgotha, Jesus bore in His Flesh the wounds
of God’s Passion for humanity. Bearing witness to the
heavenly Father’s loving plan, He became our peace, who
has made us both one, and had broken down the dividing wall of
hostility (Eph. 2: 14)."
Thus, gathering the representatives of world religions in a
common effort to overcome the "dark clouds of terrorism, hatred,
armed conflict", the Pope preached Christ as the true source
of peace. How sad that Mr. Sungenis who has such admirable
talents, has failed to see this.
It is too bad that Mr.Sungenis did not take the opportunity to
obtain a copy of Cardinal Arinze’s book "Church in
Dialogue" (Ignatius Press, 1990) [unfortunately out of
print now] which would have corrected his repeated assertions
that Catholics had joined "side by side with pagans in prayer
for things that are not concerned with the latter’s
salvation." Speaking of the 1986 Day of Prayer at Assisi, the
Cardinal observed:
"Each religious family or tradition was fully respected. There
was no attempt at a common prayer for all. Prayer is based on
belief. Since beliefs are different, the formula chosen for the
celebration was ‘being together to pray’, not
‘praying together"." As for peace and other human goods
being a "mundane" matter not connected with one’s
salvation, we should reflect on the words of Jesus : "Blessed
are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God."
(Matt. 5: 9). Surely, working for peace and collaborating with
men of good will for noble ends has something to do with being
blessed by God!
Mr. Sungenis’ views are not free from a certain
exaggerated "supernaturalism" that overlooks certain legitimate
natural goods and universal human values. He should
reflect more on the fact that the partial truths found in
non-Christian religious traditions, in so far as they reflect
(however obscurely) the plenitude of truth that is in Christ,
can be salfivic, not withstanding elements of falsehood.
The Assisi meetings with representatives of world religions,
therefore, were striking manifestations of spiritual leaders
(Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, many
others in addition to those of Traditional African religions)
coming together to witness to help promote universal human
values and common truths concerning that Transcendence and
Holiness (whom we call God: that "ultimate and ineffable
Mystery, which embraces our existence" Vatican II’s
Nostra Aetate, 1) . There was an edifying raising of mind
and heart to the God of theism, to that "Unknown God" whom
pagans dimly sense in their prayer and through their sacred
ceremonies.
In conclusion, it is regrettable that Mr. Sungenis should give
his support to those presently attacking the Pope for alleged
violations of Scripture, Tradition, and Magisterial teaching,
and accusing him of religious indifference, and worse, but
themselves lacking "prudence, reverence and charity" towards
the Vicar of Christ.
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