TrapCast Express
TrapCast Express, it's Wednesday, February 9th, 2022.
You know, if Pope Francis weren't running around in a white cassock in Vatican City,
nobody would possibly mistake him for a Catholic, much less the Pope.
In just the past few days, the man whose real name is Jorge Bergoglio
invented a new human right, declared that apostates are part of the communion of saints,
and even found a new savior for humanity.
Let's go step by step.
The evening of February 6th, Francis appeared on a live television talk show in Italy
in which he declared that the right to be forgiven is a human right
of the Catholic Church.
that comes to us from God.
Here are Francis' exact words as translated by Vatican News.
Quote,
We all have the right to be forgiven if we ask for forgiveness.
It is a right that comes from the very nature of God
and has been given as an inheritance to men.
We have forgotten that someone who asks for forgiveness has the right to be forgiven.
Some might say,
You've done something wrong.
You have to pay for it.
No.
You have the right to be forgiven.
And if you owe a debt to society,
you can find a way to pay it,
but with forgiveness.
Unquote.
Ah, so forgiveness is now no longer a matter of mercy.
It's a matter of justice.
God built it into our very nature to be forgiven,
according to Bergoglio.
I guess that means then that Christ had to redeem us,
simply because of who we are,
who we were created to be.
That's not just heresy.
It's blasphemy.
Then, during his general audience of February 2nd,
Francis spoke about the communion of saints,
which is the unity in and under Christ
that all enjoy who belong to the church on earth,
in heaven, or in purgatory.
Who is part of that communion of saints,
according to the Jesuit antipope?
Why, all the baptized, of course,
regardless of whether they're Catholics, heretics,
apostates, excommunicated, blasphemers, and so forth.
Verbatim, Francis said, quote,
Let us consider, dear brothers and sisters,
that in Christ no one can ever truly separate us
from those we love,
because the bond is an existential bond,
a strong bond that is in our very nature,
only the manner of being together with one another
then changes, but nothing and no one can break this bond.
Father, let's think about those who have denied the faith,
who are apostates, who are persecutors of the church,
who have denied their baptism.
Are these also at home?
Yes, these two, all of them.
The blasphemers, all of them.
We are brothers.
This is the communion of saints.
The communion of saints holds,
Now, this is wrong in so many ways,
and not just wrong, but heretical.
Although it is true that even Catholics in mortal sin
are not entirely excluded from the communion of saints,
after all, they are still members of the church,
and so they still benefit from the prayers,
and good works of the church.
Nonetheless, public heretics and apostates
are definitely excluded,
because they're not just in mortal sin,
objectively speaking.
They're not even believers, by definition.
So they cannot be part of the communion of saints,
and they cannot be part of the Catholic Church,
which is a visible society of the baptized
who profess the true faith
and enjoy communion with God.
They enjoy communion with the Roman pontiff
and each other.
Now, some will say,
but they're still baptized?
You can't get unbaptized,
because baptism leaves a mark on the soul
that can never be erased.
And that is true.
It does imprint a so-called indelible character
on the soul,
which is why you can never be baptized again
once you've received a valid baptism.
No matter how much you pray,
no matter how much you sin,
even if you were to become a Satanist,
once you convert back to Catholicism,
you cannot and need not be baptized again.
But here's the thing.
The indelible character of baptism by itself
is not what guarantees you are a Catholic.
That's why when Pope Pius XII
defined what makes someone a Catholic,
he didn't just say a valid baptism.
Instead,
here's what he said.
Quote,
Actually, only those are to be included
as members of the Church
who have been baptized
and profess the true faith
and who have not been so unfortunate
as to separate themselves
from the unity of the body
or been excluded
by legitimate authority
for grave faults committed.
Unquote.
That's from his 1943 encyclical
Mystici Corporis,
paragraph 22.
So what makes someone above the age of reason
a Catholic,
a member of the Church,
is that he must
A. Be baptized
B. Profess the true faith
C. Not be in schism
by separating himself
from the rest of the faithful
or from the Roman pontiff
and D. Not be excommunicated.
And this only makes sense.
Otherwise, you'd have to say
that you can join a different religion
such as Judaism or Hinduism
and still be a Catholic
because you're baptized.
That's absurd.
And it would also mean
that the Pope could never expel anyone
from the Church,
which would also be absurd.
Now, at the same time,
it would be wrong to say
that the indelible baptismal character
does nothing,
because obviously,
if the sacrament leaves
an indelible mark on your soul,
that means your soul is changed
in some way
and that has an effect
that will last forever.
So, what is that?
Well, to answer that question,
let's turn to Father Sylvester Berry's
wonderful book,
The Church of Christ,
which was originally published in 1927
and again in 1954.
On page 227 of the 1927 edition,
he writes,
quote,
The spiritual character imprinted
upon the soul in baptism,
baptism does not make one
a member of the Church.
It is rather a sign or badge
showing that he has received
the rites of initiation,
but it does not prove
that he retains membership.
This may be illustrated
by the case of a person
receiving a tattoo mark
as a sign of initiation
into a society
that uses such marking.
If the person afterward
leave the society,
he would see
cease to be a member,
though he still bore
the indelible sign
of his initiation.
Unquote.
Perhaps an even better way
to think of it
is that the indelible character
is a permanent mark
being put on a sheep
that defines that sheep
as properly belonging
to the flock of Christ.
Notice I said
belonging to it,
not actually being with that flock
at all times,
necessarily.
The mark does not prevent
the sheep from wandering off.
A sheep with that mark
could leave and never return.
It might even join
a different flock.
If it does not return
to the fold from which it came
and to which it belongs,
it will be lost.
But the baptismal mark
would be the perpetual sign
that this sheep was once
part of and decided
to abandon,
the true flock
of Jesus Christ
to whom it owes
all its love
and obedience.
Now there are also other things
that the baptismal character does,
but this is enough
for our brief review here,
which is just meant
to refute Bergoglio's nonsense
about the communion of saints
being unbreakable.
Let me add one important thing here, though.
What we just said
about how apostates
and heretics
aren't part of the church
and do not participate
in the communion of saints
still needs some clarification
because not everyone
who is a heretic outwardly
is also actually guilty
of the sin of heresy
because he may not mean
to be contradicting
God's revelation.
He may simply be making a mistake.
Think, for example,
of an eight-year-old boy
who lives in Siberia
and is Eastern Orthodox.
He doesn't believe in the papacy,
but it would be absurd to think
that at eight years old,
far removed from the rest of the world,
he would have any idea
that the papacy
is a divinely revealed dogma
and stubbornly refuse to believe it.
Instead, let's say
he is a pious fellow
who sincerely loves God
and seeks to do his will
in all things,
and he truly possesses
the virtues of faith,
hope, and charity,
which were given him
when he was baptized as an infant.
And let's say
he never lost them,
never lost faith, hope, and charity.
Well, that boy
is in the state of sanctifying grace.
And although judged outwardly
by the Catholic Church
as being the member of a false religion,
he would nevertheless
still very much be part
of the communion of saints,
not on account of the baptism,
not on account of the baptismal character,
though,
but on account of the state
of sanctifying grace,
which can be had apart
from the baptismal character.
So, although this boy
would not be a member
of the Catholic Church
because he doesn't meet
the criteria for membership,
he doesn't profess the true faith,
he would nevertheless be
attached to the Catholic Church,
joined to her
through an efficacious desire,
through what's called
the votum ecclesiae,
the desire to be united
to the true Church
through faith, hope, and charity.
He is simply
innocently mistaken
about where and what
that true Church is
and what exactly it teaches.
But that mistake
does not extinguish
the sanctifying grace
that is in him.
So, although he is
a heretic externally
before the Church,
he isn't one internally
before God
because heresy
is a deliberate,
willful rejection
of known dogma.
And so, because God sees
not just what is external,
but also what is internal,
such a one as that little boy
would truly be part
of the communion of saints,
yet without being
a member of the Catholic Church.
And that is the traditional
Catholic teaching
but that is not
what Francis said
on February 2nd.
What he said
is that the bond with Christ
is unbreakable,
that this bond is tied
to our nature
as baptized people.
And so he was speaking
about apostates
and heretics in general,
all of them.
They are, he is saying,
unchangeably part
of the communion of saints
and they cannot
leave that communion.
And that is heresy.
Now, speaking of heresy,
Francis decided to add
still more fuel
to the infernal fire
that awaits him
if he dies unrepentant
by issuing an interreligious
video message on February 4th
in which he announced
that the anchor of salvation
for humanity is
fraternity.
Yep.
Not the passion, death,
and resurrection
of Jesus Christ incarnate
or anything.
It's human fraternity
by which he means
his naturalist program
of tolerance, dialogue,
celebrating diversity
and whatnot.
That is what this old apostate
calls the anchor of salvation
for the human race.
It is despicable.
In 1892,
Pope Leo XIII issued
an encyclical letter
against Freemasonry,
entitled
Custode di Quella Fede.
This is what the Pope wrote
in paragraph 15.
Quote,
Everyone should avoid
familiarity or friendship
with anyone suspected
of belonging to Masonry
or to affiliated groups.
Know them by their fruits
and avoid them.
Every familiarity
should be avoided
not only with those
impious libertines
who openly promote
the character
of the sect,
but also with those
who hide under the mask
of universal tolerance,
respect for all religions,
and the craving
to reconcile
the maxims of the gospel
with those of the revolution.
These men seek
to reconcile Christ
and Belial,
meaning the devil,
the church of God
and the state without God.
Unquote.
Boy, does that sound familiar.
In other news,
pandemonium in the diocese
of Anejo
in the small African nation
of Togo.
According to a February 4th report
of the French paper
La Croix International,
a Novus Ordo priest
of this diocese
by the name of
Father Joseph Bassetome
has been engaging
in syncretism,
which is basically
a mixing of religions,
the blending of practices
and beliefs
of different religions.
And it's obviously
gravely sinful.
According to the report,
quote,
parishioners sent the bishop
audio recordings
of Bassetome
invoking the deities
of traditional
African religion.
They said these had shaken
their community.
Unquote.
Now, what is collectively
and somewhat euphemistically
known as
traditional African religions
includes things like voodoo,
and can be defined as follows.
This is from Wikipedia.
Quote,
the traditional beliefs
and practices of African people
are highly diverse beliefs
that include
various ethnic religions.
Generally,
these traditions are oral
rather than scriptural
and passed down
from one generation
to another
through folk tales,
songs,
and festivals.
Include belief
in an amount
of higher and lower gods,
sometimes including
a supreme king,
creator or force,
belief in spirits,
veneration of the dead,
use of magic,
and traditional
African medicine.
Most religions
can be described
as animistic
with various
polytheistic
and pantheistic
aspects.
Unquote.
So,
the Novus Ordo bishop
there in Anejo,
Mr. Isaac Jokes Gaglow,
decided to summon
his wayward presbyter
and read him
the Riot Act.
The report
in La Croix says,
quote,
the priest admitted
in the presence
of the diocese's
vicar general
and episcopal vicar
that he had been involved
in syncretic practices
and had also joined
a group called
African Renaissance.
The bishop ordered him
to leave the group
and spend a period of time
for renewal and conversion
at the Benedictine monastery
of Jobigan
in the mountains
some 180 kilometers from here.
Instead,
Bassetome gave the bishop
his letter of resignation
explaining that he was
giving up the ministerial priesthood.
Bishop Gaglow said
that once Bassetome
began the process
to be dismissed
from the clerical state,
photos showing
the former priest
dressed as a follower
of traditional religions
began circulating
on social media.
Unquote.
Now, I have to say
I don't think
I get it.
Has this novel sort of bishop
not been paying attention lately?
Just this past October
Francis said
that the various religions
that exist
represent the
quote
richness of different ways
of coming to God.
Unquote.
So,
what about it
if Father Bassetome
decides to practice diversity
and use one of those
other ways for a while?
Besides,
syncretism is all the rave
under Bergoglio.
Don't sweat it, man.
Remember what happened
in the Vatican
in October of 2019?
For the feast
of St. Francis of Assisi,
a wooden statue
of a nude pregnant woman
was worshipped
in the Vatican gardens
by indigenous people
dancing around it
and prostrating themselves
in front of it
right under Francis' nose.
And later that same month,
for the closing liturgy
for the Amazon's
synod,
Francis received
and placed on the high altar
in St. Peter's Basilica
as part of the Mass
an offering to Pachamama,
the Mother Earth goddess
of the Amazonian indigenous.
How's that for syncretism?
Moreover,
maybe this Father Bassetome
was just trying to imitate
the heroic virtues
of the canonized apostate
Carol Voitua.
Better known as
Pope John Paul II.
Let's remember
his Wednesday audience
of August 21st, 1985
at which he spoke
about the trip to Africa
he had just completed
and among the destinations,
wouldn't you know it,
there was also
the Republic of Togo.
So, John Paul talked about
how he met all these people
from various religions there
and then he added this,
quote,
particularly memorable
was the prayer meeting
at the shrine
of Our Lady of Mercy
at Lake Togo
where I also prayed
for the first time
with animists,
unquote.
You can find the whole text
of the audience
on the Vatican website
though it's not available
in English.
You'll have to put the text
through a translator.
In any case,
what are animists?
Well, according to Wikipedia,
quote,
animism is the belief
that objects, places, and creatures
all possess a distinct
spiritual essence.
Potentially, animism perceives
all things, animals, plants,
rocks, rivers, weather systems,
human handiwork,
and perhaps even words
as animated and alive.
Unquote.
Yeah, this is beginning
to sound a lot like
Francis' encyclical
Laudato Si,
the Amazon Synod,
the exhortation
Corrida Amazonia,
and the whole Mother Earth
Gaia Pachamama Circus.
Just remember,
John Paul II did it
before it was cool.
But hey, look,
even if we want to go
the strict route
and say that this Father Bassetome
is an apostate now,
well, remember what Francis said.
He's still part
of the communion of saints.
And now,
he's in fact enriching it
by offering his prayers
to a different God.
And lastly, ladies and gentlemen,
I've got a fun soundbite for you
from a video by Rome Reports,
which covered the TV interview
that Francis gave during that talk show
mentioned earlier.
Listen closely to the narrator.
The Pope also shared
other personal anecdotes,
discussing his decision
not to live in the papal apartments
in order to be around others.
And how as a child,
he hoped to one day
become a butcher.
What do you know?
He got his wish after all.
Except now,
he's a butcher of souls.
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