[ 0 → 4] TrapCast Express [ 4 → 15] TrapCast Express, it's Thursday, April 19th, 2018. [ 15 → 21] Continuing now from our last episode, we turn again to Gaudete et Exsultate, [ 21 → 27] the pseudo-apostolic exhortation released by Jorge Bergoglio a mere 10 days ago. [ 27 → 32] And yet it seems like forever ago, because so much has happened in the meantime, right? [ 32 → 35] 10 days is eons in Bergoglio time. [ 36 → 39] So, Gaudete et Exsultate. [ 40 → 44] One thing we can say for sure about this document is that it is tendentious. [ 44 → 51] Even where what it says is not objectionable in itself, it is very often one-sided, [ 51 → 57] and it basically just recycles various pet topics that Francis has preached about in the last five [ 57 → 57] years. [ 57 → 63] And it minimizes, eclipses, or ignores whatever contradicts those pet ideas, [ 63 → 66] as we'll see shortly in this very podcast. [ 67 → 69] All right, let's continue now. [ 69 → 71] Paragraph number 52. [ 72 → 73] Francis says, quote, [ 73 → 79] The Church has repeatedly taught that we are justified not by our own works or efforts, [ 79 → 83] but by the grace of the Lord, who always takes the initiative. [ 84 → 84] Unquote. [ 85 → 86] Yeah. [ 86 → 87] Yeah. [ 87 → 88] All of a sudden, huh? [ 89 → 92] Well, it's just too funny that a few days ago, on April 15th, [ 93 → 97] Francis said about a deceased atheist that he was sure that he was in heaven [ 97 → 100] because he had allowed his children to be baptized. [ 101 → 108] How's that for teaching that we are justified by our works, even apart from grace? [ 108 → 111] And you probably know what I'm talking about. [ 111 → 116] I'm talking about the incident with the little Roman boy whose atheist father had passed away. [ 117 → 124] So, yeah, the same guy that teaches that good atheists go to heaven here teaches in his exhortation [ 124 → 129] that we are not justified by our works, but by grace. [ 129 → 134] Well, it's really unfortunate that throughout the entire document, with all its footnotes and [ 134 → 139] citations, Francis forgot to quote Hebrews 11.6, quote, [ 140 → 144] Without faith, it is impossible to please God. [ 144 → 145] Unquote. [ 145 → 146] There can be no sanctification. [ 146 → 151] There can be no sanctifying grace in the soul without supernatural faith. [ 152 → 157] Now, it is the height of irony that Francis writes in Gaudete et Exsultate [ 157 → 164] that our actions sometimes belie our words, by which we profess orthodoxy, but don't practice it. [ 165 → 167] Here's what he says in number 50, quote, [ 167 → 174] Underneath our orthodoxy, our attitudes might not correspond to our talk about the need for grace [ 174 → 176] and the specific situations. [ 176 → 178] We can end up putting little trust in it. [ 179 → 179] Unquote. [ 180 → 181] Really now? [ 181 → 185] Like, for example, when being asked about the salvation of atheists? [ 185 → 189] Oh, but that's not what Francis had in mind here, is it? [ 189 → 195] No, he was, of course, condemning evil traditionalists, whom he falsely characterizes as Pelagians [ 195 → 201] in his exhortation, when now the whole world has seen that he is the Pelagian, because [ 201 → 205] Pelagians believe in salvation by works, apart from grace. [ 206 → 206] Just as he said, [ 206 → 213] Just as Francis expressed when he said to the little boy that he is sure that his unbelieving father is in heaven [ 213 → 216] because he was, quote, [ 216 → 223] Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the most Pelagian of them all? [ 224 → 227] But there's more in paragraph 50 that we need to look at. [ 228 → 229] Jorge the Heretic says, quote, [ 229 → 233] Unless we can acknowledge our concrete and limited situation, [ 233 → 236] we will not be able to see the real and real. [ 236 → 240] And possible steps that the Lord demands of us at every moment, [ 241 → 244] once we are attracted and empowered by his gift. [ 244 → 246] Grace acts in history. [ 247 → 250] Ordinarily, it takes hold of us and transforms us progressively. [ 250 → 254] If we reject this historical and progressive reality, [ 254 → 261] we can actually refuse and block grace, even as we extol it by our words. [ 261 → 262] Unquote. [ 263 → 266] Ooh, flowery and profound. [ 266 → 268] Sounding words that he's using here. [ 269 → 272] The passage is conveniently ambiguous, of course, [ 272 → 276] so that you can read several things into or out of it if you want. [ 277 → 279] It seems to me that what he's intending to do here [ 279 → 283] is provide more putatively magisterial underpinnings [ 283 → 288] to his blasphemous teaching in Amoris Laetitia, number 303, [ 289 → 295] that God may very well want you to commit a mortal sin in your concrete situation. [ 295 → 301] And that by doing so, you can gradually progress towards holiness of life, [ 301 → 303] towards greater virtue. [ 304 → 306] That's what he's trying to do here, I think. [ 306 → 309] And of course, he wraps it up in really shiny terminology, [ 309 → 315] talking about acknowledging our limits and God's grace acting in history [ 315 → 319] and it attracting, empowering, and transforming us. [ 320 → 322] Man, if that doesn't take your breath away, [ 322 → 325] it just sounds so much better than saying, [ 325 → 328] well, sometimes you're just going to sin and that's all right. [ 329 → 331] In paragraph number 49, [ 332 → 337] Francis accuses those supposed Pelagians of failing to realize that, [ 337 → 341] not everyone can do everything. [ 341 → 342] Unquote. [ 342 → 347] And that is a quote taken from the 13th century doctor of the church, [ 347 → 351] St. Bonaventure, a contemporary of St. Thomas Aquinas. [ 351 → 353] Whoa, look. [ 354 → 355] Francis teaches tradition. [ 355 → 356] He teaches traditional doctrine. [ 356 → 358] He's a scholastic. [ 358 → 359] He's conservative. [ 360 → 362] Yeah, well, not so fast. [ 363 → 364] Two things here. [ 364 → 368] First, St. Bonaventure's not everyone can do everything [ 368 → 374] refers to the fact that we ought not to expect those who are beginners [ 374 → 378] in the spiritual life to be rich in virtue. [ 378 → 382] Rather, we need to understand that they are still easily prone to vice [ 382 → 385] because grace builds on nature. [ 385 → 400] And that's what St. Bonaventure is saying here with the [ 400 → 403] not everyone can do everything quotation. [ 404 → 408] In fact, St. Bonaventure quotes a few Bible passages in that context, [ 409 → 412] including Romans 15.1, which says, [ 412 → 413] quote, [ 415 → 422] Unquote. [ 423 → 427] St. Bonaventure, then, was not saying what Francis is hinting at, [ 427 → 430] namely that some people just can't help sinning, [ 430 → 431] so they get a pass. [ 432 → 436] Secondly, notice how hypocritical Francis is being. [ 436 → 440] When it comes to his favorite topic of permitting adultery, [ 440 → 441] Francis comes up with, [ 441 → 444] Well, not everyone can do everything, [ 444 → 445] so shut up and stop joking. [ 445 → 450] On the other hand, look at what he says in paragraph 101 [ 450 → 454] of the same exhortation, Gaudete Exsultate. [ 455 → 455] Quote, [ 455 → 459] The other harmful ideological error is found in those [ 459 → 463] who find suspect the social engagement of others, [ 463 → 468] seeing it as superficial, worldly, secular, materialist, communist, or populist. [ 469 → 473] Or they relativize it as if there are other more important matters, [ 474 → 475] or the only thing that counts, [ 475 → 479] is one particular ethical issue or cause that they themselves defend. [ 480 → 483] Our defense of the innocent unborn, for example, [ 483 → 486] needs to be clear, firm, and passionate, [ 486 → 489] for at stake is the dignity of a human life, [ 489 → 492] which is always sacred and demands love for each person, [ 493 → 496] regardless of his or her stage of development. [ 496 → 500] Equally sacred, however, are the lives of the poor, [ 500 → 504] those already born, the destitute, the abandoned, and the underprivileged, [ 504 → 505] the vulnerable, [ 505 → 508] and the infirm and elderly exposed to covert euthanasia, [ 509 → 511] the victims of human trafficking, [ 511 → 514] new forms of slavery, and every form of rejection. [ 515 → 517] We cannot uphold an ideal of holiness [ 517 → 521] that would ignore injustice in a world where some revel, [ 522 → 523] spend with abandon, [ 523 → 525] and live only for the latest consumer goods, [ 526 → 528] even as others look on from afar, [ 528 → 531] living their entire lives in abject poverty. [ 531 → 532] Unquote. [ 533 → 535] And notice what Francis, [ 535 → 536] has done here. [ 536 → 542] Suddenly, he is concerned about living a holistic moral life. [ 542 → 544] He could have just said, [ 545 → 548] kudos to all those defending the lives of the unborn. [ 548 → 552] All other life issues depend on this most fundamental right, [ 552 → 553] the right to be born. [ 554 → 556] Therefore, by fighting abortion, [ 556 → 560] people are implicitly also fighting for all other worthy causes [ 560 → 562] in defense of human life. [ 562 → 563] Right? [ 563 → 565] I mean, he could have said, [ 565 → 568] but he didn't say that. [ 568 → 569] He didn't. [ 570 → 574] Likewise, to those who object that people shouldn't be so one-sided [ 574 → 578] in their defense of life by focusing only or mainly on abortion, [ 578 → 579] he could have said, [ 580 → 582] well, not everyone can do everything. [ 583 → 586] But again, he didn't do that, did he? [ 587 → 591] Why is it that Francis only ever tells pro-lifers [ 591 → 594] not to focus too much on their cause, [ 594 → 595] and that they might be able to do more? [ 595 → 598] He must also focus on other human life issues. [ 598 → 602] Why doesn't he ever tell those helping migrants, for example, [ 603 → 604] that that's not enough either, [ 605 → 607] and that they really also need to get their act together [ 607 → 609] and work to end abortion? [ 610 → 612] No, he never says that, does he? [ 613 → 616] And that was a consideration brought up by Giuseppe Nardi, [ 616 → 620] by the way, a Vatican journalist in Germany. [ 621 → 624] Likewise, if we look at Gaudete et Exsultate, [ 624 → 625] paragraph 19, [ 625 → 626] Francis says, [ 627 → 642] And yet, when it comes to pro-lifers, [ 642 → 643] Francis is quick to tell them [ 643 → 646] that they better also be recycling their soda cans [ 646 → 648] and welcome illegal immigrants, [ 648 → 651] else they're not authentic Christians. [ 652 → 655] Nothing there about reflecting and embodying [ 655 → 656] a particular aspect of the gospel [ 656 → 658] at a specific moment in time. [ 659 → 661] See, and that's what I mean [ 661 → 663] when I say that Gaudete et Exsultate [ 663 → 666] is one-sided and tendentious. [ 666 → 670] It places undue emphasis on certain points [ 670 → 672] Bergoglio is particularly fond of, [ 673 → 676] and thereby it distorts reality as a whole. [ 677 → 680] I'm sorry for skipping around a bit here in the document, [ 680 → 682] but that's just the best job I can do here. [ 683 → 684] Next excerpt, [ 684 → 686] of Gaudete et Exsultate [ 686 → 687] that we want to look at [ 687 → 690] is paragraphs 43 and 44. [ 691 → 693] The Frankster says this, [ 693 → 693] quote, [ 694 → 696] It is not easy to grasp the truth [ 696 → 698] that we have received from the Lord, [ 699 → 701] and it is even more difficult to express it. [ 702 → 705] So we cannot claim that our way of understanding this truth [ 705 → 709] authorizes us to exercise a strict supervision [ 709 → 711] over others' lives. [ 711 → 713] Here I would note that in the church [ 713 → 716] there legitimately coexist different ways [ 716 → 720] of interpreting many aspects of doctrine and Christian life. [ 720 → 721] In their variety, [ 721 → 723] they help to express more clearly [ 723 → 726] the immense riches of God's Word. [ 727 → 729] It is true that for those who long for [ 729 → 731] monolithic body of doctrine, [ 732 → 734] guarded by all and leaving no room for nuance, [ 734 → 736] this might appear as undesirable [ 736 → 738] and leading to confusion. [ 739 → 740] In effect, doctrine, [ 741 → 743] or better, our understanding and expression of it, [ 743 → 745] is not a closed system, [ 746 → 747] devoid of the dynamic capacity [ 748 → 749] to pose questions, [ 750 → 751] doubts, inquiries. [ 752 → 754] The questions of our people, [ 754 → 755] their suffering, [ 755 → 756] their struggles, [ 757 → 757] their dreams, [ 757 → 758] their trials, [ 758 → 759] and their worries [ 759 → 763] all possess an interpretational value [ 763 → 765] that we cannot ignore [ 765 → 769] if we want to take the principle of the Incarnation seriously. [ 770 → 773] Their wondering helps us to wonder [ 773 → 773] that we are not alone. [ 773 → 775] Their questions question us. [ 777 → 777] Unquote. [ 778 → 780] B.S. [ 781 → 783] And I don't mean Barbra Streisand. [ 784 → 787] This is typical modernist bovine manure. [ 788 → 790] I've got news for you folks. [ 790 → 792] Doctrine is a closed system. [ 793 → 794] It's very closed. [ 795 → 797] And the struggles and dreams of our people, [ 798 → 798] their suffering, [ 799 → 801] their high blood pressure or whatever, [ 801 → 803] has nothing to do with anything. [ 803 → 806] As regards God's revelation. [ 807 → 809] I don't have anything to do with the Incarnation either. [ 811 → 811] And by the way, [ 812 → 812] doubt, [ 812 → 816] doubt is contrary to the virtue of faith. [ 817 → 819] The Catechism of the Council of Trent [ 819 → 822] and its treatment of Article 1 of the Creed says, [ 823 → 828] Faith therefore must exclude not only all doubt, [ 828 → 831] but all desire for demonstration. [ 831 → 832] Unquote. [ 832 → 836] Now, what about what Francis says here, though, [ 836 → 840] that it's just so difficult to express God's revealed truth [ 840 → 845] and that there are always different ways to understand and explain it? [ 845 → 846] Oh, sorry. [ 846 → 847] No, no, no, no. [ 847 → 851] Of course, Francis is shrewd enough to say not exactly that. [ 852 → 856] No, he says it's many different aspects of doctrine [ 856 → 859] that are legitimately interpreted differently. [ 859 → 862] You know, like the aspect that says that, [ 862 → 864] Thou shalt not commit adultery [ 864 → 866] actually comes with a divine footnote, [ 866 → 869] but it really depends on your concrete situation. [ 870 → 870] That aspect. [ 872 → 875] So, well, this whole thing about doctrine on the one hand [ 875 → 878] and the way to express it or understand it on the other [ 878 → 881] is a foundational error, [ 881 → 883] or I should say half-truth, [ 883 → 885] of the new theology, [ 885 → 886] the nouvelle théologie. [ 888 → 890] And Pope Pius XII blew it out of the water [ 890 → 892] in his excellent 19th, [ 892 → 894] 1850 encyclical against the modernism [ 894 → 898] that was resurfacing during his pontificate, [ 898 → 900] Humani Generis. [ 900 → 904] In paragraphs 14, 15, and 16 of that encyclical, [ 904 → 907] the sovereign pontiff teaches as follows, [ 907 → 907] quote, [ 908 → 912] In theology, some want to reduce to a minimum [ 912 → 913] the meaning of dogmas [ 913 → 917] and to free dogma itself from terminology [ 917 → 918] long established in the Church [ 918 → 921] and from philosophical concepts [ 921 → 922] held by Catholic theologians. [ 922 → 924] To bring about a return [ 924 → 926] in the explanation of Catholic doctrine [ 926 → 930] to the way of speaking used in Holy Scripture [ 930 → 932] and by the fathers of the Church. [ 933 → 934] They cherish the hope [ 934 → 936] that when dogma is stripped of the elements [ 936 → 939] which they hold to be extrinsic to divine revelation, [ 940 → 942] it will compare advantageously [ 942 → 943] with the dogmatic opinions [ 943 → 946] of those who are separated from the unity of the Church [ 946 → 950] and that in this way they will gradually arrive [ 950 → 952] at a mutual assimilation of Catholic doctrine. [ 952 → 955] with the tenets of the dissidents. [ 956 → 957] Moreover, they assert that [ 957 → 960] when Catholic doctrine has been reduced to this condition, [ 961 → 964] a way will be found to satisfy modern needs [ 964 → 966] that will permit of dogma being expressed [ 966 → 969] also by the concepts of modern philosophy, [ 970 → 972] whether of immanentism or idealism [ 972 → 974] or existentialism or any other system. [ 975 → 977] Some more audacious affirm [ 977 → 979] that this can and must be done [ 979 → 981] because they hold that the mysteries of faith [ 981 → 982] are never explained, [ 982 → 983] expressed, listen, [ 984 → 986] by truly adequate concepts [ 986 → 990] but only by approximate and ever-changeable notions [ 990 → 993] in which the truth is to some extent expressed [ 993 → 997] but is necessarily distorted. [ 997 → 1000] Wherefore, they do not consider it absurd [1000 → 1001] but altogether necessary [1001 → 1005] that theology should substitute new concepts [1005 → 1007] in place of the old ones [1007 → 1010] in keeping with the various philosophies [1010 → 1012] which in the course of time, [1012 → 1014] it uses as its instruments [1014 → 1016] so that it should give human expression [1016 → 1019] to divine truths in various ways [1019 → 1021] which are even somewhat opposed [1021 → 1023] but still equivalent, as they say. [1024 → 1026] They add that the history of dogmas [1026 → 1029] consists in the reporting of the various forms [1029 → 1033] in which revealed truth has been clothed, [1033 → 1035] forms that have succeeded one another [1035 → 1037] in accordance with the different teachings [1037 → 1039] and opinions that have arisen [1039 → 1041] over the course of the centuries. [1041 → 1044] It is evident from what we have already said [1044 → 1047] that such tentatives not only lead to [1047 → 1049] what they call dogmatic relativism [1049 → 1051] but that they actually contain it. [1051 → 1054] The contempt of doctrine commonly taught [1054 → 1056] and of the terms in which it is expressed [1056 → 1058] strongly favor it. [1059 → 1060] Everyone is aware [1060 → 1062] that the terminology employed in the schools [1062 → 1065] and even that used by the teaching authority [1065 → 1066] of the church itself [1066 → 1069] is capable of being perfected and polished [1069 → 1071] and we know also that the church itself is capable of being polished [1071 → 1073] and that the church itself has not always used [1073 → 1075] the same terms in the same way. [1076 → 1077] It is also manifest [1077 → 1079] that the church cannot be bound [1079 → 1080] to every system of philosophy [1080 → 1083] that has existed for a short space of time. [1084 → 1084] Nevertheless, [1085 → 1086] the things that have been composed [1086 → 1089] through common effort by Catholic teachers [1089 → 1091] over the course of the centuries [1091 → 1094] to bring about some understanding of dogma [1094 → 1096] are certainly not based [1096 → 1098] on any such weak foundation. [1098 → 1100] These things are based [1100 → 1100] on principles of dogmatism [1101 → 1102] principles and notions [1102 → 1104] deduced from a true knowledge [1104 → 1106] of created things. [1106 → 1108] In the process of deducing [1108 → 1110] this knowledge like a star [1110 → 1112] gave enlightenment to the human mind [1112 → 1113] through the church. [1114 → 1115] Hence it is not astonishing [1115 → 1117] that some of these notions [1117 → 1118] have not only been used [1118 → 1120] by the ecumenical councils [1120 → 1122] but even sanctioned by them [1122 → 1123] so that it is wrong [1123 → 1125] to depart from them. [1125 → 1126] Unquote. [1127 → 1129] And that right there [1129 → 1130] ladies and gentlemen [1130 → 1130] condemns the doctrine of dogmatism [1131 → 1131] all of them. [1132 → 1134] Bergoglio, Ratzinger, Muller [1134 → 1137] and the whole neo-modernist cabal [1137 → 1138] that Vatican City [1138 → 1141] is currently infested with. [1142 → 1143] And there's much more to quote [1143 → 1144] from that encyclical [1144 → 1146] but of course we don't have all day here [1146 → 1148] so yeah, make sure you read [1148 → 1150] this beautiful encyclical in full [1150 → 1152] if you haven't done so already. [1153 → 1154] It's called Humani Generis [1154 → 1156] of Pope Pius XII [1156 → 1160] and it was published on August 12, 1950. [1160 → 1162] You can find it at [1162 → 1165] papalencyclicals.net [1165 → 1168] Alright, I really wanted to finish [1168 → 1171] going over Gaudete at Exsultate today [1171 → 1173] but there's more to discuss still [1173 → 1174] and we'll have to leave that [1174 → 1176] for the next Express episode [1176 → 1178] in just a few days. [1178 → 1180] Tradcast Express is a production [1180 → 1181] of Novos Ordo Watch. [1182 → 1184] Check us out at tradcast.org [1184 → 1185] and if you like what we're doing [1185 → 1187] please consider making a tax-deductible contribution [1187 → 1189] at novosordowatch.org [1190 → 1191] slash donate.