False Prophets for All to See

One of the oldest and most cherished of accusations thrown at the Catholic Church by Bible Christians is based on the Book of Revelation: namely, she is the "Whore of Babylon," while the Pope is the "Antichrist." Volumes could be written collecting the nearly countless instances in which - from Martin Luther, to the Jehovah's Witnesses, to modern Fundamentalists - these charges have been thrown at the Church of Christ. In a more contemporary version of the same theme, it is now claimed that the Catholic Church will finally head the coming one world government, or that the Pope will soon be proclaimed leader of the United Nations. Such have been the claims, for example, of radio preachers R. G. Stair and Chuck Crismier.

False prophets and end-of-times preachers are a dime a dozen; they're everywhere, peddling their wares through the media to the excitable and gullible, keeping alive the old-fashioned American tradition of anti-Catholicism. Holy Scripture gives us counsel regarding the whole lot of them:

"If you say to yourselves, 'How can we recognize an oracle which the Lord has spoken?', know that, even though a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if his oracle is not fulfilled or verified, it is an oracle which the Lord did not speak. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously, and you shall have no fear of him" (Dt. 18:21-22).

In light of this passage, our modern vociferous anti-Catholic preachers are exposed as the false prophets that God has specifically counseled us not to fear. Let me explain.

The present assault by the Obama administration on religious freedom is ultimately an attack - not only on Christians in general - but on Catholics in particular. It is the Catholic Church, above all other religious bodies, that is widely known to be uncompromisingly opposed to abortion, contraception, and sterilization. This conviction is neither a mere tradition of the Church nor an opinion of conservative Catholics. Rather, it is the defined teaching of the Church, as held for a full two thousand years. To be Catholic is to oppose these three sins against life and sexual purity; whereas, to consider them morally licit is to cease being Catholic in any serious or meaningful way.

Perhaps President Obama and the HHS will ultimately back down, in response to the recent unexpected Catholic uprising. Or, perhaps they will not. Regardless, a truth has been revealed, and we must not pass over it.

The fact is, the teachings of the Catholic Church are clearly opposed to the spirit of our times. Two powers - that of the Church and that of the state - have been revealed as diametrically opposed to each other regarding right and wrong, good and evil. However this present situation may, or may not, be resolved, a premonition of times to come has been seen by all. The state will one day unleash a merciless assault on the Catholic Church, and her teachings - as well as the Holy Mass itself - will be rendered illegal. This may come at first under the guise of hate-speech legislation, a "woman's right", or some other perversion of justice and reason. But positively, this mass persecution of the Church by the state will arrive, and the saints, for the time being, will be overcome by it. We are presently seeing only the beginning of this, but it is a beginning.

No, Mr. Stair and Mr. Crismier, the Catholic Church will not head the coming one world government, nor will the Pope be made leader of the United Nations. These are the demonstrable false prophecies of false prophets. Just the opposite will happen, and is already happening for all to see. The Church will be persecuted by the one world government. Hence, she is not growing in worldly power and prestige; she is shrinking. Her last Pope was shot twice in an assassination attempt, and the presently reigning Pope - the man who speaks softly but adamently to the world of hope and charity, but warns of the rising dictatorship of relativism - is regarded as a backward lunatic. His visitations to various countries are often met with demonstrations. The Church's teachings are being increasingly opposed by modern governments and political organizations, including the UN. In China, she has virtually been driven underground, while in many Islamic countries, her buildings are being burned to the ground and her people constantly threatened. In western countries, she is hated and publicly mocked by the adulated icons of entertainment and culture. Radical feminism considers her a demon. Science, medicine, and education now offer an atheistic resistance to her philosophical ideas and the solutions she offers to modern man's moral dilemmas. And at the same time, a revived paganism in the west is resolved to take the Church's place in the spiritual lives of the masses. The Catholic Church is slowly entering that era - however far ahead it may be - when the very powers of hell will be unleashed upon her. But she has always known that this awaits her, in accord with God's plan. So, the Catechism forewarns,

"The Church will enter the glory of the kingdom only through this final Passover, when she will follow her Lord in his death and Resurrection. The kingdom will be fulfilled, then, not by a historic triumph of the Church through a progressive ascendancy, but only by God's victory over the final unleashing of evil, which will cause his bride to come down from heaven" (CCC 677).

In the end, the Church will not experience a "progressive ascendancy." She will not grow in size, wealth, and influence with worldly powers, nor will she sit as the head of governments. Such are the claims of the false prophets who are blinded by their hatred for her. Their "prophecies" are presently being shown to be a bag of noxious wind, so that we must not fear them. On the contrary, we have seen that the Church is no friend of oppressive godless governments that seek to deprive its citizens of religious freedom or the right to life. And for this she will dearly pay. She will be hated by all, in imitation of the Suffering Servant who established her to be His presence in the world until He returns. And then He will judge the world and its false prophets and preachers.