Quotes to Ponder
Apostasy: will begin at the top of the Church
"In the Third Secret [of Fatima] it is foretold, among other things, that the great apostasy in the Church will begin at the top."
(Mario L. Ciappi, Cardinal and household theologian to John Paul II, quoted in The Devil's Final Battle, p. 33)
Catholic Faith: no salvation outside of
“This true Catholic Faith, outside of which none can be saved, which I now profess and truly hold …”
(Pope Pius IX, Vatican Council I, Session 2, Profession of Faith, 1870)
Church: can be a tiny remnant
"Even if Catholics faithful to Tradition are reduced to a handful, they are the ones who are the True Church of Jesus Christ."
(St. Athanasius)
"Better that only a few Catholics should be left, staunch and sincere in their religion, than that they should, remaining many, desire as it were, to be in collusion with the Church's enemies and in conformity with the open foes of our faith."
(St. Peter Canisius)
Church: doesn’t need “restoration”
"To use the words of the fathers of Trent, it is certain that the Church 'was instructed by Jesus Christ and His Apostles and that all truth was daily taught it by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.' Therefore, it is obviously absurd and injurious to propose a certain 'restoration and regeneration' for Her as though necessary for her safety and growth, as if she could be considered subject to defect or obscuration or other misfortune. Indeed these authors of novelties consider that a 'foundation may be laid of a new human institution,' and what Cyprian detested may come to pass, that what was a divine thing 'may become a human church.'"
(Pope Gregory XVI, Mirari Vos, August 15, 1832)
Church: nearly invisible when Christ returns
"The Son of Man, when He cometh, shall He find, think you, faith on earth?"
(Our Lord Jesus Christ, recorded in St. Luke 18:8)
Church: no salvation outside of
“Whoever wishes to be saved, needs above all to hold the Catholic Faith; unless each one preserves this whole and inviolate, he will without a doubt perish in eternity … This is the Catholic Faith; unless each one believes this faithfully and firmly, he cannot be saved.”
(Athanasian Creed; quoted and solemnly ratified ex cathedra by Pope Eugene IV, Council of Florence, session 8, November 22, 1439)
“There is indeed one universal Church of the faithful, outside of which nobody at all is saved, in which Jesus Christ is both priest and sacrifice.”
(Pope Innocent III, Fourth Lateran Council, Constitution 1, 1215)
"The Holy Roman Church firmly believes, professes, and preaches that all those who are outside the Catholic Church -- not only pagans but also Jews or heretics and schismatics -- cannot share in eternal luife, and will go into the everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels, unless they are joined to the Church before the end of their lives; [the Holy Roman Church firmly believes, professes, and preaches] that the unity of this ecclesiastical body is of such importance that only those who abide in it do the Church's sacraments contribute to salvation and do fasts, almsgivings and other works of piety and practices of the Christian militia productive of eternal rewards; and [the Holy Roman Church firmly believes, professes, and preaches] that nobody can be saved, no matter how much he has given away in alms and even if he has shed blood in the name of Christ, unless he has persevered in the bosom and unity of the Catholic Church."
(Ex cathedra solemn definition of Pope Eugene IV, Council of Florence (Ecumenical Council), "Cantate Domino," 1441; Denzinger)
“It is impossible for the most true God, who is Truth itself, the best, the wisest Provider, and the Rewarder of good men, to approve all sects who profess false teachings which are often inconsistent with one another and contradictory, and to confer eternal rewards on their members ... By divine faith we hold one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and … this is why we profess that there is no salvation outside the Church.”
(Pope Leo XII, Ubi Primum, May 5, 1824; paragraph 14)
Church: only the baptized are members
"Only those are really to be included as members of the Church who have been baptized and profess the true faith and who have not unhappily withdrawn from Body-unity or for grave faults have been excluded by legitimate authority."
(Pius XII, Mystici Corporis Christi)
Church hierarchy: limited in its powers
“The apostles and their successors are God's vicars in governing the Church which is built on faith and the sacraments of faith. Wherefore, just as they may not institute another Church, so neither may they deliver another faith, nor institute other sacraments."
(St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, III, 64, ad. 3)
Faith: integrity of jeopardized by denying a single doctrine
"When other Christian bodies are licensing as preachers young men who have abandoned the foundations of Christian belief, the Church would rather face the threatened defection of thousands of minds reputed brilliant or learned, than sacrifice one iota of the Truth confided to her by her Founder."
(America magazine, July 24, 1909, p. 110)
Deception of Last Days: extremely seductive
“Even the elect, if possible, will be deceived.”
(Our Lord Jesus Christ, in Matthew 24:24)
Faith, Catholic: Necessary for salvation
“ Whoever wishes to be saved must, above all, keep the Catholic faith.
For unless a person keeps this faith whole and entire he will
undoubtedly be lost forever. This is what the Catholic faith teaches …
For unless a person keeps this faith whole and entire he will
undoubtedly be lost forever. This is what the Catholic faith teaches …
This, then, is what he who wishes to be saved must believe about
the Trinity. It is also necessary for eternal salvation that he
believes steadfastly in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ …
This is the Catholic faith. Everyone must believe it, firmly and
steadfastly; otherwise He cannot be saved.”
the Trinity. It is also necessary for eternal salvation that he
believes steadfastly in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ …
This is the Catholic faith. Everyone must believe it, firmly and
steadfastly; otherwise He cannot be saved.”
(Athanasian Creed)
Freemasons: committed to extinguishing Catholicism
"On December 8, 1869, the International Congress of Freemasons imposed it as a duty on all its members to do all in their power to wipe out Catholicity from the face of the earth. Cremation was proposed as a suitable means to this end, since it was calculated to gradually undermine the faith of the people in 'the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.'"
(Fr. John Laux, Catholic Morality (Imprimatur 1932), p. 106)
Heresy: can be expressed by actions
“All ceremonies are professions of faith, in which the interior worship of God consists. Now man can make profession of his inward faith, by deeds as well as by words: and in either profession, if he make a false declaration, he sins mortally.”
(St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, I-II, q. 103, a. 4.)
Heresy: sins against faith are the worst
"With the exception of formal hatred against God, which constitutes the deadliest of all sins and of which the creature is rarely culpable -- unless he be in Hell -- the gravest of all sins are those against faith. The reason is evident. Faith is the foundation of the supernatural order, and sin is sin insofar as it attacks this supernatural order at one or another point; hence that is the greatest sin which attacks this order at its very foundations... Hence, heretical doctrines -- and works inspired by them -- constitute the greatest of all sins, with the exception of formal hatred of God, of which only the demons in Hell and the damned are capable. Liberalism, then, which is heresy, and all the works of Liberalisn, which are heretical works, are the gravest sins known in the code of the Christian law."
(Fr. Felix Sarda y Salvany, Liberalism is a Sin, Rockford IL: TAN, p. 19; emphasis in the original. This work, at the time of its publication in 1899, was given the highest praise and endorsement by the Holy Office.)
Heresy: worst thing there is
"The crowning disloyalty to God is heresy. It is the sin of sins, the very loathsomest of things which God looks down upon in this malignant world. Yet how little do we understand of its excessive hatefulness! It is the polluting of God’s truth, which is the worst of all impurities. Yet how light we make of it! We look at it, and are calm. We touch it and do not shudder. We mix with it, and have no fear. We see it touch holy things, and we have no sense of sacrilege. We breathe its odour, and show no signs of detestation or disgust. Some of us affect its friendship; and some even extenuate its guilt. We do not love God enough to be angry for His glory. We do not love men enough to be charitably truthful for their souls."
(Father Frederick Faber)
Heresy: zero tolerance for even seeming to embrace it
“If anyone, however, either suggests or believes or presumes to teach contrary to this faith, let him know that he is condemned and also anathematized according to the opinion of the same Fathers.”
(Pope Pelagius II, +585, Quod ad dilectionem, Denz. 246)
Hierarchy: in last days will seem to expire
"The Church will be punished because the majority of her members, high and low, will become so perverted. The Church will sink deeper and deeper until she will at last seem to be extinguished, and the succession of Peter and the other Apostles to have expired. But, after this, she will be victoriously exalted in the sight of all doubters."
(St. Nicholas of Flue, 15th century, cited in Catholic Prophecy, edited by Yves Dupont, p. 30)
Jews: forfeit covenant relationship with God due to unbelief
“… If you be Christ’s then you are the seed of Abraham” (Gal 3:29). If we because of our faith in Christ are deemed children of Abraham, the Jews therefore because of their perfidy [“deliberate breach of faith; calculated violation of trust; treachery” – American Heritage Dictionary, Second edition] have ceased to be His seed.”
(St. Gregory the Great, Sunday Sermons of the Great Fathers, vol. 1, p. 92)
Labels: Catholics Should Avoid the Use of, beyond “Catholic”
It is...Our will that Catholics should abstain from certain appellations which have recently been brought into use to distinguish one group of Catholics from another. They are to be avoided not only as "profane novelties of words," out of harmony with both truth and justice, but also because they give rise to great trouble and confusion among Catholics. Such is the nature of Catholicism that it does not admit of more or less, but must be held as a whole or as a whole rejected: "This is the Catholic faith, which unless a man believe faithfully and firmly; he cannot be saved" (Athanas. Creed). There is no need of adding any qualifying terms to the profession of Catholicism: it is quite enough for each one to proclaim "Christian is my name and Catholic my surname," only let him endeavour to be in reality what he calls himself.
[Pope Benedict XV: Encyclical Letter Ad Beatissimi Apostolorum 24 (c. 1914)]
Mixed Marriages: condemned by the Church
“Nor is it necessary for us to prove in full the antiquity of the discipline by which the Apostolic See always condemned the marriage of Catholics with heretics ... We hold that the marriages of Catholics with heretics are altogether to be avoided, and as far as it depends on us, We aim to keep them far from the Catholic Church ... His Holiness grieves very much that some Catholics today are demented in their base love. They no longer shrink from these detestable marriages which the Church has always condemned and forbidden.”
(Pope Benedict XIV, Magnae Nobis, June 29, 1748; paragraph 2)
Non-Catholics: are not Christians
“Even the heretics appear to have Christ, for none of them denies the name of Christ; yet, anyone who does not confess all that pertains to Christ does in fact deny Christ.”
(St. Ambrose (+389): cited in Faith of the Early Fathers, Vol. 2, p. 163)
“Therefore the holy martyr Cyprian, writing about schism, denied to the pseudo-bishop Novatian even the title of Christian, on the grounds that he was cut off and separated from the Church of Christ. ‘Whoever he is,’ he says, ‘and whatever sort he is, he is not a Christian who is not in the Church of Christ.’ “
(Pope Pius IX, Etsi multa, November 21, 1873, paragraph 25)
Novelty: passion for, condemned
"Blind they are ...they pervert the eternal concepts of truth ...they are seen to be under the sway of a blind and unchecked passion for novelty ...despising holy and Apostolic Traditions they embrace other and vain, futile, uncertain doctrines, condemned by the
Church."
Church."
(Pope Gregory XVI, Singulari Nos, June 25, 1834)
"It is impossible to approve in Catholic publications a style inspired by unsound novelty which seems to deride the piety of the faithful and dwells on the introduction of a new order of Christian life, on new directions of the Church, on new aspirations of the modern soul, on a new social vocation of the clergy, on a new Christian civilization, and many other things of the same kind."
(Pope Leo XIII, Instruction of the Sacred Congregation of Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs, January 27, 1902)
Pius X: predicted Catholic revolution of our time
"...the great movement of apostasy being organized in every country for the establishment of a One-World Church which shall have neither dogmas, nor hierarchy, neither discipline for the mind, nor curb for the passions, and which, under the pretext of freedom and human dignity, would bring back to the world (if such a Church could overcome) the reign of legalized cunning and force, and the oppression of the weak, and of all those who toil and suffer. [...] Indeed, the true friends of the people are neither revolutionaries, nor innovators: they are traditionalists."
Pope Saint Pius X, "Our Apostolic Mandate," 1910
Pius XII: predicted Catholic revolution of our time
"I hear around me reformers who want to dismantle the Holy Sanctuary, destroy the universal flame of the Church, to discard all her adornments, and smite her with remorse for her historic past."
(Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, later Pope Pius XII, to Count Enrico P. Galeazzi)
Professing the Faith publicly, obligation of
“The faithful are bound to profess their faith publicly, whenever silence, subterfuge, or their manner of acting would otherwise entail an implicit denial of their faith, a contempt of religion, an insult to God, or svcasndal to their neighbor.”
(Canon 1325, 1917 Code of Canon Law)
Religious Liberty: condemned
“This shameful font of indifferentism gives rise to that absurd and erroneous proposition which claims that liberty of conscience must be maintained for everyone. It spreads ruin in sacred and civil affairs, though some repeat over and over again with the greatest impudence that some advantage accrues to religion from it.”
(Pope Gregory XVI, Mirari Vos, August 15, 1832, paragraph 14)
Testing: God does not test us beyond our capacity
“No test has ever overtaken you, but such as is common to man. And God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tested above that which you are able, but with the test will also provide a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”
(1 Cor 10:13)
Truth: must be followed, not persons
“In accepting or rejecting opinions, a man must not be influenced by love or hatred of him who proffers the opinions, but only by the certainty of the truth.”
(St. Thomas Aquinas (+ c. 1260), cited in 33 Doctors of the Church, p. 386.)
Unevangelized peoples: faithless and in bondage to Satan
“We are thankful for the success of apostolic missions in America, the Indies, and other faithless lands…They search out those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death to summon them to the light and life of the Catholic religion… At length they snatch them from the devil’s rule by the bath of regeneration and promote them to the freedom of God’s adopted sons.”
(Pope Gregory XVI, Probe Nostis, Sept. 18, 1840; paragraph 6)
Women: forbidden to assist at the altar
“Pope Gelasius in his ninth letter (chap. 26) to the bishops of Lucania condemned the evil practice which had been introduced of women serving the priest at the celebration of Mass. Since this abuse had spread to the Greeks, Innocent IV strictly forbade it in his letter to the Bishop of Tusculum: ‘Women should not dare to serve at the altar; they should be altogether refused this ministry.’ We too have forbidden this practice in the same words in Our oft-repeated constitution Etsi Pastoralis, sect. 6, no. 21.”
(Pope Benedict XIV, Allatae sunt, July 26, 1755, paragraph 29)
Updated On: February 2nd, 2006