Author: Pete Vere

Bible Buck, God’s Trucker

Here’s a story I wrote about Charlie Hatchko, the man whom I consider the best Catholic Bible apologist in North America. No, he’s neither a Scripture scholar nor a theologian. Rather he’s a retired truck driver with a grade eight education.

Rome and the SSPX negotiations

Will Rome and the SSPX reconcile? It’s a good question. Like many traditionalists, I’ve been following the current reconciliation talks. I think slowing down the talks was a good idea. This way nobody feels rushed or pressured except by their own conscience. This way important differences can be discussed in more depth.
That being said, I would caution anyone against reading too much into the day-to-day rumors. I think these are like polls before an election. It is not the daily news reports that matter since they are simply snapshots of an overall process. So being at 50% in the polls is bad if you were at 55 last week and 60 the week before, but good if you were at 45 last week and 40 the week before. But you will get a lot 47s and 53s thrown in.
What matters is the overall trend. I think it is hopeful. First, I think there’s an appearance that Pope Benedict is much more nuanced in his understanding of the issues troubling the SSPX. Plus, given their cultural background, there’s probably much more of a natural affinity between Pope Benedict and Bishop Fellay.
Secondly, while the SSPX continues to voice many of its longstanding concerns, I find that the SSPX is much more careful to state its respect for Rome’s authority. I also see the SSPX curbing many of its past literary excesses when speaking of the Pope, the bishops, Vatican II, the Novus Ordo, etc. In fact, the SSPX just published a major study defending the validity of the Novus Ordo rite of ordination.
Thus the day-to-day articles are for better or for worse, but the overall trend is hopeful in my opinion. Yet many differences ramain that on the surface appear irreconcilable. Thus the best thing we can do as Christ’s faithful is to offer our prayers and fasting to the Holy Ghost for Pope Benedict and Bishop Fellay. They will certainly need Divine guidance to negotiate any deal.

Is Dale Vree endangering his eternal salvation?

Revised: Actually, Ed Peters makes a good point. If I’m going to criticize the manner by which Vree goes around picking intellectual street-fights, I need to avoid using the same type of polemic. Therefore, I’ve gone through the following post and edited out as much as possible.
That being said, I honestly am concerned about the state of Dale Vree’s soul. I don’t presume to judge it, since that is left to God alone. Nevertheless, I cannot see how Dale isn’t endangering his eternal salvation through the literary street-fights that he keeps picking.
And that’s why rebuking the sinner is a spiritual act of mercy. We rebuke sinners is because we don’t wish to see them go to hell. As angry as I am with Dale, I would rather see him go to Heaven than to hell. Homosexual acts are not the only sins that will condemn a soul to hell.
Take a look at how Dale attacks Amy Welborn or David Morrison or Fr. Pavone or Michael O’Brien (this last individual on the eve of a Canadian election where pro-marriage and pro-family forces were being told by an incumbant prime minister that there is no room for us in Canadian politics).
Well, what does the Bible have to say?
OLD TESTAMENT
1) Proverbs 6: 12-19 is very clear:
“A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech, winks with his eyes, scrapes with his feet, points with his finger, with perverted heart devises evil, continually sowing discord; therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.
“There are six things which the LORD hates, seven which are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and a man who sows discord among brothers.”
2) And let us no forget the Eighth Commandment of the Decalogue:
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20: 16)
NEW TESTAMENT
Let’s look at one of the New Testament passages that coincidentally also condemns those who practice homosexual activity:
3) 1 Corinthians 6: 9-10
“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sexual perverts, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
I pray this doesn’t happen to Dale. This is why I prayed for him this morning, as well as yesterday at Mass today when the priest said the words of consecration. I would ask my readers to do so as well.

Published
Categorized as Culture War