Catholic Replies
Editor’s Note: More wisdom from the weekly bulletin column of Fr. George Rutler, pastor of the Church of St. Michael in New York City:
“There is dark humor in counting the number of ‘motivational speakers’ who flood public television stations, and go as quickly as they come, just like the profitable ‘self-help’ books of the type that counsel: ‘God wants you to be happy.’ In some churches, there is a tendency to replicate this kind of ‘snowflake’ Gospel that shortchanges people out of the truth. . . .
“There are those who would reduce Christ to a glorified motivational speaker. Thomas Jefferson edited the New Testament so that the Resurrection and Pentecost were irrelevant, making the Sermon on the Mount the pinnacle of Christ’s teaching. But this reduced the Messiah to an aphorist…
“Marcus Aurelius was almost prophetic, and remarkably so since he left words he did not expect to be recorded but which ring true to Christ, when he wrote: ‘Think of your many years of procrastination; how the gods have repeatedly granted you further periods of grace, of which you have taken no advantage.’ The Gospel is not a compendium of maxims, nor is Christ an amiable motivational speaker expecting to retire in Galilee and count his royalties. When he tells the scribe to follow immediately and not bury his father, and forbids another would-be follower to tarry to say farewell to his family, he is speaking of procrastination that defers the primacy of God to tomorrow. But Christ can only be a soul’s Savior if he saves today: ‘Today if you should hear his voice, harden not your hearts’ (Heb. 3:15).”
Q. I went to early morning Mass today and then later to a funeral Mass. Was it all right for me to receive Communion at both Masses? — T.L.H., via e-mail.
A. Yes, it was all right. Canon 917 of the Code of Canon Law states that “a person who had received the Most Holy Eucharist may receive it again on the same day only during the celebration of the Eucharist in which the person participates, with due regard for the prescription of can. 921 §2.” The latter canon says that those in danger of death may receive the Eucharist more than once a day. A Catholic not in danger of death may receive Communion at two Masses in one day, provided that he or she physically participates at each Mass.
Q. You recently stated that the name of the Archangel Michael means “who is like God.” That can’t be since no other being could be like God. Proud Lucifer, light-bearer and most beautiful of all the angels, claimed this privilege. St. Michael battled him and the other fallen angels who became demons. — J.P., Texas.
A. To say that St. Michael is “like God” is not to say that he is in any way equal to God since he is only a creature. However, we are all called to be like God in the sense that we are called to holiness. “Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God am holy,” God said to Moses (Lev. 19:2). This was reiterated by St. Peter, who said that just “as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct, for it is written, ‘Be holy because I [am] holy’” (1 Peter 1:15-16).
Q. What is the Church’s teaching on Grigori Rasputin (1869-1916), the “holy” monk in Russian history? — R.B.K., Virginia.
A. We are not aware of any Church teaching on Rasputin, but you are right to put quotations around “holy” since there was nothing holy about this man. His name in Russian means the “debauched one.” Born to a peasant family in Siberia, Rasputin allegedly had a religious conversion in 1897 and was described as a wanderer or monk, although he had no connection with the Russian Orthodox Church. He was married and fathered seven children, four of whom survived to adulthood.
Rasputin arrived in St. Petersburg in 1903 and, two years later, became acquainted with the royal family of Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandra. His influence with the royal family increased when he apparently was able to stop the bleeding of Alexei, the hemophiliac son of the royal couple, possibly by his hypnotic powers. Rasputin gained a reputation as a healer and as a holy man in the presence of the Tsar and Tsarina, but outside of that sphere he was known for his sexual licentiousness. Those who criticized him, however, were quickly removed from positions of power and/or transferred to isolated regions of Russia.
While World War I was raging, Rasputin encouraged Nicholas to visit the troops at the front and, while he was away, he became Alexandra’s personal adviser on Russia’s internal affairs, which allowed him to appoint church officials and select cabinet members.
Several unsuccessful attempts were made on his life, but in December 1916, he was invited to visit the home of Prince Feliks Yusupov, where he was poisoned and then shot three times before the conspirators bound him and threw him through a hole in the ice in the Neva River. Not long after that, the regime of Nicholas was overthrown during the Bolshevik Revolution.
Q. A fellow parishioner mentioned to the pastor that she believed Pope Francis is a Communist, and her pastor told her that she had just committed a mortal sin by making such a statement. I told the woman that she had not committed a mortal sin, and she wants evidence to back up my opinion. Can you help? — W.B., via e-mail.
A. First, it’s never a good idea to call someone a Communist unless that person has clearly stated that he is a Communist. To make such a claim and not be able to prove it allows critics to focus attention on the unproven claim itself and to ignore evidence that policies advocated by the person are compatible with Communism. As Soviet dictator Josef Stalin reportedly said, “Some are members of the party, some are not; the important thing is that both serve the same common purpose.”
Second, there is no question that Pope Francis was influenced by socialists and Marxists when he was a bishop and cardinal in Argentina, and he has made some head-shaking statements, appointments, and policies as the Successor of St. Peter. One of his advisers, Bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, the chancellor of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, said that he had invited avowed socialist Bernie Sanders to speak at the Vatican because his views “are very analogous to that of the Pope.”
Author and commentator William Kilpatrick, after watching Sanders announce his candidacy for president, said that “except for the part about a woman’s right to choose, Pope Francis would have found himself in agreement with just about every item on the aging socialist warrior’s agenda. This reminded me for the umpteenth time and the Pope has far more radical ideas than most people realize. Like Bernie Sanders, the Pope is a socialist. He has had many unkind words about capitalism (‘the dung of the Devil’), but no corresponding criticism of socialism. Like Sanders, his ideas about economics were shaped by Marxist thinkers and activists. And just like Sanders and other socialist Democrats are moving the Democratic Party leftward, so also Pope Francis is attempting to move the Church in the same direction.”
Speaking to a climate change conference at the Vatican on May 27, the Holy Father said that steps must be taken quickly “to help stop a crisis that is leading the world to disaster.” He said that countries “must stop engaging in activities that are destroying our planet,” must “put an end to global dependence on fossil fuels,” and must “open a new chapter of clean and safe energy that utilizes, for example, renewable resources such as wind, sun, and water.”
The Pope relies entirely on climate change extremists, with no apparent awareness of the thousands of scientists who dispute their alarmist agenda.
Third, while one should express concern about the Holy Father’s statements and policies, it is counterproductive to call him a Communist. Impugning a person’s reputation is a sin, but whether it’s a mortal sin depends on whether one sufficiently understands the gravity of the action and goes ahead with it anyway. While your friend may have spoken imprudently, we doubt that her statement rises to the level of a mortal sin. Nevertheless, she should be careful in criticizing the policies of Pope Francis not to judge his motives or accuse him of being a Communist. She should also pray for him.
