Liberal Hysteria
The coming liberation of the Latin Mass by Pope Benedict has been praised by some and condemned by others. Now comes word that some Jewish leaders are upset because of the Good Friday prayers that are associated with that Mass. In particular, the Good Friday prayers ask God to “remove the veil from their(the Jews) hearts; that they also may acknowledge Our Lord Jesus Christ”. In other words, the Church is petitioning God to save the Jews from eternal damnation. The Church is performing an act of perfect charity. The Old Covenant has been revoked. The New Covenant is now operative.
The Good Friday prayers also petition God for the rescuing of heretics and schismatics from their errors. The prayer goes so far as to say that these heretics and schismatics have been led astray by the decit of the devil. These prayers also petition God for the conversion of pagans, atheits, and non-Christians in general. In other words, the Church is praying for all who are not Catholic. Again, a perfect act of charity. What could be more important than a soul’s eternal destiny? A few hurt feelings is a small price to pay.
This minor spectacle of supposed Jewish outrage provides a good illustration of how issues are framed in this media driven age. Is the average Jewish person really upset about these Good Friday prayers? Does the average Jewish person even know that the Church is praying for their salvation on Good Friday? Are there any pagans, schismatics, or heretics holding news conferences and issuing press releases?
As with so many other “issues” these days, this one has been blown way out of proportion by the media and a small group of “spokesman”. Knowing that the media in general has no love for the Church, one must question the motive of those who are framing this issue. Is it perhaps just another opportunity to attack the Church? Is the real agenda just another attempt to make the Church modify its teachings in order to accommodate the worldly concerns of its adversaries? Let us hope that Rome will not back down from these media driven oversensitivities. The purpose of the Church is the salvation of souls. It should not abide any interference with this God given mission.