The Elephant And Signs Of End Time

 

No. What is before them is neither a snake, nor a spear nor a fan nor a wall nor a tree nor a rope: it is an elephant. To that extent none is entitled to his false opinion... 

Preamble:

The hypothetical scenario of blind men with an elephant in front of them and each describing the elephant according to what part of the elephant each touched; Or, a figure drawn on the floor with two men looking at it from two different directions: from one side it is "6" and from the opposite side it is "9": how readily have these come handy for those who defend the proposition that "everyone is entitled to his own opinion"! 

Plenty of people, who otherwise seem well intentioned, are subscribers to this pernicious error. But it is easy to undeceive them if they want to go into the matter in good faith.

In a recent chat someone most pompously affirmed that "religion is like blind men speaking about an elephant: everyone is entitled to his opinion", and that got me started…

The Forgotten Fact:

Now, it is quite understandable for a group of men born-blind to be mistaken concerning the idea of an elephant. But, It is a different thing altogether to make their mistaken ideas a reality, having equal rights to immunity from correction given by someone who can actually see the elephant in question as a complete entity. 

  Why is the right to immunity accorded and defended? Precisely because it is altogether forgotten that there is indeed an elephant objectively there before these blind men, independent of the blind men and whatever the progeny of their weak imagination could be. 

And, in relation to the real elephant out there as such, what anyone, blind or not, says of it would either be correct and true, or simply false.

The Fine Twist

Let us suppose that one of the "blind men" was once able to see. And that when he had his sight intact, he was always fascinated about going to the zoo to see elephants, among other animals. He is sure to have a vivid mental image of what an elephant looks like and would be greatly amused by the products of the weak imaginations of those who have never seen one. And, someone, having good eyesight and can see an elephant in the present can either confirm or disprove what this fellow would have to say. 

Next, two things are involved in the "debate" between the fellow who once could see and saw what an elephant looks like but can no longer see due to the silent theft of his eyesight by glaucoma, and those Who never saw what an elephant looks like because they have never enjoyed the use of their eyes: either the judges, who themselves can see here and now what an elephant looks like, would prove themselves to be associates of common sense and perform their duty to honesty as such, or they would, as victims of malice, pronounce a distorted verdict in favor of those born blind who have never set their eyes on an elephant or the picture of an elephant. If the latter, they would give equal rights to the "opinions" of both camps in the debate. If the former, they would simply confirm the vivid description of what an elephant looks like by the fellow who, though now blind, has a clear mental image of an elephant since he had seen what an elephant looks like several times in the past, however distant, and disabuse the born-blinds of their illusions. 

The Sad backgrounds to the Pernicious Error

At the base of this claim that "everyone is entitled to his opinion" is the refusal to recognize the existence of solid reality as a knowable thing, and making truth dependent upon “the way you look at it” or “the way you experience it.” 

Here you see "Relativism" according to which what is true for one may not be true for all, or may not be true for one in all circumstances. But that is sheer foolery since every statement of fact must take into account the circumstances of the said fact. Here what comes to mind is the classical case of two men looking at a figure drawn on the ground from opposite directions: one seeing "6" , the other "9". Taking the circumstances into consideration a third party can verify whether each of the two men is right in affirming "this is 6" or "this is 9". 

Yes: both are correct under different factual circumstances, but both cannot be right under the same respects. We can know with certainty that the figure is either 6 or 9 depending on the perspective taken... 

More so, related to this claim that "everyone is entitled to his opinion" is another cesspool of error that we cannot know with certainty that God exists. Here we have agnosticism. With this as a springboard, the presupposition is that we cannot know with certainty who is correct or not, to that extent each must be and let others be. 

The poor victims of the agnostic poison are rendered incapable of understanding that though the field of human knowledge is indeed limited, it's limit is only in proportion to the non availability of evidence to work with and to rest upon. To that effect, they arbitrarily limit knowledge even where evidence is available; the evidence for the total vacancy of the seat of the Pope by Divine Law, for instance...

That relativism and agnosticism is so widespread today among those who frequent popular houses still bearing that tag "Catholic" is in no way surprising: Pope St. Pius X tells us that the philosophical foundation of Modernism is agnosticism and subjectivism, which does away with all objectivity. 

Now, as a matter of fact, only those so dazed with Modernist agnosticism and subjectivism are incapable of seeing the Modernist infiltration, usurpation and occupation of Catholic structures and institutions and their impersonation of the teaching authority of the Church. It would be a miracle of the first class that those steeped in, and fed by the Modernistic agnostic and subjectivist poison should be free from agnosticism and subjectivism. For our part, with an informed Catholic Common Sense and steeped in objectivity, we cannot forget that "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can an evil tree bring forth good fruit" (Matt. 7:18). 

The Elephant And the signs of End Time…

It is written:

  "there shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine but, according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers having itching ears:

And will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables" ( 2 Tim. 4:3&4) 

In this is seen a succinct description of our times: people, imbued with agnosticism and subjectivism, have ears only for the fables that "everyone is entitled to his opinion" since such doctrine favours their passions, not obliging them to conform to any objective norm in matters concerning Faith and morals. 

Those imbued with agnosticism and subjectivism are no longer eager to be taught: they seek only such teachers who simply tell them what they want to hear: that "everyone is entitled to his opinion", that "one religion is as good as the other", that "what matters is your heart not the Church you attend" etc, , and hearing these, they are elated with a sense of satisfaction. They seek for such who speak to gratify and delight their hearers.

Intoxicated by agnosticism and subjectivism, they take it as a given that it is impossible to know that there is only one true religion or Church. They have disdain for intransigent Catholics who insist on the objective rule of Faith and morals and continue to point out objective factual evidence from which the truth of the Modernist infiltration, usurpation and occupation of Catholic structures and institutions can be ascertained beyond any reasonable doubts. 

Be that as it may, we are resolved to be vigilant, to labour in all things, to do the work of an evangelist, to fulfil our ministry; to be instant in season, out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine (2 Tim. 4: 2;5) knowing that only to those who "have not love of the truth" is the "operation of error" sent that they may believe lying. (2 Thess. 2:10). We are persuaded that a handful of them that love the truth are still out there: such as these are easily undeceived of the Modernist hypocrisy, and to the we bear our witness, to the greater glory of God...