Species Of Unbelief
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| The species of unbelief: the unbelief of pagans, Mohammedans, unbelieving Jews; and the unbelief of Protestants, Modernists, schismatics, apostates... Preamble |
Unbelief! Against what background can this be evaluated? Following St. Thomas Aquinas, we know that the background can be none other than the objective divine faith, the Christian faith. The rectitude of Christian Faith then is the yardstick for evaluating unbelief.
A short video version of this can be viewed on YouTube. Here we have a more detailed treatment of the topic, though we do not pretend to give a most exhaustive treatment.
Two Ways Of Deviating From The Rectitude Of Christian Faith
In response to the question “whether heresy is a species of unbelief?” [St. II-II, Q.11, art. 1], St. Thomas Aquinas explains that there are two ways in which a man may deviate from the rectitude of Christian Faith which corresponds to the two species of unbelief.
The first, he says, is because he is unwilling to assent to Christ. Such a man has evil will, so to say, in respect of the very end of life, the ultimate goal of existence which is to attain eternal happiness and union with God through charity. This unwillingness to assent to Christ belongs to the species of unbelief in pagans (including Muhammedans) and unbelieving Jews.
The second way in which a man may deviate from the rectitude of Christian Faith is because though he intends to assent to Christ, yet he fails in his choice of those things wherein he assents yo Christ, because he chooses not what Christ really taught, not the integral teaching of Christ, but the suggestions of his own weak mind. This is where it becomes clear that heresy is a species of unbelief belonging to those who profess the Christian Faith, but corrupt its dogmas by rejecting one or more doctrines of th Christian Faith.
As a principle, the mysteries of the Faith are beyond human reason, but never opposed to reason. And, Faith never requires us to believe anything that is contrary to human reason because the same God has given us our reason and the teachings of Christ and of His Church. He therefore who rejects any doctrine of God's Church ultimately finds himself in a contradiction. He deviates from the rectitude of Christian Faith simply so.
Fool's Clan;
Someone is quoted to have said,and rightly so, that:
“A little philosophy takes a man away from religion, but a sound knowledge of philosophy brings him back to religion”
Many today who lay claim to the title “philosophers” derive their cheap popularity in proportion to how vocal they are in their attack on religion. Their fundamental premise, or rather, conclusion, is that “there is no God”.
This we know, “The fool hath said in his heart: There is no God…” (Ps. 13:1). This springs from a species of unbelief, the unwillingness to assent to God revealing Himself in the book of nature and in supernatural revelation
That God's existence is revealed in natural things can not be called into doubt by anyone with right reason. By the same token, that reason alone can know God's existence independently of divine revelation is stating the obvious.
- The order, beauty, and complexity of creation demonstrate the existence of an intelligent and powerful Creator (St. Paul, Romans 1:20).
- The existence of contingent beings (i.e., beings that can exist or not exist) implies the existence of a necessary being, which is God (St. Thomas Aquinas, S.T. I, Q. 2, art. 3).
- The natural world exhibits a clear direction and purpose, which implies the existence of an intelligent Designer (St. Thomas Aquinas, S.T., I, Q. 2, art. 2).
- The universal human experience of a moral law and conscience implies the existence of a divine Lawgiver (St. Paul, Romans 2:14-15).
In virtue of this ironclad logic, there is absolutely no excuse for Atheism: no excuse for being foolish. Bad will in regards to the ultimate goal of existence is to blame for the unwillingness to assent to God revealing Himself in natural things.
Ridiculous Branch Theory
Those with the other species of unbelief insist that: “Protestantism is nothing more than another form of the same true Christian religion…”
This is, no doubt, a ridiculous claim so contrary to reason and makes a joke of Christianity. This ridiculousness, an external observer is able to discern very easily.
They claim that “one Church is as good as the other” and that “it does not matter which Church one goes to”. It does not matter whether one attends the Church founded by Christ Himself or the gathering of sects formed by men's pride instigated by the devil's envy? How phenomenal!
Seen from this angle, the insidious sophistry in place is readily seen:
- A Catholic believes the teachings of the Church founded by Christ both because Christ guides the Church to all Truth through the Holy Ghost and guards it against all errors; and because even to the present day, God has confirmed the truth of the teachings of the Catholic Church by miracles.
- But Protestants in their various shades willfully disbelieve not just a single, but many doctrines of the Catholic Church. They claim to profess Christ, but corrupt Christian dogma.
Thus outlined, can anyone in his right senses gain say the fact that protestantism is a species of unbelief? Protestants treat God like a dishonest dealer or merchant, some of whose goods they accept, some reject. What insolence!
The simple fact remains that:
- There is only one true Church of Christ: the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
- The branch theory undermines the unity intrinsic to the Church of Christ by implying that it is divided.
- Its ecclesiastical relativism is odious to Christian objectivity: contradicting so-called “ecclesial bodies” cannot be all equally valid. Right reason forbids assent to such monstrosity.
Insurmountable Obstacle
The many infected by the different species of unbelief erect, as it were, an insurmountable obstacle to knowing the saving Truth: - be they Protestants outside the walls, or Protestants within the walls of Catholic buildings (Modernists and their poor victims), or those in the fool's Clan together with their blind victims.
They, positively, do not want to think about the truth, to see the truth, to hear the truth,to smell the truth and to speak the truth. No! Any attempt to propose the truth, the objective truth, of their unbelief to them only ends in name-calling. You are reckoned as being “judgemental", “a fundamentalist”, “intolerant”, “reactionary”, “close minded”, “absolutist”...the list goes on!
They are comfortable with their Protestant, modernist, atheistic, idolatrous, Mohammedan unbelief. This comfort simply comes from the fact that they derive some emotional satisfaction and a sense of belonging being where they are.
Summing Up: Unrelenting Spiritual Work Of Mercy
It remains a spiritual work of mercy, in season and out of season, to instruct ignorant who are infected with the different species of unbelief; informing them simply concerning what is true - what is right and just in matters of Faith and Morals.
The eternal reward for unbelief is so dreadful: exclusion from heaven and loss of the beatific vision of God. That is, failure to attain the ultimate goal of human existence. This highlights the fact that unbelief springs from evil will in regards to the ultimate goal of human existence.
Taking the words of St. Bernadette seriously, our duty remains simply to inform, never to convince. Those with good will are able to listen to the truth we propose and defend, think about it, smell it, feel it, and ultimately join us to speak about it.
Those with good will are able to discern the intrinsic convincing power of the truth we propose and defend and recognize how self-deceptive it would be not to assent to it after being so convinced beyond reasonable doubt.
For those with evil will, while our words cannot penetrate the strong fortress of their unwillingness to lend us their “ear time”, we hope against hope that our feeble prayer may obtain for them the goodwill required for anyone to come “to the knowledge of the truth and be saved”: this too is a spiritual work of mercy - to pray, to pray for the living and the dead.
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