The Poison Of Anti-Catholicism

In early 2021, I was invited to join an online Facebook prayer group with a number of evangelical Christians. I agreed as the focus was to entreat the Savior to turn the nation back to Him, particularly in light of the tumultuous election and the ungodly agenda that has comprised of what is now the current administration. While I enjoyed the entreaties, it soon became obvious that prior to the end of each session, the message that went forth, allegedly from the heavenly throne room, was “Margaret, the Lord is telling me that you need to leave the Catholic Church.” As one who is familiar with the reality of falsified, self induced prophetic directives, I consistently replied that that would never occur unless God spoke to me directly. After a lengthy hiatus, I participated once again a few weeks ago but withdrew minutes later when the leader began to pray against demonic religious doctrines, and so forth. Consequently, and in response to the reminder for the next gathering, I composed the following:

 
“Thank you for the invitation to the prayer meeting but let me note my reasons as to why I am no longer inclined to participate.”

 
“I am unapologetically Catholic and have been since I heeded the Lord’s directive and returned in September 2011. This ensued following a 16-year absence during which time I attended nondenominational fellowships on an exclusive basis. Catholicism is imperfect nevertheless from my experience, a number of Bible-based congregations also fall within that category as they have deliberately violated the Word in an effort to maintain both prominence and revenue. Indeed I am unable to fathom how those who identify as born-again, can scream the Lord’s Name at the top of their proverbial lungs yet are involved in ungodly agendas and/or express jubilance over those who perpetuate same. With that being said, I am grieved that every time I engage in the prayer call, there is typically a dialogue against religion, demonic religious doctrines and so forth. I am far from foolish and I understand the implication. You state that you hear God, but I do as well. I am precisely where He has placed me and I see no need to atone with regard to the fulfillment of His plan for my life. Months ago, upon the death of Marcus Lamb from Daystar, Father Cedric Pisegna, who has a program on that network, was invited to the funeral. He remarked that Marcus never disparaged him for his Catholicism but referred to him both as a brother and friend. It would be amazing if others could adhere to that example.” 

 
It was obvious that the reference to Father Cedric and Marcus Lamb had nil impact for in an instantaneous manner, I was unfriended by the co-leader. Within that same period of time, another member from the group remarked on Facebook that her brother was then recently saved and therefore delivered from the demon of Catholicism. I responded that while I was grateful for his commitment to Jesus, there were many of us, as Catholics, who worshipped Him as our Savior. With that came a deluge of execrable comments in which myself and others were referred to as heinous pagans under the satanic influence of the Vatican. Her rage was further incited when I detailed our Biblical history and stated in part “every church, without exception, has a designated leader as well as certain mandates. For example, when individuals apply for membership, infant dedication, or baptism, a class is required. Within those fellowships, certain tasks can only be carried forth by the pastors/elders/deacons. Such requirements are not found in the Bible, yet they’re accepted without question…if you are able to see snake eyes and demons behind the seat of the Pope, I would strongly recommend that you also look into the leadership realms of other churches that deliberately violate the Word of God to suit their own criteria.  Where is the outcry among the evangelicals when their pastors urge them to vote for and/or align themselves with those holding onto ungodly agendas? Where is the outrage when charlatans occupy the pulpits with the proclamation of a false gospel and subject the gifts of the Holy Spirit to abuse?” 

The poison of anti-Catholicism has seeped through much of the evangelical mindset. To the majority of Protestants and those in nondenominational fellowships, Catholics are regarded in a manner akin to that of the Antichrist. Their demeanor is one of profound condescension since those of us in the Church are perceived as spiritual illiterates. We are told that we do not know God, we worship Mary, we are governed in every facet by the Pope, and we are heretics who are devoid of Biblical knowledge. Though we’re disparaged for our unfamiliarity with the Lord, many of the congregations that level the accusations are truly ignorant of the Savior as they invite the unrighteous onto their altars where heresies are promoted to the alleged saved and sanctified, all of whom are in a ecstatic fervor despite the pronounced blasphemy. 

 
It was in 1984, subsequent to my commitment to the Savior, that I first began to hear the incessant refrain against Catholicism from amongst those within other churches. In that particular period of my life, the accusations appeared to be true as I was less than familiar with the Scriptures nor were they a priority amongst my friends and fellow parishioners. I realized that I was in need of the Word yet I was distinctly uncomfortable in the apostolic settings. Nevertheless in February 1995, I fought against my uneasiness and embraced the evangelical sphere where I remained on an exclusive basis until September 2011. 

 
I am unable to deny the fact that many of the nondenominational churches delved into the Bible and explained the Word in a comprehensive manner. For that, I will always be grateful. However, as time progressed, it became impossible to ignore the reality that their stance on Godly righteousness had severely deteriorated. One such example is that throughout history and to present date, the hierarchy of the Catholic Church has spoken out against the atrocity as it pertains to the slaughter of the unborn. In furtherance of this cause, a number of clerics, religious and laity are participants in various Prolife activities throughout the world. In contrast, evangelicals have continually expressed exuberance over pro-abortion advocates. Recently, on Easter Sunday, a notable politician spoke from the altar of a prominent congregation here in New York City…one that I am quite familiar with as I had previously attended there for a 10-year period both as a member and volunteer. As the senator continued on, he compared the confirmation of his designees in various influential positions, including Ketanji Jackson…a vocal supporter of infanticide…to the Resurrection of the Savior as he proclaimed “the stone has been rolled away!” There were no gasps in response to this heresy nor attempts to cease his monologue but rather fervent applause from both the pastor and congregants. 

 
My days of trepidation regarding the defense of my religion are behind me. While I acknowledge its imperfections, the fact remains that I have also witnessed rampant hypocrisy and moral disintegration within every facet of the nondenominational realm. That, in essence, has aptly placed me in a position where I am readily willing to strive on behalf of my faith. A few years ago, I attended a women’s fellowship at an evangelical church where my husband is a member. I was accompanied by a friend from my parish and almost immediately there was a verbal onslaught from another guest solely because we are Catholic. The young lady began to parrot the typical denunciations in that she queried how we were able to remain in a denomination that was rife with pedophilia. In a succinct manner I informed her that pedophiles existed in every creed and that according to studies, there was a greater percentage of such deviancy in other religious persuasions. However the media ignored this data and instead revised the narrative to be used as an accusation solely against Catholicism. I went on to clarify that incidents which involved those particular congregations were minimized and relegated to the sports section of newspapers whereas the ones that pertained to the Church were front page headlines. With that, the discussion concluded. 

 
In order to effectively combat the incursion of venom, we, as Catholics, have the distinct responsibility to thoroughly familiarize ourselves with the Lord as well as the truth of His Word. Indeed it is imperative that we embrace our faith with a Godly, buoyant fervency. Do we have a joyful expectation of our encounter with the Savior at the Eucharistic Celebration or do we regard our presence as a mandatory commitment and thus confine ourselves to a ritualistic monotone? Do we consistently worship Him in Spirit and in truth or has our prayer life been relegated merely to our responses during Sunday Mass or an obligatory daily breviary? Our Catholicism is an amazing gift to be cherished in our journey with Jesus and should therefore never be used as a status symbol or emblem of sorts to curry favor for various means. There is no merit whatsoever if we present a pious facade with little of substance that would indicate a relationship with Him. The fact remains that we have a definitive call to allow the light of Jesus within us to shine forth before the world.