The Beam in Our Brother's Eye
By Robert Royal
Monday, 16 June 2008
Excerpt:
Benedict XVI has deplored the widespread misrepresentation of Jesus as Someone Who "demands nothing, never scolds, Who accepts everyone and everything, Who no longer does anything but affirm us." It was not always thus. Why? Well, to begin with, if you read the Gospels, Jesus says He is meek and humble of heart, but He has a sharp tongue: He calls some fellow Jews a "brood of vipers"; in Luke, after teaching the Lord's Prayer, He remarks almost casually to His own disciples, "If you then, who are wicked. . ."; and He warns often about the possibility of eternal damnation. This excludes people, is judgmental, may not exactly build self-esteem. Benedict has noted tartly that Christian community "must not be conceived as if the avoidance of conflict were the highest pastoral value."
Hat Tip: The Curt Jester
Comments (2)
Jesus also called Peter (our first Pope) "Satan".
Posted by tmaccaro | June 19, 2008 7:17 PM
Posted on June 19, 2008 19:17
Hi tmaccaro-- Jesus and Peter had a strange relationship, didn't they? Peter was such an impetuous person! I mean, here’s a guy that denied Christ three times, demanded that Jesus take him out to walk on water, Peter sliced off an ear of Jesus’ Roman captor and Jesus had to heal the man! Peter was illiterate and impulsive, yet he was first among the Apostles and the one that Jesus chose to be the Rock of his Church! In his writings as the first bishop of Rome, you see a real transition from Peter as a the terse leader to the people in Asia Minor in the First Letter of Peter. By the Second Letter, he was an old man-- slow, reflective and pondering the end of his days. He humbly opens his second letter identifying himself as a “slave and apostle of Jesus Christ”-- having led the Church for a number of years realizing that he himself had been led by the Lord.
What a fascinating connection those two had! Thanks for writing.
Posted by WRC | June 20, 2008 10:00 AM
Posted on June 20, 2008 10:00