We who preach the gospel must not think of ourselves as public relations agents sent to establish good will between Christ and the world. We must not imagine ourselves commissioned to make Christ acceptable to big business, the press, the world of sports or modern education. We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum. A.W. Tozer
Therefore let God-inspired Scripture decide between us; and on whichever side be found doctrines in harmony with the word of God, in favor of that side will be cast the vote of truth. --Basil of Caesarea
Once you learn to discern, there's no going back. You will begin to spot the lie everywhere it appears.

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service. 1 Timothy 1:12

Wednesday, July 8, 2026

Another Response to the Pope!

In my article, Thoughts About the Catholic Church, I posted this statement by Pope Leo XIV (and made a short comment about it): 


God does not bless any conflict. Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs. Military action will not create space for freedom or times of peace, which comes only from the patient promotion of coexistence and dialogue among peoples.


In my “holding” files I just found this post by Robert A. J. Gagnon on Facebook, 4/10/26 at 5:05 PM. His response is much more thorough than mine:


In a new X post today, Leo again appears to be denying even in his Roman Catholic tradition regarding the concept of a "just war." Note Leo's absolute statements: "God does not bless *any* conflict. *Anyone* who is a disciple of Christ is *never* on the side of those" who use military weapons of war. "Peace ... comes *only* from ... dialogue among peoples."


Taking his statements at face value, he apparently believes that after the Japanese attacked us in Pearl Harbor and Hitler declared war on us we should have done nothing; and that Jesus was opposed to us defeating these two evil empires. We should have continued to engage in "dialogue" with Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan while they were committing murder on an unprecedented scale. That is a morally irresponsible verdict on Leo's part.


Jesus did not require the state to be pacifistic. He did not believe that Israel erred every time or even most of the time that it engaged in warfare as reported by his Scriptures (the Conquest, the period of the judges and tribal confederacy, David's reign). "Turn the other cheek" is not a model for the state (obviously), nor is it for internal policing and criminal punishment.


Granted, Jesus did not side with the violent revolutionaries of his day, just as Jeremiah did not side with those wanting to throw off Babylon's yoke in his day, but that is because they both viewed God as using the great empire of their day to punish Israel. Their approach was not a carte blanche rejection of military force in all circumstances.


Leo's level of moral understanding regarding conflict is shocking for someone who is supposed to be a moral leader for 1.5 billion Catholics worldwide.

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