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Question Title Posted By Question Date
Nut balls Padraig Saturday, November 10, 2012

Question:


Dear Br Ignatius Mary

What kind of religious refers to others, made in the same image of God, as 'nut balls' ?

I'd suggest that, at the very least, these 'nutballs' are as spiritually mature as you've betrayed yourself to be.

'Nutballs' indeed.

I say 'Bollox.'

Get a grip man and grow up.

Sr Padraig Teresita



Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OMSM(r)

Dear Sister:

If you believe that a religious should not use pejorative language about someone, why do you use it with me. Should a religious be as insultive as you, especially publicly?  

But, I am not surprised. Liberal-minded people are always self-righteous and always hypocritical, but that is not the worse of it, sister.

You seem to think you are better than Jesus, St. James, and the Saints, all who used pejorative language.

In the book, Liberalism is a Sin by Fr. Felix Sarda Y Salvany, a book resoundingly endorsed by the Vatican, Father says:

There is then no sin against charity in calling evil evil, its authors abettors and disciples bad; all its acts, words and writings iniquitous, wicked, malicious. If the propagation of good and the necessity of combating evil require the employment of terms somewhat harsh against error and its supporters, this usage is certainly not against charity.

Father continues:

[Such language] is amply justified by every page of the works of our great Catholic polemicists of other epochs. This is easily verified. St. John the Baptist calls the Pharisees "race of vipers," Jesus Christ, our Divine Savior, hurls at them the epithets "hypocrites, whitened sepulchers, a perverse and adulterous generation," without thinking for this reason that He sullies the sanctity of His benevolent speech. St. Paul criticizes the schismatic Cretins as "always liars, evil beasts, slothful bellies." The same apostle calls Elymas the magician "seducer, full of guile and deceit, child of the Devil, enemy of all justice."

If we open the Fathers we find the same vigorous castigation of heresy and heretics. St. Jerome arguing against Vigilantius casts in his face his former occupation of saloon keeper: "From your infancy," he says to him, "you have learned other things than theology and betaken yourself to other pursuits. To verify at the same time the value of your money accounts and the value of Scriptural texts, to sample wines and grasp the meaning of the prophets and apostles are certainly not occupations which the same man can accomplish with credit." On another occasion attacking the same Vigilantius, who denied the excellence of virginity and of fasting, St. Jerome, with his usual sprightliness, asks him if he spoke thus "in order not to diminish the receipts of his saloon?" Heavens! What an outcry would be raised if one of our Ultramontane controversialists were to write against a Liberal critic or heretic of our own day in this fashion!

What shall we say of St. John Chrysostom? His famous invective against Eutropius is not comparable, in its personal and aggressive character, to the cruel invectives of Cicero against Catiline and against Verres! The gentle St. Bernard did not honey his words when he attacked the enemies of the faith. Addressing Arnold of Brescia, the great Liberal agitator of his times, he calls him in all his letters "seducer, vase of injuries, scorpion, cruel wolf."

The pacific St. Thomas of Aquinas forgets the calm of his cold syllogisms when he hurls his violent apostrophe against William of St. Amour and his disciples: "Enemies of God," he cries out, "ministers of the Devil, members of AntiChrist, ignorami, perverts, reprobates!" Never did the illustrious Louis Veuillot speak so boldly. The seraphic St. Bonaventure, so full of sweetness, overwhelms his adversary Gerard with such epithets as "impudent, calumniator, spirit of malice, impious, shameless, ignorant, impostor, malefactor, perfidious, ingrate!" Did St. Francis de Sales, so delicately exquisite and tender, ever purr softly over the heretics of his age and country? He pardoned their injuries, heaped benefits on them even to the point of saving the lives of those who sought to take his, but with the enemies of the faith he preserved neither moderation nor consideration. Asked by a Catholic, who desired to know if it were permissible to speak evil of a heretic who propagated false doctrines, he replied: "Yes, you can, on the condition that you adhere to the exact truth, to what you know of his bad conduct, presenting that which is doubtful as doubtful according to the degree of doubt which you may have in this regard." In his Introduction to a Devout Life, that precious and popular work, he expresses himself again: "If the declared enemies of God and of the Church ought to be blamed and censured with all possible vigor, charity obliges us to cry wolf' when the wolf slips into the midst of the flock, and in every way and place we may meet him."

In addition, Jesus name-called some of the worse name-calls one could lob at a first century Jew, in addition to the examples above, such as calling some Jews dogs and pigs (swine). And then there is St. James who referred to the people he was arguing with about justification as ignoramuses.

I guess Jesus, St. James, and the Saints forgot to consult you.

Is a religious suppose to exhibit such self-righteousnees and think of themselves as better than Jesus and the Saints? and even to chastise Jesus and the Saints. That is what you do when you claim pejorative language is improper. If it is improper, then it is improper for everyone (including you). You castigate Jesus and the Saints with that criticism since they exhibited that beahvior. Who do you think you are? Methinks you need to go on retreat and seriously meditate on the Litany of Humility.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

 


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