Given from the Catholic Broadcasting Station 2SM Sydney Australia
Choose a topic from Vol 4:
I have ever maintained in my programs that Scripture, history and reason leave room for the Catholic religion only as the one true religion in itself. Why on earth would I have become a Catholic, after having been brought up as a Protestant, if I had not arrived at that conviction? But I have also said that other Protestants, so long as they do not believe in the truth of the Catholic religion, cannot become Catholics. They are obliged to follow their consciences in what they themselves at any given time sincerely believe to be right. If, therefore, they believe that they are bound to worship God in a Protestant way, the Catholic Church could not, on her own principles, deny them freedom to do so.
You have never heard me do so; nor has anyone else. I have declared such people mistaken in their ideas of what the Christian religion really requires. I have at times discussed the word "Heresy," pointing out that it means the denial of orthodox teaching. But I have always pointed out also that one who has been taught wrong doctrines, and who has just taken them for granted, sincerely believing them to be right, is not personally guilty of any sin of heresy. Such a person, therefore, does not deserve to be branded as a heretic; and I have consistently refrained from using that term in regard to any non-Catholics, whether individually or collectively, who have been brought up according to the tenets of other religious bodies.
Here is a dictionary definition of the word. "One who adopts an opinion contrary to the authorized teachings of the Church to which he belongs." This supposes that one belongs to some definite religious body; that his Church has definite teachings which all members are expected to accept; and that some individual member, having previously accepted those teachings, decides to reject one, some or all of them.
In technical language, the Catholic Church regards all separated forms of religion professing to be Christian as unorthodox or heretical. But she denies that those who adhere to such forms sincerely and in quite good faith, never suspecting their position to be wrong, are guilty of any sin of heresy. Again, in technical language, she refuses to regard them as "formal heretics." They are simply mistaken.
She does not. But she does know how to distinguish between the religion a man professes and the man who professes it. So do you, in your own sane moments. As a Christian, you must rank the denial of Christ as heresy. But you would not rank a Mahometan who has never had the Christian Faith as a heretic, despite his denial of the Divinity of Christ.
One would think that you simply do not want Catholics to have sympathetic and charitable dispositions towards you!
"THAT CATHOLIC CHURCH
A Radio Analysis"
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