The Other Side

This is an excerpt of an article I received from a friend. It was written by a Fr. Robert D. Smith (deceased Dec. 15, 2001) entitled "The Other Side of Christ."

"There is another kind of heresy that is largely untalked about but is far more pervasive in its effects on priests, affecting in one way or another probably ninety-five percent or more of the priests in this country: the idea that virtually all men must be saved.

"The priests affected by this, and they are legion, are affected in either of two ways. First, there is a large group of outright heretics, modernists, who believe that no one can possible be damned, that somehow sin does not ever lead to Hell. This is a direct contradiction of dozens of passages in the New Testament. Second, however, there is another large group who are not directly modernistic, who do not really believe that everyone is necessarily saved, but who are severly tainted by modernism. This second group still retains an idea of sin but is afraid to teach it as it was taught by Christ. They believe that their congregations would reject it, but that is very mistaken. Even now, people in church recognize and accept Christian truth when they hear it. In fact, the whole subject, carefully treated, is very interesting to them and a refreshing change from their regular diet, the saltless food of modernism's "positive" approach.

"And here is the great pity, the great unseen heart of the disease. Between the effects of those priests severly tainted by modernism and those who are directly modernistic, great numbers in church seldom hear Christ's teaching, His own most frequent teaching, on a strict and coming judgment. The modernistic priests and those severly tainted by modernism are all ashamed....of a central teaching of Christ! Because of their failure to teach it, because of their shame at teaching it, they shall not only have to answer to Christ on Judgment Day, but to all the lost souls they failed to warn in this world."