To Cardinals and Bishops of the Catholic Church

In this year 2007 we commemorate 100 years from the publication of the encyclical of St. Pius X “Pascendi Dominici gregis”. Nowadays there is nothing so topical in the Church and in whole Christianity as the issue which was wisely treated by this saint Pope as early as one hundred years ago. His words are still valid and today they can be applied to HCT: “First goes a(n) (unbelieving) philosopher, after him there comes a(n) (unbelieving) historian, these are followed by atheistic criticism, as internal so textual. The main direction is determined by atheistic philosophy. Therefore the matter discussed is eventually not ordinary (objective) criticism but agnostic, imanent and evolutionistic one, and thus, who acknowledges and uses it, the one acknowledges the heresies contained therein and is an adversary of the Catholic doctrine.”

Summary:

Every reasonable person, the more so a believing Christian, can easily understand that in HCT one deals with ideology and demagogy. For the Christian faith is based on the historical facts of God’s revelation, on historical events – birth from the Virgin, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ who is the true God and the true man. Christianity is based on His teaching which was authentically and literally preserved through the apostles until the present times in the books of the New Testament. HCT refuses to acknowledge the historical facts and does not believe that the Lord Jesus worked miracles, resurrected Lazarus from the dead, died on the cross under Pontius Pilate and on the third day He rose again from the dead, and that really and physically (not transhistorically or mystically).

Without true conversion which is connected with the receiving of Christ as of the Saviour no one will be saved (cf. Acts 4:12).

The most problematic group which was rejecting Christ was the theologians and the hierarchy of that time. Unfortunately, the situation is the same even nowadays. To them applied and still applies Jesus’ word: “I know that you have not the love of God within you… If you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” (Jn 5:37-47)

In Christ,

Fr. Metod?j R. Špi?ík ThD. OSBM

Fr. Cyril J. Špi?ík ThD. Ing. OSBM

Fr. Markian V. Hitiuk ThLic. OSBM

Fr. Eliáš A. Dohnal ThD. OSBM

Pidhirtsi 5th April 2007

Thursday of the Holy Week

Literature:

-       Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)

-       Encyclical Pascendi Dominici gregis