Letter to the Editor

Last week there was a letter to the editor in our local newspaper that spoke poorly of the Catholic Church. Nathan and I were both upset, so he took it upon himself to respond. Here is his article that appeared in today's paper.

Universal Catholicism

Monday, August 6, 2007

In his letter Aug. 1, William LaRochelle makes the claim that the Catholic Church is guilty of contradiction.

LaRochelle speaks of the declaration that Protestant denominations are not churches. It must be understood that the word "church" has a deeper theological meaning. "Church," in the theological sense, refers to the lack of linear succession within Protestant communities that is found within the Catholic and Orthodox churches. It does not mean that Protestants' beliefs lack a theological base.

With that understanding of church, it becomes easier to understand the second point of LaRochelle's argument. The Catholic Church does not wish Protestants to abandon their faiths, but, instead, wishes for a greater unity between all Christian faiths. The word "catholic" simply means "universal" in Greek. What the Catholic Church desires is simply for all Christians to again become catholic, i.e., universal.

LaRochelle tries to contradict Pope John Paul II by contrasting his words with those of Pope Eugene IV. If one understands history, Pope Eugene IV does not contradict Pope John Paul II. Pope Eugene IV made his statements regarding salvation before the Protestant reformation. If one reads the statement, there is actually no reference to Protestants, which means that there is no contradiction between Pope John Paul II and Pope Eugene IV.

With careful investigation, one can see that there are no proven contradictions in those arguments against Catholicism, but that they show the church's desire to reunite all Christian faiths.

Nathan Faucher, Lewiston


And this is one of the many reasons why I am marrying this man!