Coming to America

Well, yes, I AM actually coming to America this weekend, but I was referring to the Pope. Pope Benedict the 16th, as you may know, has come for a visit to the United States.

I gotta tell you, I like this Pope. The last Pope, John Paul II seemed like a loving man of faith and I liked him well enough, but he was a little too wishy-washy for my taste. This Pope though, he's a traditionalist and he doesn't seem inclined to compromise with secularism. You won't see any women priests or a lifting of the ban on artificial birth control while he's at the helm. I admire that.

You may be wondering why a dyed-in-wool Lutheran like me would be so interested in the Roman Catholic Pope. After all, didn't Luther kind of have a problem with the whole idea of the papacy? Well, regardless of my own personal convictions surrounding the papacy (which I may get into one day, but not now), I think that Christians of all stripes will ultimately benefit from the strength of this man's convictions. The Roman Catholic church has over a billion believers all over the world. Like it or not, the RC church is an enormous worldwide Christian presence with tremendous influence. And I happen to think that this Pope can have a positive influence on all of Christendom.

Pope Benedict has an agenda to bring the Catholic Church back in line with their traditional teachings. He acknowledges that the church may lose some adherents along the way - those who will not like the back to basics approach and want to have it their own way. (As in, "I'm a Catholic, but I don't agree with what the church teaches about...") But Benedict believes that the Catholic church will be the stronger for it even if they shrink in number a bit.

I think ALL denominations could take a page from his book. The Western church has become far too accommodating of secular influence - to the point where in some cases the Gospel message has become obscured. It's ironic that it was probably done with the best of intentions - a desire to attract the lost by making the church seem more "relevant" is often cited for softening the church's teachings on sin and eternal damnation. The problem is, we've ended up with a lot of "baby" Christians who don't really know what the Bible teaches about sin and damnation...or the Gospel and salvation.

Yes, I think this Pope has the right idea. Catechise and re-catechise the people until their understanding of what the church teaches is solid. And then keep on catechising. Stick to our guns and stay faithful to what the Bible teaches. Admonish and discipline those who cling to error. Forgive and absolve those who repent. Get rid of the stupid "marketing techniques" used to evangelize and return to preaching the Word and administering the Sacraments. That is how God draws the unbeliever to himself after all.

So yes, this is one Lutheran who admires Pope Benedict XVI. Hey, I'm a complex person, what can I say?