Thursday, December 16, 2010

Watering down the Word of God to suit the Cult of Softness

The Latin Vulgate (see the Douay-Rheims Bible) indicates that the effeminate will not inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:10). But the New American Bible, which is used by the USCCB, omits the word effeminate:


1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (Latin Vulgate):

Verse 9: "Know you not that the unjust shall not possess the kingdom of God? Do not err: Neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers:

an nescitis quia iniqui regnum Dei non possidebunt nolite errare neque fornicarii neque idolis servientes neque adulteri

Verse 10: Nor the effeminate nor liers with mankind nor thieves nor covetous nor drunkards nor railers nor extortioners shall possess the kingdom of God.

neque molles neque masculorum concubitores neque fures neque avari neque ebriosi neque maledici neque rapaces regnum Dei possidebunt."


1Corinthians 6: 9-10 (New American Bible) posted online by the USCCB:

Verse 9: "Do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor boy prostitutes nor sodomites

Verse 10: nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God."

Why do you think this is so?  The Latin Vulgate, which we have obtained from the great St. Jerome, is the most precise translation of the Sacred Scriptures available.  There are many other problems with recent translations of the Scriptures.  But my focus here is on this passage.  Why has the word "effeminate" been dropped from 1 Corinthians 6?

Dr. Leon Podles writes, "Walter Ong, having been formed in a masculine, Jesuit, clerical milieu does not seem to be aware of how feminized Christianity had become even before the 1960s, but he saw a rapid shift in the Catholic Church in the 1960s toward even greater feminization...The contrasts of Christianity, grace and sin, life and death, have been toned down with a considerable loss of emotional power.  Without this power, the popular appeal of the liturgy has declined (even with a more accessible language) and church attendance has plummeted...Even the change from Latin to the vernacular was also a symptom of feminization, according to Ong.  Latin had been a means of maintaining a Latin culture in the Roman Catholic clergy.  A language restricted to men is common; it is a sign of masculine separation from the feminine world.  After it became a learned language, Latin was learned almost exclusively by men.  The system of education that used Latin and centered around Latin literature was centered around contest and disputation and was confined almost entirely to men.  The disappearance of Latin was part of the demasculinization of the clergy.." (The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity, pp. 133-135).

The Cult of Softness has made such inroads that it has crippled the inner life of the Church.  Liturgy has been feminized  And now, the Sacred Scriptures (the very Word of God) must be rewritten so as not to offend more "civilized" and "refined" tastes; so as not to offend modern man.  The Christian faith must be replaced by a self-worship which cloaks itself in language which purports to be Christian but which nevertheless remains a language which has been watered down to make it more acceptable to modernity.

Related reading: The prophecy of Saint Nilus.

8 comments:

Catawissa Gazetteer said...

You bring up an interesting question, one that I'm going to have to find an answer to.

I hope you don't mind but I quoted you on my blog at http://bit.ly/gbvpea.

Paul Anthony Melanson said...

Not at all CG, and thanks for the kind note. God bless!

Paul Anthony Melanson said...

There is an increasingly hostile attitude toward Sacred Scripture on the part of many who believe that they can "correct" God's Word. Still others alter the scriptures because a particular verse convicts them. Contrast this arrogance with the Church Fathers. When confronted with such an arrogant approach to God's Word, they responded in no uncertain terms:

"They have not feared to lay hands upon the sacred Scriptures, saying that they have corrected them. Nor is it likely that they themselves are ignorant of how very bold their offense is. For either they do not believe that the sacred Scriptures were spoken by the Holy Spirit, in which case they are unbelievers, or if they regard themselves as being wiser than the Holy Spirit, what else can they be but demoniacs." (St. Hippolytus of Rome, "Fragment" in Eusebius, History of the Church, 5, ch. 28).

Catawissa Gazetteer said...

When I returned to the Church of my birth about ten years or so ago it was the Fathers that led me home. I'm a history geek by nature and have found that I agree with Cardinal Newman that to know the history of the Church is to love the Church. I know, because of my studies, that there really isn't much the Church hasn't been through or fought back against and it always, given enough time, comes out on top.

The nature of the evil we confront today is the same as it's always been because Satan never changes. What has changed, however, are the people. We are far more worldly and far less educated, even with all our schooling and technology. We are far more sure of ourselves and far less trusting of any rightful authority while we seem to be positively in a frenzy to jump in the next available seat on anything traveling the heresy highway.

The last hundred or so years has been exactly what Pope Leo XIII said it would be, the century given over to Satan. The evil one has had at his fingertips the most powerful systems of communication, wealth and weapons and has used them to his advantage in a masterful display of leadership. He has, for all intents and purposes, destroyed any correct idea of God in the minds of the people and has so totally corrupted the Church that the people can never learn the truth.

So we are faced with the times foretold us of a small number of believers and a nearly destroyed Church. We know that the church can never be completely destroyed and we know that we have to follow Peter and those of us that are doing just that will see triumph, but only after great and unimaginable suffering because the body must follow the head to the cross, and death, before it can be brought back in glory.

Because of all these things of course we know why those that change the words of the Bible do it. They do it to serve their master. And it makes me sick because so many will be lost because of what those that were raised up to lead and protect them are doing.

I know that while no one can ever give a time or date I think it's pretty safe to say that we are on the cusp of great and terrible things; that the world we know is about to disappear to be replaced with the world as God intends it and some of us, but not all, will live to see the thousand years of peace promised us by our Lord.

I hope that at least a few more get the message before their time runs out, though I sense that we have exited a period of grace that was given us for just that reason and now it's pretty much too late for those that refuse to humble themselves before God. It seems as though time is speeding up and I know that is for our good.

I enjoy reading your blog. Keep up the good work because we never know who might need to hear just that one thing the Spirit made our fingers type.

Rory McGinn said...

I actually attended Mass this spring during which the priest said in the Gospel, "And Jesus said to the blind person..." It was in a 60s modern chapel in which the statues were roughly carved oak without facial details, and with a guitar folk music choir. This was at a retreat center with a few aging priests. The next weekend I hurried home to my bustling Latin Mass community.

Paul Anthony Melanson said...

A powerful testimony CG! I love reading the Fathers too. Those guys were a tough bunch. I also admire the great St. Benedict. Keep up the good work at your Blog as well. Our world is in dire need of faithful witness as you have rightly said.

God bless fellow soldier!

Alzina said...

Rory, I have attended a Mass where hot dog buns and Coca Cola were used. On several occasions, the whole congregation would break out into wild applause after a joke was told. Reverence has all but died in the post-conciliar Church. Thank God for the Latin Mass community!

Rory McGinn said...

Alzina, If you are ever in that situation again, try to take pictures. Some cell phones can do video. Then send the pictures to Paul or others in the Boston Catholic blogging community. That would be the fastest way, I think, of stopping that outrage.

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