A Failed Teachable Moment

Pope Francis at the San Paolo della Croce parish in Corviale, a suburb of Rome, for a pastoral visit on April 15, 2018. (Photo by Silvia Lore/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

I am sure you have had times when you had the opportunity for a real teachable moment. But when you had given it some thought afterward you realized it didn’t really measure up.  We might call that a failed teachable moment.  But it is one thing to not quite measure up to yours or others expectations. But quite another to not to measure up to God’s expectations.  This is not just a hiccup, but a serious error that is man center, not God-glorifying. One that denies the Gospel, the sufficiency and finished work of Christ.

That was the case on April 15^th when the Pope visiting just outside Rome with a children’s catechism class.  He didn’t just make a misstep but taught that even an atheist can get to heaven by being a “good man.” His lesson through this incredibly sad moment left both a crying little boy who was grieving the loss of his father and an audience listening to the Pope’s explanation of what he told the young boy with a false hope.

You can watch the video HERE.

The young boy, Emanuele, found himself in the arms of the Pope in tears with a heavy heart and a difficult question; “Will my atheist father go to heaven?”  Just how do you answer a sweet child like this with such a serious question? Here is a teachable moment that speaks of eternity.

Emanuele told the Pope how his father had made sure all his children were baptized, even though he didn’t believe.  Young Emanuele also told the Pope his father was a good man, through his tears.  You can’t watch this video without having real empathy for the loss this child is living through. But the real question is, how do you answer him?

For the Pope, that answer would revolve around the father’s actions to have his children baptized, even though while few in Italy attend church, 96% have their children baptized.  For the Italian, baptism had become a cultural tradition connected to the cultural history and influence of the Roman Catholic Church in that country. For the Pope, that fact was ignored as he sought a way to comfort Emanuele and appeal to those who witnessed this event, that the RCC was a compassionate Church.  Just read the comments below the video.

There have been plenty of other missteps by this Pope, but none so clear and recorded on video, making it impossible to deny what he said to Emanuele and the crowd, claiming “fake news.”  Even the Catholic News Agency publicized the video to various news agencies, proud of this moment. They owned it and saw this moment, no doubt, as a positive witness to the RCC’s character.

But was this really a misstep by the Pope or does it reflect the RCC’s teaching on salvation? For the RCC, baptism is integral to the process of salvation.

“The Necessity of Baptism

[1257] The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation.  He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all nations and to baptize them. Baptism is necessary for salvation for to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed and who have the possibility of asking for this sacrament.  The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who can be baptized are ‘reborn of water and the Spirit.’   God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments.”[1]

[1262] The different effects of Baptism are signified by the perceptible elements of the sacramental rite.  Immersion in water symbolizes not only death and purification but also regeneration and renewal.  Thus, the two principal effects are purification from sins and new birth in the Holy Spirit.”[2]

{1265] Baptism not only purifies from all sins, but also makes the neophyte ‘a new creature,’ an adopted son of God, who has become a ‘partaker of the divine nature, member of Christ and co-heir with him, and temple of the Holy Spirit.”

This is a form of “baptismal regeneration.” Its justification is found in Church councils, the tortured use of Scriptural phrases with little to no contextual grounding. It’s also a clear denial of justification by faith alone through grace alone (Romans 3:20-26; 4:25, 5:8, 8:30, 33; 1 Corinthians 6:11; Ephesians 2:8-9).

With the clear importance that the RCC places on baptism for salvation, it is no wonder the Pope was ready to absolve unbelief through “good works” even to one who remained an unbeliever. Jesus Christ is not needed. The cross is not needed. Penal substitution was not needed. Faith in the substitutionary death of Christ wasn’t needed.  This good unbelieving man followed the family’s traditions, religiously cultural traditions, and is now, according to the Pope in heaven.

This is not the Gospel the Apostles taught.  It certainly wasn’t the one the Apostle Paul taught.  When the Judaizers infiltrated the Galatian Church with the addition of ceremonial law and works, Paul called it another gospel which was no gospel, and he condemned it (Galatians 1:6-9).

Couldn’t Pope Francis have given Emanuele a better answer?  One that would have accurately proclaimed the Gospel?  The answer is no he couldn’t.  Why is that?  It’s simple, he and the church he represents do not teach the Gospel of grace.  For the Catholic Church, righteousness is not the imputation of the righteousness of Christ based on the merits of Christ on the cross, but rather the infusing of grace by the actions of the Church, the sacraments, the Mass, and the good works of the individual. This is not a Christ-centered salvation.  It’s clearly man-centered with Jesus Christ, the Church, the sacraments, the mass, the intercession of Mary and the saints, and of course the good merits of the individual.

Did the Pope reflect the traditional view of the RCC regarding the state of the unbeliever?  The Catholic Church in recent years is all over the place regarding unbelief, unlike the Scriptures (Romans 14:23, Hebrews 11:6).  Here’s a sample:

“Some ‘unbelievers’ show that they have more faith than some who profess Christianity.  Their works of mercy and their exemplary lives prove this.  Often they put to shame their Christian neighbors.  They live according to the own conscience, responding to God’s call, but without an explicit awareness of it.  However, moral goodness is not always a sign of sincere faith; it might come at least in part from a self-justifying pride.”[3]

Of course, this observation runs in contradiction to the two verses above regarding faith and Romans 2 &3, where Paul makes the argument that all are condemned, either by the law, their conscience, and the fact that there is none that is righteous (Romans 3:10), there is none that understand (vs.11), there is none that seek God (vs.11),  no one does good, not even one (vs.12).

Unbelief is sin (Romans 14:23) a condemning sin, and apart from the finished work of Christ which is appropriated by faith, (Romans 10:9-13; Ephesians 1:3-11; 2:8-10; Titus 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:9; 1 Peter 1:3-5; 1 John 2:2; 3:16; 4:10) all is lost and we will find ourselves under the wrath of God (John 3:36).

Tomorrow, I give you my answer to Emanuele.

-Michael Holtzinger

Some Resources:

Getting the Gospel Right  By: R.C. Sproul

Faith Alone  By R.C. Sproul

Christ Crucified  By: Stephen Charnock

[1] Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, (Later Pope Benedict XIV), Catechism of the Catholic Church, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, 1994, ¶1257, pg320

[2] Ibid. ¶1262, pg321

[3] Anthony Wilhelm, Christ Among Us, HarperCollins Publishers, NY, 1996, pg.287