Pope Says Ecumenical Unity a ‘Moral Imperative’, COGwriter Says Its a Biblical Disaster

Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Bendict XVI spoke on ecumenical unity today:

Search for Christian unity is ‘moral imperative,’ pope says

CNS – Jan 25, 2011

ROME (CNS) — …The pope presided over the service at Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls with a German Lutheran delegation, an international group of Oriental Orthodox bishops and theologians and Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant leaders from Rome.

Special prayers were read by Orthodox Metropolitan Gennadios of Italy and Malta and by the Rev. David Richardson, the Anglican archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Vatican and director of the Anglican Center in Rome.

In his homily, the pope said the search for Christian unity is “a moral imperative, a response to a precise call of the Lord.”…

Because unity must be based on faith believed and lived in common, he said at the prayer service, Christian unity cannot be reduced to a recognition and acceptance of differences and an agreement to coexist peacefully.

“That for which we yearn is the unity for which Christ himself prayed and which, by its nature, is manifested in a communion of faith, sacraments and ministry,” Pope Benedict said. http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1100308.htm

While I do not doubt the pontiff’s sincerity nor am I trying to question his motives here, the biblical reality is that ecumenical unity will be a disaster.

Interestingly a few years ago, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, wrote of Europe (the Mediterranean continent) and the image in Daniel 2:

In the process of replacing boundaries, the conceptual continuity with the preceding Mediterranean continent…was assured by a theological interpretation of history: in connection with the Book of Daniel, the Roman Empire—renewed and transformed by the Christian faith—was considered to be the final and permanent kingdom in the history of the world in general, and therefore the association of peoples and states that was taking shape was defined as the permanent Sacrum Imperium Romanum [Holy Roman Empire]. (Ratzinger J. Europe today and tomorrow: addressing the fundamental issues. Translated by Michael Miller. Ignatius Press, 2007, p. 13)

We can consider the rise of the Carolingian Empire, on the one hand, and the continuation of the Roman empire in Byzantium and its mission to the Slavic people, on the other, as the true and proper birth of the continent of Europe…(ibid, p. 17)

Greco-Christian, European culture of Byzantium…one of the two wings of Europe (ibid, p. 18).

Latin [that is, Western] Europe…(ibid, p. 19)

…the Christian idea of empire…the sacred foundation for history…(ibid, p. 20)

The two halves of the old Europe, before the modern era, had known essentially only one opponent that it had to confront in a life-or-death battle, namely, the Islamic world. (ibid, p. 22)

Believing Christians should…contribute to Europe’s recovery of the best of its heritiage and thus to the service of all mankind. (ibid, p. 34)

Dexter Wakefield, of the Living Church of God, made the following insightful comments about Cardinal Ratzinger’s writings in that book:

His analysis, of course, does not express the full meaning of this imagery. Yet in referring to the two iron legs of the Daniel 2 statue, the current pope shows that even the Roman Catholic Church has in the past recognized that the Roman Empire and its successor, the so-called “Holy Roman Empire,” are pictured in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. (Wakefield D. Will Islam Transform Europe? Tomorrow’s World magazine, November-December 2010, p. 17)

So, even the current pope realizes that the “Holy Roman Empire” is part of the image in Daniel 2 and that one leg/wing represents the Roman/Latin Catholic west with the other the Eastern/Greco/Byzantine east. Cardinal Ratzinger also seems to be teaching that the “Holy Roman Empire” is the last part of the image of Daniel 2 and that it is a good thing. Yet, he seems not to realize that in the end, God intentionally destroys the image, by attacking the last part (striking the feet it stands upon in vs. 34) which implies that God was not pleased with this image or its “sacred foundation”. Since the Bible is clear that God will destroy the final formation of that empire (Daniel 2:40-44), the development of a unified Europe to fulfill this is not something that should be encouraged.

Ecumenical unity is a biblical disaster and if the pontiff would reconsider Daniel 2, perhaps he could see why I am saying this.

Of course, I also strongly believe the Orthodox Must Reject Unity with the Roman Catholics and had this published in 2007 on the internet and in The Journal: News of the Churches of God. Furthermore, many ecumenical meetings and pronouncements have been coming from those groups (for documented details see Ecumenism Advancing), despite the fact that many know that “unity” will result in doctrinal compromise by Rome and others.

The Bible warns against the emergence of the final beast and tells of the destruction of the image of the beast as well as the end time compromising Babylon. Yet, this is what many are encouraging to be formed in Europe even today. And with more and more calls for ecumenical unity, we are getting closer to this time.

Some articles of related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? Will some Catholics be involved? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe?
Which Is Faithful: The Roman Catholic Church or the Living Church of God? Do you know that both groups shared a lot of the earliest teachings? Do you know which church changed? Do you know which group is most faithful to the teachings of the apostolic church? Which group best represents true Christianity? This documented article answers those questions. Português: Qual é fiel: A igreja católica romana ou a igreja viva do deus? Tambien Español: Cuál es fiel: ¿La iglesia católica romana o La Iglesia del Dios Viviente? Auch: Deutsch: Welches zuverlässig ist: Die Römisch-katholische Kirche oder die lebende Kirche von Gott?
Some Similarities and Differences Between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Living Church of God Both groups claim to be the original church, but both groups have differing ways to claim it. Both groups have some amazing similarities and some major differences. Do you know what they are?
Why Should American Catholics Should Fear Unity with the Orthodox? Are the current ecumenical meetings a good thing or will they result in disaster?
Orthodox Must Reject Unity with the Roman Catholics The talks for unification involve compromise and the apparent rising up of a changed religion that no one should accept.
Catholic Prophecies: Do They Mirror, Highlight, or Contradict Biblical Prophecies? People of all faiths may be surprised to see what various Roman and Orthodox Catholic prophets have been predicting as many of their predictions will be looked to in the 21st century.