Why Spurious Anti-Catholic Resources are Detrimental to Continuing the Reformation

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October is always associated with the Reformation month aside from the Rosary month. It's very easy to associate it with Martin Luther's well-known protest on October 31, 1517, that eventually led to the Diet of Worms in 1521. Luther's legacy was known to have been an Augustinian monk who found the truth. The protest itself got some Christians involved to be labeled as Protestants. Before the Protestants - there were already other Christian groups that opposed Rome. Jan Hus and Girolamo Savonarola were martyrs before the Reformation. There were some pre-Reformation Christians who were martyred during the Dark Ages as they openly practiced believes' baptism. I heard that they were called Baptists because they openly practiced baptism by immersion. Remember John the Baptist was called a baptist not because he founded a denomination but because he baptized people. 

Yes, there's the call to say that the Reformation is far from over. The Counter-Reformation is also far from over. The huge battle of the Reformation can be said to be a huge battle for the truth. The Reformation was a struggle to find the truth and to proclaim it. The result was the same - the Inquisition ended up executing the Protestants along with other non-Protestant Christians for speaking the truth. However, in this age of deception, many Baptists and Protestants today have the tendency to be misled by spurious anti-Catholic sources. The battle to find the truth has become a fertile ground to let in any kind of misleading information. The information age is not without a battle against misinformation whether it'd be the local Christian bookstore or now, the Internet. The whole world is connected via the Internet and misinformation is very rampant.

There's the danger of spurious anti-Catholic resources whether they be publications or websites. Many years ago, I was once a huge supporter of two of the biggest nutjob ministries. One is Chick Publications and the other is Jesus-is-Savior. I remembered dropping off Jesus-is-Savior early 2011 but not Chick Publications. I still wanted to promote the story of Alberto R. Rivera as a former Jesuit priest. I thought that any information that was done against Rivera was just a person deceived either by the Jesuits or is a Jesuit in disguise. I also thought the same was true about the late Jack Hyles whose sexual immoralities and abuses are well-documented. Also, David J. Stewart of Jesus-is-Savior did get divorced by his former wife for a sexual offense in Guam. Stewart is currently out after he pleaded guilty although he's still no saner than the late Jack T. Chick.

There's the book "The Alberto Rivera Story" by the late Roy Livesey. Livesey died before the book could be published. What I find very interesting about the book was that Rivera's claims were slowly debunked. In the book "Smokescreens" by Chick - it's interesting to see how the late Bartholomew Brewer was later assaulted. Isn't it strange that Chick Publications sells the video "Catholicism: Crisis of Faith" by Lumen Productions yet Chick hypocritically assaults Brewer in "Smokescreens"? The book itself even had Victor Affonso, a real former Jesuit priest, testify that Rivera was never a comrade of his. Affonso was in Spain, the same country where Rivera came from, during the reign of Francisco Franco. Also, what was interesting to read on pages 111-112 of the same book are as follows:

Historically it has always been difficult to evangelise Roman Catholic people because of fear, suspicion, religious pride, ignorance of God’s word and a misguided loyalty. Since the Chick comic books, it has been made more difficult. Catholic people have become more defensive and more reactionary. 

In one sense it is easier today because of the crisis of confusion in the Roman Catholic church. However, on the other hand the comic series has made Roman Catholics apprehensive about those Christians who reach out to Roman Catholic people with the sufficiency of His Word. In speaking around the country, we have had a number of Alberto followers, always in groups, and during question and answer time they commonly become rude and antagonistic when we express our concern about the comic books. In every situation they were young enthusiastic people, impressed by the comics, and let down to find that things were not so. For example there is the overwhelming evidence that he was not a priest, and the burden of proof is upon him. 

“The same questions have come up in Britain, the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and in the Philippines. In the United States ninety per cent of the people tell me, whether in public or in private, that they ‘thought something was wrong.’ The fact that the question is asked is indicative of doubt.” 

Wilson Ewin’s book, You Can Lead Roman Catholics to Christ, has run through many editions since it was first published in 1961. The 1991 edition lends weight to what Mr Brewer and other ministries to Roman Catholics are saying about wrong evangelism tools. Referring to the bad evangelistic literature that has already reached Roman Catholic hands, Wilson Ewin writes: “This has already created a suspicious or even hostile attitude in the mind of the Catholic as he is approached with your literature... One source in particular must be held responsible for damaging the ministry among Roman Catholics on a global scale. Chick Publications of Chino, California began printing full-size comics on the topic of Catholicism in the 1970s. These have been distributed around the world and advertised as useful for ‘winning Roman Catholics to Christ.’ However the contents of The Crusaders produce the very opposite effect when used indiscriminately, that is, without careful selection by the evangelist. No word of caution or warning has ever come from Chick Publications.

Although I don't want to deny that some people do get saved through Chick Tracts - I'm starting to wonder if all the testimonials concerning the "effectivity" of the Alberto comics are even real. It's very possible to hire someone to make a fake testimony for you. What's even noteworthy is that the late John Todd was not a former satanist and that Rebecca Brown who wrote the book, "He Sets the Captives Free" was not a former witch either. I thought the scenario of somebody named Elaine "marrying" Satan was just a figure of speech. Nope, they even claimed it to be literal which is even funnier. A rereading of the "Alberto" comics I have, do have certain preposterous stuff such as in "The Force". The more I consulted pastors and exorcism - the more I realize that the whole idea of vomiting green slime is as fictitious as the godless horror movie, "The Exorcist". In fact, the "Crusaders" comics by Chick Publications are Christian fiction. Why Chick would have his two fictitious characters Tim and Jim meet the real character Rivera in the comic book series is really very unacademic. It even continues to give the feeling of unscholarly presentation. Worse, the book "The Alberto Rivera Story" had Livesey being speculated to have been paid for by the Vatican. 

I remembered the time I was told to stop reading the "Alberto" comics and that they're just exaggerated. I was no longer a Roman Catholic when I read them then I found myself fascinated by them. Yet, I clung to it like it was the truth and my common sense was clouded. I kept reading one report after the other questioning Rivera yet I ignored it and believed such people were misinformed by the Jesuits. However, reading the Rivera comics only encouraged me to become an amateur, compulsively lying, conspiracy theorist of sorts. What was worse is that I ended up getting into fights and making people I wanted to get saved too angry to listen. What was even made a point of advice by Gerry Soliman (whose blog is now deleted) is to avoid Chick Publications and Now the End Begins. What's even worse is that "The Godfathers" tends to focus more on Roman Catholic crimes over evangelism. The sources tend to make Roman Catholics look like they are criminals (and I know many of them who are honest-to-goodness but lost people) instead of victims of false teachings who need to be given soul-saving information. 

Not to mention, certain sites are just cheesy and offensive. I remembered how Phil Johnson would even say this about Jesus-is-Savior:
The first thing you'll notice about this site is how cluttered, disorderly, and tawdry it looks. The content is no different. It's as if the page was constructed with a deliberate effort to eliminate anything that might edify or encourage. This is a seriously ugly muddle of fundamentalist pet issues, 911 Truther propaganda, and various amateur analyses—all thrown in your face with high-decibel, high-velocity force. The webmaster here seems drawn to every repugnant trope that has ever been commandeered in the name of religion—unsightly images, distasteful themes, loathsome tales, sinister gossip, and sensationalized headlines ("Satanism In The Vatican!") He blends these themes with favorite points of fundamentalist controversy and presents them in a way that seems carefully calculated to maximize the shock value. This is not ministry; it is exploitation. It's a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing profitable. 
Some people insist that the only way to reach our generation with the gospel is by laboring to seem as cool or as non-confrontational as possible. This guy seems to think the goal is the opposite: to be as cheesy and offensive as possible. Both strategies are equally misguided.

Also, other similar sites are not doing a great job either. Sure, they could go on and talk about Roman Catholic scandals and crimes yet they tend to ignore exposing Evangelical pastors who need to be exposed as con men of Satan. Who can remember the late Tony Alamo and his sexual immorality? What's even worth noting in "The Alberto Rivera Story" was that Rivera was exposed to be a womanizer. Hyles himself was also a womanizer with a longsuffering wife. When sites focus too much on what the Vatican is doing - they tend to lose sight of the goal of reaching out to Roman Catholics. When they focus too much on "Did you know this and that about the Vatican?" and preposterous claims  - they lose sight of the aim to tell Roman Catholics the Gospel truth Besides, the whole idea that Rome created Islam is really faulty. More studies on how Islam evolved as a false religion would reveal that it sprung from the Ebionite cult - not Roman Catholicism. Sure, the Vatican and Mecca are now getting along today but the claim by Rivera should be dismissed. Some even have obvious misinformation like the Jesuits supposedly masterminded the Inquisition when it was founded way earlier by the Dominicans. Also, the site Reformation Online is fond of half-truths and preposterous claims. I wonder if its webmaster Patrick Scrivener actually drinks raw milk which he claims is supposedly "better"? David W. Cloud of Way of Life Literature actually did show how vaccinations help but Scrivener tries to make it look like vaccines don't. I'm amazed at how Scrivener's site badly needs to be reformed as it's so full of misinformation!

Yes, preaching against Roman Catholicism is important but the focus is the Gospel. Just remember that there are also anti-Catholic cults too like the Seventh Day Adventists, Ang Dating Daan, or the members of the Iglesia Ni Manalo. There are also Baptist churches that have gone and strayed far away from the historical truth and perspective. A good book that's still worth sharing is "Truth Encounter" by the late Anthony Pezzotta. Maybe, one can also share tracts from Living Waters ran by Ray Comfort. Comfort uses attractive Gospel tracts without going Chick Publications-style. John F. MacArthur, the late Robert C. Sproul Sr., and Paul David Washer are among I could also recommend. What we need is to reach Roman Catholics (and other unbelievers) with the Word of God - not some cheap resources that end up making them too angry to listen.

God bless and Happy Reformation Month!

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