Unity without Truth or Christ

The Bible states in 1 Corinthians 12:13 "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."

The further one gets away from the unity God has made in the Spirit Eph.4 the more they seek to implement their own. Some think by laying down differences they can achieve spiritual unity and peace.

Rome says "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, (Ignatius Press, 1994) Para. 841 Hereafter Catechism 5. Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, No. 56, Nostra Aetate, Austin P. Flannery, ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdsmans Publishing Co., 1975 & 1984) Vol. I., pp. 739-740. Hereafter Vatican II.)

How can this be so when one of the tenets of the Muslim faith is that God has no Son. Can it be that the Catholic Church may one day dispense with Christ the Son of God to make unity?

Here is a recent photo of the Popes reverence for the Koran as he bowed and kissed it. (the other figure is Patriarch Raphael I of Iraq )

Here is a news story  on this that validates it is indeed the Koran. "It is known that Pope John Paul II has often voiced a desire to make a pilgrimage in the footsteps of Abraham, the common father of Jews, Christians and Muslims. For the Pope, Abraham is a figure which helps the unity of believers to overcome political divisions. On May 14th I was received by the Pope, together with a delegation composed of the Shiite imam of Khadum mosque and the Sunni
President of the council of administration of the Iraqi Islamic Bank. There was also a representative of the Iraqi ministry of religion. I
prove the Pope’s love for the whole of humanity in a country which is mainly Muslim. At the end of the audience the Pope bowed to the Muslim holy book the Koran presented to him by the delegation and he kissed it as a sign of respect. The photo of that gesture has been shown repeatedly on Iraqi television and it demonstrates that the Pope is not only aware of the suffering of the Iraqi people, he has also great respect for Islam. A papal visit would be welcomed by both the people and by the authorities. After the audience I immediately sent a recommendation to the Iraqi government to make the official step of inviting the Pope to Iraq.  http://www.fides.org/English/1999/e19990604.html#e313

This should alarm anyone who claims the name of Christ. We can now see how the ecumenical movement (ECT signers) are headed in a unity unprecedented in history. Muslims deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They believe that He was just a good man, a prophet and teacher. They do not believe that He is the son of God, the Messiah, nor do they believe there is a Tri-unity in God. They believe Mohammed is greater than Jesus (though some take the position of equal without any verification). They deny his death as well as his resurrection. This does not mean we do not respect peoples beliefs and their freedom to choose, however we need to be aware of the differences and what is happening today. We are not to let this influence us away from the faith given to us by the Apostles.

2 John 1:9 " Whosoever transgresses, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abides in the doctrine of Christ, he has both the Father and the Son."

1 Jn.2:22-23 "Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ He is anti Christ who denies the father and the Son, Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either, he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also."

Muslims may claim they have faith but they do not have the same faith in Christ or the God of the Holy Scriptures. So we ask, how can they be worshipping the same God. Ask a Muslim this and you will get quite a different answer than what the Catholic Church now teaches. I wonder if the catholic church will change their view on the son by another Pope.

Recently I was sent a E- mail about CAMP, Christians and Muslims for Peace that is headed up with Robert Schuller. Schuller has said that if he comes back in 100 years and sees everyone is a Muslim he would be happy. This is an organization of both Christian and Muslim men and women who are dedicated  to the promotion of Peace and Justice, and most importantly Reconciliation between the world’s two largest religions.
Conflicts have escalated with Muslims  having hatred and persecute with physical violence and death in nearly two dozen locations in the world. (I have seen pictures from foreign newspapers of them hacking Christians and smiling over their bodies). Although they seem to imply it is from both sides most can honestly say it is from Islam. Now they are trying to find common ground shared by both great religions to make peace. The common ground is the good works they each do in their communities for the poor, the homeless, the orphans, the needy. This is the common denominator of all religions! Does this mean doctrine can be discarded for the sake of serving our fellow man. Christ himself said the works we do must be motivated by faith in him or they are useless.

Also they want to challenge the false stereotypes that involves both religions. For example Islamic fundamentalists are considered a threat to Christianity and the West, and that Christianity is opposed to Islam and Christians consider Muslims unbelievers. By presenting the teachings from each, the Holy books of Islam (the Quran) and Christianity (the Bible) they expect to educate the people of their common faith.

The Bible is explicit on faith and unity. Not everyone is a child in God's kingdom. He didn't leave it up to us to choose which religion to belong to. Christ is still the ONLY WAY- Galatians 3:26-28: "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." One must be born of the Spirit no matter what faith they claim.

 Since Sept.11th the Pope has made even a stronger effort to affirm unity with Islam. On  September 23th, 2001, the Pope gave a message to the nation of Kazakhstan which is mostly  Muslim stating, 'There is one God'. The Apostle proclaims before all else the absolute oneness of God. This is a truth which Christians inherited from the children of Israel and which they share with Muslims: it is faith in the one God, 'Lord of heaven and earth' (Lk.10:21), almighty and merciful. In the name of this one God, I turn to the people of deep and ancient religious traditions, the people of Kazakhstan.”

 He spoke on the 'logic of love' “It is a logic which can bring together Christians and Muslims, and commit them to work together for the 'civilization of love'. It is a logic which overcomes all the cunning of this world and allows us to make true friends who will welcome us 'into the eternal dwelling-places' (Lk.16:9), into the 'homeland' of heaven.”  

The Pope recognizes that they venerate Jesus as a prophet, although they do not acknowledge him as God “The Church has also a high regard for the Muslims. They worship God, who is one, living and subsistent, merciful and almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, who has also spoken to men.”

Catholics need to ask what is going on as they watch this compromise taking place inside their church; ignoring the son of God to have unity.

Recently to promote greater understanding between Catholics and Muslims, and making a point that Catholics should not automatically link Islam with terrorism the pope declared a day of fasting coinciding with the end of Ramadan. "By doing so, Catholics, in the words of the Pope, can show their respect for Islam, for the authentic Islam, Islam that prays, Islam that cares for the needy," he said.

Members of the anti-immigrant Northern League party did not support the initiative. Three League parliamentarians Alessandro Ce, Federico Bricolo and Massimo Polledri, called the Pope's fasting initiative as "inter-religious, political, lay and ecumenical." They voiced their refusal to fast at the same time as "atheists and members of other religions that do not believe in the Holy Trinity."

Today's Pope accepts the Dalai Lama and  Buddhism, Tibetan monks, Zorastrian preist's, all he asks is that he'd be seen as the spiritual guide of the world. You can be anything you want except one,. Evangelical Christian. He warns against evangelicals in central and Latin America, the Philippines. In Mexico city at the end of Jan.1999 The pope told his audience to ignore the seductions of what he called "untruthful ideologies" and to aggressively combat the inroads made by Protestantism and evangelicals.

I find it interesting that the Pope can denounce evangelicals as a threat to Christianity, but then turn and support the Muslims as worshippers of the same God.  This is certainly something to think long and hard about.

 pt.2 more on the Popes unity with all religions of the world