By Bob Sullivan
In my column last week, I provided a few of the many valuable resources we have to help explain, defend, and learn more about our Catholic faith. However, we always have to be on guard, because there are many things out there which are specifically designed to mislead us.
We were warned about such things long ago: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” (Matthew 7:15) Later in Matthew, Jesus says, “Take heed that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.” (Matthew 24:4-5)
It is one thing when an anti-Catholic spreads misinformation about the Catholic faith. That is unfortunate and annoying. It is also unfortunate when a Catholic says something inaccurate about the Catholic faith, but this can happen quite innocently.
It is a totally different matter when a Catholic intentionally spreads misinformation about the Catholic faith. This last example is exactly what Jesus was warning about in Matthew 7. He also said false prophets will be thrown into the fire. Of course, they have the opportunity to repent and reform their ways, but if they continue to mislead others and distort the Gospel and are unrepentant until they die, then it seems their fate is eternally sealed with fire.
How can you know if you are being given the truth or misinformation? Once again, Matthew 7 gives guidance. First, you look at the fruits. You can look into the fruits of the resource, whether it is a website, a book, or a person, and see if good is coming from it; the “good” being conversion, repentance, virtue, holiness, peace, joy, healing, and other signs of growing closer to Christ.
Then there is bad fruit. These are usually things which appear very attractive, but they have a very small amount of decay, mold, or some other impurity to them. This is what propaganda is. The most effective propaganda is nearly 100% true. It is the 1%, 2%, or 3% of misinformation in a message which turns something good or neutral into propaganda. Something as simple as a cup of tea can be as deadly as a bullet through your heart, when the tea is laced with a trace of polonium-210.
It is much easier to identify and reject misinformation when it is coming from someone you expect to be biased or dishonest. However, when someone says he is coming in Christ’s name, or if he acts like a gentle and kind sheep, the slightest trace of misinformation can prove very problematic. For this reason, parents are not surprised when their 19-year-old student comes home from Berkely with some pretty progressive ideas. However, some parents may be quite surprised when their 19-year-old student comes home from a large university with the word “Catholic” in its name or mission statement, only to share some highly un-Christian ideas.
Some people were recently shocked to hear that St. Mary’s College, an all-girls’ school in Indiana, briefly planned to accept men who identified as female as students next year. Other Catholics were probably disheartened to hear that a Notre Dame professor filed a defamation lawsuit against a faithful Catholic school newspaper because it published her pro-abortion advocacy. That lawsuit was just thrown out by a state court judge in Indiana earlier this month because the paper printed the truth. Loyola Marymount University in California recently allowed a student club to host a fundraiser for abortion provider Planned Parenthood. Unfortunately, these occurrences are not rare among many of the nation’s largest Catholic colleges and universities.
To a young Catholic, or a person who is not sufficiently versed in Catholic teaching, Scripture, and Christian history, a little misinformation sprinkled into an otherwise truthful statement can be like polonium-210 to the faith. As I mentioned earlier, this is even more confusing and misleading when the inaccurate information is coming from a priest, a nun, or someone else who holds himself or herself out as a faithful (usually described as “a devout”) Catholic. This is why resources like the Newman Guide (which recognizes Catholic colleges at cardinalnewmansociety.org) are so important for parents and high school students.
Because of all this, it is important to know the simple and straightforward teachings of the Catholic faith on all the hot button issues of our day. I say these are simple and straightforward because many faithful Catholics have written and spoken about these things in very clear terms for a long time. However, others are writing and speaking about these things in vague and incomplete terms as well.
In other words, there are many wolves in sheep’s clothing out there today. Some are on the campuses of Catholic colleges and universities; others are on the internet, including social media. Others are writing books, handing out pamphlets, or publishing podcasts. One particularly deceptive website goes to great lengths to appear like a faithful Catholic website. Only after perusing the website for a while do you start to notice some very strange and dishonest claims about the Catholic faith. Again, for someone who is not well-versed in the faith, this could lead to the person’s loss of faith.
With so many sources of Catholic information available to us today, how are we to discern the good from the bad? First, start with the most reliable sources. Your diocese, EWTN, and other sources which have proven their reliability over the years will usually lead to additional reliable sources. With the abundance of proven Catholic resources available, there is never a reason to look to non-Catholic religions or resources for any information on the Catholic faith.
