(An Excerpt of The Vatican and Benedict XVI)
Here are the comments from congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who is a democrat to the US House of Representatives from Texas. I’m quoting directly from her website. "He was a great humanitarian," she said, as she expressed her “profound sorrow” at the passing of Pope John Paul II.“The Pope… is deserving of the great outpouring of love he has received," she continued.
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is a well known Seventh-day Adventist. Imagine that! A Seventh-day Adventist eulogizing the Pope in such glowing terms. She went on to say that Pope John Paul II “chose to move into a more abundant life, not from a hospital bed, but from his home in Vatican City.”
What does our Seventh-day Adventist congresswoman from Texas believe about life after death? John Paul II is not in the bliss of heaven or any “more abundant life.” He is in his grave, and he’s dead, according to scripture. He is neither in heaven or hell. He is waiting for the judgment where his deeds, whether they be good or evil, will be judged. Inspiration declares the teaching that there is immediate life after death, to be one of the two principle falsehoods in the last days. Listen to what God’s prophet has to say in the book Great Controversy on page 588. “Through the two great errors, the immortality of the soul and Sunday sacredness, Satan will bring the people under his deceptions.” What Congresswoman Jackson Lee believes is spiritualism. And this Adventist congresswoman is actually teaching and affirming it by her statement on her website about John Paul II going to a more abundant life.
Still further, Congresswoman Jackson Lee reaffirmed her shocking testimony a second time by saying, “Today I, along with so many Americans, continue to pray for Pope John Paul II." Why would a Seventh-day Adventist pray for a dead pope? There is no point in praying for a dead man. What good can prayers do for the dead? His probation is over. His eternal destiny is certain, one way or the other. Vain prayers will do nothing for him now or in eternity. Does our Congresswoman think that by prayers for John Paul II, she can do anything for his soul? This is amazing. Praying for the dead originated with paganism and came over into the Catholic Church. I wonder what religion she really is.
Then I read a statement on the web by an Adventist hospital administrator who praised the Pope by quoting some of his writings over and over again.
Then I read another Adventist Congressman’s comments about the dead pope. Rosco(e) Bartlett, from Maryland said, “Pope John Paul II was an extraordinary man, and inspiring witness of faith in God, and an influential world leader. He expanded peace and freedom for millions of people…”
Was John Paul II really an “inspiring witness of faith in God?” I think he was more likely an inspiring witness of faith in Mary. While we can grant him whatever sincerity he is due, I can't hardly imagine that he can really be an inspiring witness of faith in God when he reaffirmed the most diabolical and unbiblical doctrines of Rome during his pontificate, including indulgences, the punishment of heretics, and veneration of Mary.
But why all the praise from some Seventh-day Adventists? John Paul II certainly made an impact on the world, but was he somehow more venerable than any other human being because he held the office of pope? Perhaps we have not done a good enough job in training God’s people concerning the teachings of scripture about the “man of sin.”
But it goes much farther. Let me read you a shocking statement from a newspaper at a Adventist Christian college. Here is the quote.
“Perhaps we, too, can gain by looking to Pope John Paul II as a good example of what it means to be a Christian. I find it ironic that we criticize Catholics for looking to one man who they consider appointed by God to be a leader in their church. Do we not do the same with Ellen White? Were they not both godly individuals [Ellen White and John Paul II] whom God used in a powerful way to lead His people [Adventists and Catholics] through hard times. I imagine if they met each other and looked back at their respective churches, they might both shake their heads and say with a sigh. ‘Oh, those rowdy kids.’ May we live in such a manner as to meet them both someday.” a newspaper at a Adventist Christian college Walla Walla College in the April 14, 2005 edition of The Collegian.What does the writer mean by suggesting that John Paul II and Ellen White are on the same level. What blasphemy! Ellen White is a prophet God to the Last Generation who upheld God’s law. John Paul II represents the antichrist and leads a church steeped in the tradition of changing God’s laws and persecuting those that do them. There is no comparison! They are complete opposites.
Now, how can John Paul be a good example of what it means to be a Christian? Here is a man devoted to Mary, not Jesus. Here is a man that believes in Sunday worship and advocates Sunday laws in opposition to the law of God. How could he be an example of a good Christian.
How can the writer say that the Pope was used by God to lead His people…? The Pope is not leading God’s people to truth. He may be leading them to darkness, but not truth.
The Collegian is the official weekly newspaper of Walla Walla College, which is read by all the students. The writer concluded that paragraph by saying “if we make it to heaven, we will be sure to meet John Paul II there.”
Source:http://www.ktfministry.org/sermons/103/the-vatican-and-benedict-xvi
Note: The above is an excerpt of a (2005) Sermon by Pastor Hal Mayer.
P.S. Bolds, Highlights, and Italics added for emphasis...
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*NOTE: This article was modified on 12/19/08 to reflect the Sermon's edited text.
- Re-edited on 12/22/08***
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