NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan (LifeSiteNews) – In a peculiar turn of events, the ecumenical Declaration read out and signed by Pope Francis at the 7th Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions held in Kazakhstan, has since been changed. The original version appeared to go against Catholic teaching, and it is not known if Pope Francis agreed to the updated version.
The original version of the Declaration was read aloud by Anglican prelate Dr. Jo Bailey Wells in front of assembled leaders of the Congress, including the Pope. It was also live-streamed by media outlets, including Vatican News and EWTN.
Paragraph 10 of the document originally read: “We note that pluralism and differences in religion, skin color, gender, race and language are expressions of the wisdom of God’s will in creation. Thus any incident of coercion to a particular religion and religious doctrine is unacceptable.” (Emphasis in original)
As LifeSiteNews noted earlier today, this passage echoed Pope Francis’s Abu Dhabi document word for word – a document which faithful Catholics expressed strong concerns about. It was even described at the time of publication as seeming to “overturn the doctrine of the Gospel.”
A recording of the pronouncement can be found below.
However, following the live-streaming of the document’s pronouncement, and its subsequent publication on the Congress’s website, the document was updated some hours later.
The new passage now reads: “We note that pluralism in terms of differences in skin color, gender, race, language and culture are expressions of the wisdom of God in creation. Religious diversity is permitted by God and, therefore, any coercion to a particular religion and religious doctrine is unacceptable.” (Emphasis in original)
The new text represents a significant change in the theology of the document.
.@Pontifex please can you explain why changes were made to Point 10 of the Final Declaration?
There is a significant difference between the text of Point 10 read out to the Congress by Dr Jo Bailey Wells & that published on the Congress’ website pic.twitter.com/LL63n4Ej6p
— Nick Donnelly (@ProtecttheFaith) September 15, 2022
Local auxiliary bishop of Astana, Bishop Athanasius Schneider had previously expressed his concerns about the wording of the Abu Dhabi document to Pope Francis, wording which was almost exactly repeated in the Kazakhstan declaration. Bishop Schneider was later told in a private meeting with Pope Francis in 2019 that the text only referred to “the permissive will of God,” not the positive will.
Yet the auxiliary bishop noted that by implementing the Abu Dhabi document without correcting its erroneous affirmation on the diversity of religions, “men in the Church not only betray Jesus Christ as the only Savior of mankind and the necessity of His Church for eternal salvation, but also commit a great injustice and sin against love of neighbor.”
He later added that: “It contradicts Divine Revelation to say that, just as God positively wills the diversity of the male and female sexes and the diversity of nations, so in the same way he also wills the diversity of religions.”
With the change of the Kazakhstan text it seems that the published version is now more in line with that which Pope Francis confided to Bishop Schneider privately in 2019.
However, it remains unclear whether Pope Francis gave his agreement to the updated version or just the original. The updated Declaration was only published by the Congress after the papal flight was well on its way back to Rome.
Liberal bishops around the world continue promoting heterodox views on homosexuality, female priests, divorce, contraception, and more — advancing anti-Catholic positions that jeopardize the salvation of souls.
Such bishops often sideline, ignore and even persecute traditional Catholics who simply ask that the Faith be preserved and passed on to their children.
But traditional Catholics cannot be silenced any longer, which is why we are uniting in this international boycott of modernist bishops and dioceses until the deposit of Faith is upheld by the hierarchy again.
SIGN: We will not fund modernist bishops or priests who undermine the Catholic Faith, but rather direct our contributions towards faithful clergy and orders that work for the salvation of souls.
There are countless examples of bishops working against Christ's Church in calling for divine law to be ignored in favor of sexual, doctrinal and liturgical deviancy, even trying to clamp down on Catholics who practise the Faith.
Just last year, Cardinal Cupich banned traditional prayers after Mass, and more recently has curtailed the Traditional Latin Mass in his diocese.
Cardinal Cupich has banned the Hail Mary and St Michael Prayer after Mass
— Nick Donnelly (@ProtecttheFaith) August 27, 2021
Who but a devil would ban these prayers after Mass
The attack on the Faith is out in the open, with modernist bishops causing scandal in countless ways:
- Shutting down the Latin Mass in numerous parishes
- Rejecting the Church's teaching on sodomy
- Ignoring Vatican cover-ups of abuse by fellow bishops
- Celebrating LGBT Masses
- And so much more!
We have seen enough. Now is the time to show true Catholic unity against those who undermine the Faith - do not be bullied into submission by these men who would disfigure Christ's Church.
JOIN THE BOYCOTT & SHARE! Tell everyone you know to STOP giving money to bishops who attack the Catholic Faith.
"We therefore commit to a financial boycott of modernist bishops until the hierarchy resolves to uphold the entire deposit of Faith."
If the bishops refuse to uphold and protect the teaching of Christ's Bride, the Catholic Church, then we must refuse to support them until they repent.
Thank you
P.S. — Demanding that liberal bishops be held to account through financial boycott will help save the Church from doctrinal and pastoral ruin. This is the first step in restoring the Faith for future generations. Our time is now, so please join us by signing today!
Photos: Pope Francis. Flickr. Long Thiên; Cardinal Cupich. Flickr. Goat_Girl; Collection Plate: Lisa F. Young/Shutterstock
While it is possible that Francis may have agreed to the updated version in private, the only public record of the Declaration being read aloud is of the original version.
Media reports note that the Pope signed the original version of the document, but make no mention of his assent to the updated text.