Mel Gibson: $5 Mil to Fringe Church (FOX attacks "antiquated Catholic ideology")

FOX ^ | Friday, February 20, 2004 | By Roger Friedman

[AgThorn]

Further source info of noted growth ... and I am sure the growth would be much more if the priests scandals would not have occured, and much less if Vatican II did not occur:

"The worldwide Catholic population reached 1.06 billion at the end of 2001, an increase of nearly 1 percent from the previous year.

The number of baptized Catholics in the world had grown from 757 million in 1978 to 1.06 billion at the end of 2001. The greatest growth has been in Africa, where the number of Catholics increased 148 percent since 1978. Significant increases also have occurred in Asia, the Americas and Oceania, while the number of European Catholics has remained about the same over that period."

source

[Clintons a commie]

Gibson's chapel is not in union with the Catholic Church and Rome.

Please print the decree of excommunication on Free Republic for all to see.

Until you do that, I'll consider Gibson to be a Catholic in full communion with the Roman Pontiff.

[wimpycat]

But what you may not know is that Gibson has also put up $5.1 million so far to run his own personal church near Malibu.

So what? Friedman makes it sound like Mel's running a whorehouse or an opium den. It's a CHURCH! Apparently, the church is not "abrogated" by the Big Man in Rome (and I say that in all affection), which I guess means Mel's church is still recognized and in communion with the rest of the RCC.

[Clintons a commie]

Gibson's chapel has 70 members and attendance is by invitation only. That's an "exclusive" church. I imagine that if he didn't do this, he would have to contend with groupies showing up there just to get a glimpse of him and possibly disrupting the service.

Also, private chapels have historically been very common for wealthy Catholics to own. There isn't a crime or sin here; the guy wants to worship at the ancient rite of Mass in peace. More power to him.

[Clintons a commie]

Gibson is not in union with Rome, though he will not come out and say so

Thank the Lord that you're not the person who decides who is in communion with Rome, and who isn't.

[wtc911]

ping

[sinkspur]

Thank the Lord that you're not the person who decides who is in communion with Rome, and who isn't.

I'm not the issue here, pal. Gibson is not in union with Rome.

[sinkspur]

Until you do that, I'll consider Gibson to be a Catholic in full communion with the Roman Pontiff.

Fine. Go ahead. You're holding a position Gibson himself doesn't hold.

[Ann Archy]

I asked you before but you didn't answer...what religion are you?

[Clintons a commie]

. Is Mel going to hell for not being in union with Rome?

Well, to the modernist mind, the only people who go to hell are traditionalist Catholics. Everyone else is headed for the Pearly Gates.

[stands2reason]

Before long they'll be calling it a 'compound' and the FBI will burn the place to the ground.

LOL, but bitterly.

[sinkspur]

I asked you before but you didn't answer...what religion are you?

No you didn't. You made a snide remark and I ignored you.

Now that you've asked nicely, my religion is Roman Catholic. In fact, I'm a Roman Catholic deacon.

[Eva]

I believe that I read that the members of Gibson's church don't recognize the authority of the Pope. That is the major difference between Gibson's Catholic church and the Papal Roman Catholic Church. All protestants attest to the belief in the holy catholic church, catholic meaning Christian.

[Clintons a commie]

I'm not the issue here, pal. Gibson is not in union with Rome.

Yes, but you are acting as his judge. Like I said before, publish the decree of Mel Gibson's excommunication on Free Republic. Until you do, I consider him a Catholic in full communion with the Church.

[templar]

The more I learn about Gibson, the more I like him

A man's character is attested to by his enemies as well as his friends.

[Clintons a commie]

You're holding a position Gibson himself doesn't hold

Did he tell you that when you met him at Kelsey's bar for darts last weekend?

[CobaltBlue]

Are you Roman Catholic yourself? Traditionalist? Just curious as to what makes you qualified to judge whether someone who's rejected Vatican II is "in full communication with the Church."

[Ann Archy]

You said Jesus wasn't NAILED to a Cross....Does your Priest know how you feel? Why don't you know what the TRUTH is??

[rogator]

"The number of baptized Catholics in the world had grown from 757 million in 1978 to 1.06 billion at the end of 2001"

How many of these are attending Mass? - Not very many.

How many are attending fundamentalist or Morman churches? - Plenty.

[Ann Archy]

You said Jesus wasn't NAILED to a Cross....Does your Priest know how you feel? Why don't you know what the TRUTH is??

Do you TEACH others that Jesus wasn't NAILED?? What about Doubing Thomas...do you not believe what Thomas said??

A Deacon, huh.