He's not wrong. If your primary approach to the Faith is condemnation, you're missing something about Jesus' message. If that's your 'primary' approach. Nonetheless, there is more to it than that, which is the problem with prooftexting. After all, most assume if they are condemning something (for instance, BLM or #MeToo or LGBTQ activists), it is because there is a valid reason. And I'd wager in some cases, Fr. Martin would agree.
Update:
Heh. Yep. An age old problem with biblical scholarship and apologetics. Not bad for arguing on the Internet either.
ht: Nate Winchester
(testing comments)
ReplyDeleteOH man "prooftexting" been a long time since I've heard that...
Dave, mind giving me a brief refresher of the definition?
Basically taking a verse or section out of context to reinforce an opinion (or even doctrine) that wouldn't stand up to the overall context. This is a very subtle use of prooftexting, since nothing he says is wrong in itself. You just get the feeling it's being used to say 'some' focus on condemnation is bad, while clearly - seeing some of his condemnation of certain things in the Church - condemnation isn't always bad. Just like the verse in question is certainly true, but only if taken into context of everything else Jesus also taught.
Delete