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NASB | Matthew 23:1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 23:1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, |
Bible Question:
Thank you Angel. You're right EdB confirmed my perception – and you gave me the exact concept I was wondering about. My specific problem is that the “false teacher” in question is a Catholic Priest who is a well known millionaire who travels abroad on the arms and pocketbooks of elderly widows. He is available for the wealthy parishioners –with whom he hob-knobs quite frequently. At the same time, he intimidates and humiliates the common folk if they are late on paying their weekly tithes. In addition he did not bless my aunt before surgery as he promised her he would. When he was asked he said the reason was because he knew she could have nothing by mouth before surgery. In a book of homilies, the priest references Mark 12:38-44 in regard to insecurity, fear and greed. The conclusion to the homily begins with… “My friends, no matter how hard we have worked for our money or how adroitly we have positioned ourselves to inherit it, money can destroy us if we become afraid of losing it.” I struggle with the idea of adroitly positioning oneself to inherit money. I believe this may be a subliminal admission of guilt – because the priest just accepted a 230,000 dollar estate that was left to him personally (not to the church) by my aunt. He says she gave it to him willingly – but before she died she asked him to have her will corrected. She told him that he knew she wanted him as her executor NOT as her beneficiary. He promised to have the correction made but she died before this happened. As her executor, he was legally able to clean out her house before notifying her family that the will had been probated. As a result, our family archives, photos, heirlooms, etc. were all destroyed or sold. The law protects him from being accused of wrongdoing. To me, he “devours widows’ houses…and I’m looking for authority by which to call him on. How do you think – he might explain his quote about adroit self-positioning? Especially when he cites Jesus’ teaching about false teachers. God Bless you! Cheri |
Bible Answer: Hi, Cheri! From your description of this person I would say that he is a bloodsucking parasite that devours both the physical and spiritual energies of his victims... I liken him to those "fund raising" agencies that keep over 80 percent of the moneys they pry away from their targets... this guy, and the many like him from the various "Catholic/Christian" congregations, is more insidious than those corrupt agencies because he uses Christ as the medium to infiltrate and disembowel his unsuspecting victims... Satan, who lurks even among the believers, uses many tools to corrupt and control humanity. Two powerful tools he uses are fear and lust. I believe that this person who calls himself a priest is himself being blinded by Satan--fear and lust are two tools that come to mind, since this man utilizes his knowledge of the Scripture and his position as a representative of Christ to lower his victims guards as he shamelessly and methodically poisons their relationship with Christ. He places himself as the direct mediator between them and God, depriving them of true spiritual nourishment while beating them down to submission; once in his clutches, he then ravishes their earthly assets while placing the spiritual lives of both his victims and their loved ones in peril. "he “devours widows’ houses…and I’m looking for authority by which to call him on." I am not sure what you mean since you have already stated that the temporal "law" protects him and he is clearly blind to Scripture as the Pharisees and Sadducees were, otherwise he would not quote the Scripture which he is so blatantly contravening... but if I follow your thought... have you wondered if this is not a call from God to you, and others in your situation, to become active members of the Church... picking up the mission to defend those vulnerable senior citizens and terminally-ill citizenry who are blackmailed with the threats of eternal damnation if they do not surrender all their assets to predators, like this inhumane vulture, who promise that through them they can secure a piece of Heaven before they die? It could very well be that by seeking to understanding this exploitation the Holy Spirit has awaken in you, and others who have witnessed such first hand, the thirst to expose this “priest‘s” actions (and that of others like him) to the Church (not just his direct superiors): all Catholics and other Christians in your immediate parish and the world in general? I will pray that the Holy Spirit infuses your mind, heart and spirit with His Wisdom and Power so that you can pursuit this matter as a true representative of Christ! One suggestion that I can readily offer: Begin a prayer group with the members of your family and any who will join you asking the Lord to eject from positions of power those who are so callously defaming His Church by committing all sorts of atrocities and exploitations; that, as with Paul, He touches their lives and spirits so that they can become a tool for salvation rather than for Satan. God Bless! Angel |