(Editor's note: The following column is refiled as a correction, to the first version, as originally published on Tues. Aug. 15, 2023. Newsmax apologizes for any confusion or inconvenience.)
The quote: "You may not be interested in war, But war is interested in you," is often attributed to Communist Revolutionary Leon Trotsky.
Regardless of who coined the phrase, it is very applicable to the situation facing the church today.
The church may not be interested in the culture war, but the culture war has its sights fixated on the church.
Cheryl Chumley, a columnist for The Washington Times, points out the FBI cover story that limited concern about terrorism in the traditional Latin Mass to the Richmond office that may have been filled with heretics, atheists, and idol worshipers is a lie.
Before we get into the lie and the spread of anti-Catholic sentiment in the FBI, we first should give our readers some background on the controversy.
Today there are two versions of the Catholic Mass.
The current, deep state-approved version, began in the crazed 1960s after the second Vatican Council. It’s the beads, banjos and tambourines Mass. It's in English and is teeth-grindingly contemporary.
The other version is the traditional Latin Tridentine Mass; pretty much unchanged since the Middle Ages.
Pope Francis, like the FBI, views this version of the Mass with suspicion and works to stamp it out.
Protestants, wondering how this development could apply to them, are mostly in the clear.
There isn’t enough evidence regarding the innocuous Unitarians to convict them of being Christians. And any "welcoming church" flying the Rainbow Reich’s flag or those with gays in the pulpit — male, female or indeterminate — are also in the clear.
Baptists, though, may have a problem.
The FBI’s action is like declaring the portion of the congregation attending the "Traditional Service" a threat to the nation.
Thus, singing "Victory in Jesus" makes you a terrorist.
Come to think of it, lyrics like these, with all that talk of "victory" might give pause to a heathen:
“Oh, victory in Jesus, my Savior forever
"He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood
"He loved me 'ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him
"He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood."
And for those of you pooh-poohing this because you call the "Traditional Service" the Assisted Living Service due to the age of the congregants, it might interest you to know the FBI executed a home-bound 74-year-old Utah man just last week.
The FBI’s effort to strike a blow for Marx began because some eager-beaver decided Tridentine Mass attendees might be bigots and motivated to strap on a suicide vest and begin shouting "Allahu Akbar!"
Whoops! Sorry. That’s the religion of peace. No chance of those sorts of shenanigans there.
The title of the FBI memo was, "Interest of Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists in Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology Almost Certainly Presents New Mitigation Opportunities."
The fibees then invented a new name and acronym — "radical-traditionalist Catholic ideology or RTC." The author welcomed this development and the career payoff was it was an "almost certain" opportunity "for threat mitigation through the exploration of new avenues for tripwire and source development."
Translation?
Find some attendees with sub room temperature IQs and recruit them for the FBI’s terror plot. Bonus points for making rosary beads an integral part of the operation.
It would have been bad enough if FBI director Christopher Wray hadn’t been lying and the memo and follow-up was confined to Richmond.
Republican Judiciary Committee members found, "Most concerning of the newly produced version of the document [we just received] explicitly states that FBI Richmond '[c]oordinated with' FBI Portland in preparing the [Get Catholics] assessment."
And Chumley adds, "But that’s not all. Turns out, Los Angeles officials fed into the Richmond assessment, as well."
Freedom of Religion doesn’t mean much if the FBI is in the pews and recruiting 'plotters' in the parking lot.
Protestant pastors who think they are safe if they just preach the Bible — avoiding the controversial pars — and keep their heads down all will be well.
Those pastors are weak, effeminate and biblically ignorant.
Jesus’ entire ministry consisted of confronting the culture imposed by the Pharisees, who ruled the Temple and the city.
Preaching safe in your pulpit while the culture collapses around you and the FBI targets fellow Christians is not a formula for long-term success.
The FBI can invent a reason to come after you, too.
Just ask the Catholics.
Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Michael is an in-demand speaker with Premiere speaker's bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.
Michael R. Shannon is a commentator, researcher for the League of American Voters, and an award-winning political and advertising consultant with nationwide and international experience. He is author of "Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!)" Read Michael Shannon's Reports — More Here.