Just when you thought you could come safely out of your hut - along comes Alpha

One of the memories of a former bishop of the Diocese was a movement he started which had something to do with Bearing Fruit.  Those who refused to join his march forward were described in his book as people preferring the safety of their huts than coming out into a great new world he was leading us towards.    Seeing what was going on I figuratively bolted the doors in case I was dragged out.

But time moved on and the promised fruits never materialised but what did was a diocese financially and spiritually bankrupt.   One could hope that even the most anti-catholic in the parishes would have looked back in shame at how so many young people were estranged from the Church and simply ask the question why, but no, they are still there guiding and misleading the parishes and openly attacking  Catholic teaching.  Now in my parish Alpha has been introduced which claims to be the Catholic version.   Alpha was started by the Evangelical wing of the Church of England and is devoted to the Holy Spirit.  Now that is not a bad thing in itself but when the Holy Spirit guides Catholics to oppose Church teaching and become 'mature'  then we can say there is nothing Catholic here and the Spirit is false.   Do not ask about the authority of the Catholic Church, do not defend divorce or unborn babies, do not claim to have or teach the truth that Christ gave us.  Just accept that  Church is any group of christians and Catholics are no different.    It is a wonderful thing Alpha and I have no doubt that it will clear out the Catholic Church for the second time the way it did the first.    But then who noticed that first clearance?   Well they did but they did not care enough.        

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