Christianophobia Part 2 The Teaching of Contempt "How does contempt ordinarily manifest itself?" asks Michael De Jaeghere. "We have only to open our eyes; whatever I have to reveal on this issue, anyone can observe on an almost daily basis. Even so, perhaps  it is worth our while to turn our attention to it, for anti-Catholicism proceeds not only by direct attack, a punch to the stomach; it also acts drop by drop, distilling its poison in an imperceptible manner to get us gradually accustomed to the situation. [2] The examples I will bring up are not all of equal gravity. They ought to help us realize the tremendous scope of the phenomenon and the convergence of daily events to which we finally get accustomed, out of resignation and fatigue, because we cannot live in perpetual indignation. "A certain number of operations, as an effect of repetition, are succeeding in 'lobotomizing' our will by means of habit. The phenomenon of saturation annihilates any reaction. We cannot be scandalized all the time. We shrug our shoulders, we stop taking notice of provocations that should no longer be called such because they no longer provoke and opposition. This is one of the desired aims of this repetition: it results in our no longer taking notice of things that would have horrified our parents; it makes us feel old-fashioned about being shocked by things that are objectively shocking." The author groups these operations around three objectives: [1] The marginalization of Catholics; this procedure aims at presenting Christianity as a very rare life choice, an "anachronistic survival of a decidedly bygone past." [2] The denigration of Catholicism, its doctrine, its morality, even its history, through "one of the most awesome disinformation operations of our times." [3] The unjust discrediting of religious authorities so that they will no longer seem to "a possible recourse for souls, and to isolate from them even those who say they are Christians." THE NEXT PART CAN BE ACCESSED BY CLICKING THE FORWARD GEM BELOW OR BY GOING BACK TO THE TOP OF THE FIRST PAGE FOR THE LINKS. 2. Boldface by the Web Master. E-Mail HOME-----------------------CATHOLIC TRADITION www.catholictradition.org/Tradition/phobia2.htm