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Blind leading the blind (Click to enlarge)

WHAT IS AN EVANGELICAL CATHOLIC?

The following is taken from an article written by Paddy Monaghan, a leading "Evangelical Catholic" in the Republic of Ireland. I carefully analyse his words.

Please note, setting this article up in blogger has been a bit of a nightmare.  Every effort has been made to separate each individual paragraph,  but the gremlin has had other ideas :o(
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PM: Between 1972 and 1978 there was a major move of the Holy Spirit in Ireland when some 10,000 Catholics came into a deeper, or first-time, personal relationship with Jesus as Lord and Saviour and were baptised in the Holy Spirit.
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MY ANALYSIS: Between 1972 and 1978 (Mr Monaghan's dates) it is true to say that many Roman Catholic people began to ask questions about the things of God. There was an interest in reading the Bible and finding out what God had to say. Doubtless there were many saved at this time. These were those who tended to separate sooner or later from the Roman Catholic Church. When Mr Monaghan, as a devout Roman Catholic, speaks about people coming into a deeper or first time relationship with Christ as Lord and Saviour, he is basically speaking about them beginning to act on the saving grace which they received at baptism. This is standard Roman Catholic teaching, which Mr Monaghan, is very loathe to repudiate. "Baptism in the Holy Spirit" to Mr Monaghan simply means that they started speaking in unknown tongues, as the next sentence shows.
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PM: Within a short period there were vital charismatic prayer meetings in nearly every town and village in Ireland. A feature of this revival was its trans-denominational nature - very often God used Catholic Christians to bless Protestant and vice-versa. In 1978 this revival seemed to dry up as major efforts were made to promote "single identity" renewal within individual Christian denominations, particularly within the Roman Catholic Church.

.MY ANALYSIS: While no one denies that there are some true Christians within the RC Church (who should separate from this organisation in accordance with 2 Corinthians 6:14-17/Ephesians 5:11 etc.,) this is not what Paddy Monaghan has in mind. It is the last thing on Paddy Monaghan's mind that such Christians are in a very small majority. If this is revival (as claimed) then it was totally unlike any other revival in Ireland when its converts were given grace to forsake the doctrines of Rome and  not propagate them.
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PM: From 1978 to 1988, while many Catholic Christians held on to an inter-denominational vision, most of the 400+ Charismatic Prayer Groups gradually became exclusively Catholic, while some left to form House Churches. This caused a measure of hurt, and gave rise to allegations of proselytism. New Age practices made some inroads and there was a return to more traditional forms of Catholic devotion.

.MY ANALYSIS: In other words, it failed, At least if judged by the Bible. However, Rome will have been reasonably happy. She still has her hand very much upon this movement, notwithstanding the exuberance of its earlier years and losing a few to house meetings. She got herself accepted a bit more with the so called Protestants. Well done, Charismatic Movement, Rome's good and faithful servant.
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PM: In 1988, a group of Catholic Christians in Ireland produced a 6 page document What is an Evangelical Catholic?, published with the official permission of the Roman Catholic Church. It was updated in June 1992 with comments of welcome from Bishop Joseph Duffy, Dr. George Carey and others. It has now been translated into different languages and has helped build bridges between Christians in many different countries. This led to the birth of the Evangelical Catholic Initiative (ECI).
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MY ANALYSIS: Does any one really think that Bishop Duffy would welcome this booklet if it contained even that most basic doctrine of the Reformation (Justification by faith alone) which (real) evangelical Christians were prepared to die for at the hand of the RC Church rather than renounce? The reality is that Bishop Duffy can't welcome it. Because if he does, then he incurs the anathema's of his church. The gap here is too wide to be bridged without one side capitulating completely to the other. No amount of conniving and semantics can change it.
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PM: Motivation. One aim in setting up ECI was to build bridges between Evangelicals in the Protestant and Pentecostal Churches and evangelical Catholics. We believe that what unites us is far greater than what divides.

.MY ANALYSIS: I disagree. We might share some very basic doctrines e.g. belief in the Virgin Birth, the Trinity etc. but that's about it. We still disagree radically on other very basic doctrines like the way of salvation, the sole authority of the word of God, the one sacrifice for sins for ever. Again, the battle lines have been drawn and there can be no compromise. From what we read and know about the Evangelical Catholics, we see that they want to hold unto their "damnable heresies" (2 Peter 2:1) and that renders Christian fellowship null and void. To wish them godspeed is to be a partaker of their evil deeds. (2 John 10-11)
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PM: Indeed, what divides Christians in Ireland is often not doctrine, so much as history, culture, language and politics.

.MY ANALYSIS: Whilst these things doubtless play a part in division among people of Ireland, what separates Evangelicals from Roman Catholics are those doctrines mentioned above. Paddy Monaghan's doctrines are not of God and no amount of whitewashing them will make them to be so. Perhaps this is a good place we reaffirm that Evangelical people love Roman Catholics, even if we do loathe their heresies. But it is not love to call people "Christians" who deny the basic way of salvation.
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PM: Another aim was to foster genuine evangelism, while avoiding proselytism.

.MY ANALYSIS: Genuine evangelism is always based on truth. The ecumenism of the Evangelical Catholic movement and ECONI is based on a lie and therefore it is neither genuine nor evangelism. It has no connection at all with Him who said: "I am the … truth" (John 14:6)
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PM: We are convinced that it is only as Evangelical Christians within the Protestant and Pentecostal Churches find their brothers and sisters in Christ in the Catholic Church and vice-versa, that a real spiritual revival will sweep Ireland. The II Chronicles 7:14 principle surely applies that "If my people will humble themselves, turn from their wicked ways and pray God will hear.. heal…and forgive"
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 MY ANALYSIS: 2 Chronicles 7:14 is applicable only to the real people of God. If we allow that committed RC people are among that people, then we must query [1] the Bibe, where salvation is distinctly said to be by faith alone without works (Ephesians 2:8-9/Titus 3:5) and [2] the genuineness of the 16th Century revival which saw the Reformers separate from Rome. If Rome is true, then that separation was not of God but was a sinful schism that ought to be healed immediately. With all the talk of not proselytising etc., Rome still wants unity in her communion under the Pope i.e. we all become Roman Catholics. You don't have to be rocket scientist to see that. Get the big picture. Who is Paddy Monaghan? He is just a pawn in the big game of church politics. His masters i.e. the hierarchy see that he has his uses, but in the final roundup, all his thoughts and aspirations etc., are subject to the official teaching of Rome which teach that Christian unity is only on Rome's terms.
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PM: Mission Statement. The Evangelical Catholic Initiative has three objectives: (1) To see a Holy Spirit inspired renewal in the Roman Catholic Church, which is Father orientated, Christ-centred and grounded in the Holy Scriptures. In this we need the support of our brothers and sisters in the other Christian Churches.

.MY ANALYSIS: If we argue that such a renewal took place at the Reformation i.e. many Roman Catholics,including the leading Reformers, then we notice that they forsook the RC Church. They did so because the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (through the Scriptures) demanded that they do so. This is not what Paddy Monaghan has in mind. Paddy Monaghan (as a devout Roman Catholic) effectively believes that he were to forsake Rome, then he is forsaking the sacraments through which he gets his saving grace to get to Heaven. To forsake the RC Church is to bite the hand that feeds you and that means to starve. This is why it really does take faith to get out of Rome and trust God as He is revealed in the pages of the Bible.
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PM: (2) To foster reconciliation among Christians. For there to be effective evangelism in Ireland there needs to be a growth in relationships between believers within all of the Christian churches.
We have already dealt with this point above.
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PM: (3) To build up Jewish-Christian relationships. As Catholic, Protestant and Pentecostal Christians rediscover their Jewish roots they are enriched and find a greater unity together.

.MY ANALYSIS: No one objects to building up relationships with the Jews (or Roman Catholics) for the purposes of evangelism. However, no matter what road we go, we cannot have unity with Rome as long as she holds to her fundamental errors of the mass etc., A novel approach to the issue will not solve the basic point of fracture which can only be healed by one side or the other surrendering up their basic doctrines.
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PM: What do evangelical Catholics believe? We believe that every person needs to come to know Jesus as personal Lord and Saviour, to read His Word and to grow in the knowledge of God.
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MY ANALYSIS: We agree on this point but only as far as it goes. It is a very basic statement and certainly no basis in itself for fellowship. A  Jehovah Witness or a Mormon could make the exact same statement.
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PM: Salvation accomplished once and for all on Calvary is a free gift.
 

MY ANALYSIS: This sounds good! But the Evangelical Protestant sees here an empty Cross and an empty tomb while Roman Catholics, like Paddy Monaghan, see a mass wafer and a sacrificing priest. 
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PM: We cannot earn or merit or inherit it.
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MY ANALYSIS: Again this sounds wonderful, but Rome ties it in with receiving the sacraments and to receive the sacrament you need to be in a state of grace and this is attained by works. Dig deeper and you always come across works. Paul refuted this type of thinking in his epistle to the Galatians.
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PM: We need to receive it by faith.
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MY ANALYSIS: Come on Paddy! Say it: "Receive it by faith alone" You wont, will you? Because if you do, you are in trouble with your Church which hasn't budged an inch since the Reformation and indeed glories in its "Ever the same" stance. You are saying nothing that is  fundamentally new for a Roman Catholic. The crowd up north in ECONI [Whatever they call it now] might swallow this kind of thing, but no true evangelical will.
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PM: As we accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour of our lives, we are changed. We enter eternal life today by entering into a living relationship with the living God.

.MY ANALYSIS: True, but only if these words have a Biblical interpretation and despite the evangelical language, they don't as far as Rome is concerned.
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PM: We now want to bring the good news to others. In Ireland many Catholics and Protestants have been over sacramentalised and under evangelised.

.MY ANALYSIS: If you attach any salvation importance to the sacraments (whether they number two or seven) then you are over sacramentalising people. In the doctrine of salvation, this means that they are lost until they are justified by faith alone in Jesus Christ. The problem is fundamental. Toning down the colour scheme is not the radical change that is required.
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 PM: Our Identity. The term 'evangelical Catholic' helps to define identity. My primary identity is that I am a Christian. I am in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Secondly, I am evangelical (the Greek word for gospel in the Bible is euaggelion, from which evangelical derives). I have been evangelised and discovered the Gospel for myself, and so want to lead others into a personal faith in Jesus as Lord and Saviour. My third identity is as a Roman Catholic.
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MY ANALYSIS: By identifying himself as a Roman Catholic, Paddy Monaghan automatically endorses every last heresy of his church. Evangelical Catholics endorse the concept of the Pope being "another Christ on earth." They endorse the Calvary denying error of the mass. They endorse salvation by a sacrament and not by grace alone. Sorry, but we can't run with this and be faithful to the word of God.
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 PM: It is God's will that Christians live united in one Church under the headship of Jesus Christ. That unity has been shattered into many denominations.

.MY ANALYSIS: There is a vast difference between the outward unity i.e. organisational and the inward communion of the people of God. I like to think that the true people of God, although in many different tents, are still in the same camp. I enjoy Christian unity with Christians from several denominations, although we do differ on some relatively minor points of doctrine. Even if  this unity is not entirely 100% yet it certainly isn't "shattered" either. The Reformation was not a shattering of Christian unity. It was a re-establishing of ground wherein true Christian unity can take place. Rome fought back at the Reformation and made it clear, as she continues to do today, that she did not want those teachings of the Reformers which alone (being Biblical) are the basis of true Christian experience.
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 PM: By God's providence, I am a Christian in the Roman Catholic denomination. This is the Christian tradition I am working in for a Christ-centred, Biblically based renewal.
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MY ANALYSIS: Even if Paddy Monaghan was a "Christian in the Roman Catholic denomination" (and we would be very foolish to deny that there are absolutely 100% no Christians in that fold) yet we would have to attribute that fact to his own unwillingness to obey 2 Corinthians 6;14-18 and separate from it. We cannot invoke God's providence in the matter if we are using it to cover over our disobedience. By referring to this particular Church as Christian (in the NT sense of the word) and by planning to remain it  ("working for a renewal" etc.,) we can only conclude that Paddy Monaghan has no intention of obeying God in this matter. He is not an uncomfortable Christian - a square peg in a round hole  - but a thorough, card carrying, follower of the Pope. Let him publicly distance himself from the teaching of the mass, the error of giving tradition equal status to the Bible etc., and we will review our comments.
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 PM: It stands in need of reformation, but has also within it many Scriptural treasures.
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MY ANALYSIS: There already has been a Reformation - BIG TIME! - and this has been spurned. Indeed the whole idea was to crush it completely. Run with the Reformation that already took place, instead of looking for another. Any scriptural treasures which Rome has are already being enjoyed by those of us outside their fold. You don't have to be a Roman Catholic to enjoy the Bible.
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 PM: Barriers to Relationships. Most barriers to relationships tend to be cultural, political, historical and linguistic.

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We have dealt with this above. I can cope with a different culture, different politics etc., but I can't cope with a different gospel (Galatians 1:8) This is the real issue here. The rest are just papering over ever widening cracks. 

PM: Many Catholics would react negatively when asked if they were born-again or saved. What many hear in this question are issues of proselytism that go back to famine days. They interpret the question as meaning: 'Have you become a Protestant yet?'

.MY ANALYSIS: The issue is deeper though. Why have the Protestants got the "evangelical" words like "saved" and "born again" etc., and Rome hasn't? Answer: This is because Rome doesn't have the gospel. It is a world wide matter. Roman Catholics outside of Ireland don't like this word "saved" either because it is not a merit monger's word. People who are basically trying to be accepted by God on the basis of their religious exercises can never have assurance of salvation and therefore the word "saved" to such smacks of religious smugness rather than Bible based assurance.
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 PM: However, the Gospel truth is that we are justified through faith in our Lord Jesus.
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MY ANALYSIS: Did you really think Paddy Monaghan was going to use the phrase "justified through faith alone in our Lord Jesus?"
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 PM: We are justified by faith, not by the language of faith. Many Catholics are born again but may not use this terminology to express it.
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MY ANALYSIS: Whatever poorly word "confessions of faith" may be heard from the lips of new converts, those who are truly saved soon learn the language of faith and they use it. The issue with the language here is symptomatic - the real problem is that Rome preaches another gospel.
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PM: Many evangelical Catholics would prefer not to be called "evangelical", because the word has come to have negative connotations for them, invoking images of bigotry, sectarianism, narrowness, and self-righteousness - reinforced recently by the example of self professed Evangelicals involved in the 'Spirit of Drumcree' Group and in the Harryville picket.
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MY ANALYSIS: As above, the issue is greater again than the local scene here in Ireland. The word "evangelical" always had negative connotations for Roman Catholics because it described people who rejected the authority and teaching of the Pope. An attempt is being made here to bridge the gap without dealing with the reason why the gap is there in the first place. This leads ultimately to confusion and God is not the author of such confusion.
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 PM: The word "evangelical" needs to be redeemed, and reinvested with purely biblical connotations, describing anyone, Catholic or Protestant, who has received and is living by the gospel of Jesus Christ.

.MY ANALYSIS: Fair enough, but only to a point. But if you want to bring in things like the mass, the offices of Mary as co-Redeemer etc., then you are getting beyond "purely biblical connotations" and so the designation of "evangelical" will not fit. As things stand, the term "Evangelical Catholic" is a misnomer. You are either one or the other and Mr Monaghan has not shown yourself to be evangelical.
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 PM: Is it not time for the cold war among evangelical Christians to end? 
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MY ANALYSIS: A euphemism meaning: "Is it not time for Protestants to return to Rome?"
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PM: Most evangelical Catholics would prefer to be called Catholic Christians, Committed Christians, Charismatic Catholics, born again Catholics or simply Catholics who love the Lord. However, whatever the label, they love Jesus as personal Lord and Saviour and are thus brothers and sisters of all true Evangelicals within the Protestant and Pentecostal Churches, under one Father.
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MY ANALYSIS: By remaining in communion with the Roman Catholic Church, these call-them-whatever-you-want Catholics do not accept Jesus Christ alone as Saviour. The official teaching of the Roman Catholic Church elevates Mary to the offices which are uniquely held by Christ. This is easily proved, as the quote below from the 1995 Catechism of the Catholic Church shows. On p221 we read of Mary: "Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation...Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress and Mediatrix." This is sheer idolatry from which every evangelical must flee. (1 Corinthians 10:14)
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 PM: Our differences should not divide, when Christ is at the centre. 
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MY ANALYSIS: True, but the problem is: Christ is not at the centre. He does not stand alone in His offices, but shares them with "other Christ's" in the Roman Catholic Church.
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 PM: God draws us to Jesus in various ways, but there is only one way to God, and that is through Jesus - John 14:6.
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MY ANALYSIS: God uses His word to bring people to Christ (Romans 10:17) He does not use the lie, otherwise the blind could lead the blind and the ditch remain empty (Matthew 15:14)
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 PM: Doctrinal Differences. There are real doctrinal differences, but these are often exaggerated and misunderstood.
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MY ANALYSIS: I doubt such exaggeration and misunderstanding are sufficiently such to make these charges stick. The great danger at the moment is the playing down of these "real doctrinal differences" as to make them of no bar to fellowship. This is why this critique of the "Evangelical Catholic" movement has been undertaken.
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 PM: In any case, doctrinal differences are a call for dialogue around the Holy Scriptures, and mainline Evangelical Protestants are now moving down this path in most parts of the world.
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MY ANALYSIS: No one objects to a true Christian sitting down with any lost soul to discuss the things of God. We call it evangelism. But Paddy Monaghan has already discountenanced such a thing above, giving it the somewhat odious name of proselytising. For nearly 500 years, our Protestant forefathers could not regard the Church of Rome as a Christian Church. Her fundamental doctrines were seen as "damnable heresies" None of those damnable heresies have been abandoned and indeed, since the Reformation, new ones brought into being. We therefore regard those "mainline Evangelical Protestants" who are now dialoguing with Rome on the basis that she is a Christian church as traitors to their Reformation heritage. Protestantism is willing to debate Rome at any level, but the dialogue envisaged by Paddy Monaghan is a non starter.
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 PM: Let us look briefly at two areas of difference - the Eucharist and Mary.
The Eucharist
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MY ANALYSIS: Here's our opportunity to see just how devout ecumenical Roman Catholics think. Fair play to Paddy Monaghan here for raising these issues (although I raised them above) The issue here is: Does he deny or defend Rome's record in these two important areas? Has Rome ever gone over the top, or are we getting the "whys and wherefores" of those belief's which our Protestant forefathers sternly rejected? Read on. 
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 PM: Evangelical Catholics strongly affirm the Roman Catholic Church teaching that there is only one all-sufficient sacrifice for sins, accomplished once for all on Calvary.
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MY ANALYSIS: This sounds pretty good as it stands. The devil (as they say) is in the details i.e. how all this filters through to the sinner. 
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PM: We fully endorse the agreement set forth in The World Alliance of Reformed Churches/RC International Dialogue in 1977, "We believe we have reached a common understanding of the meaning, purpose and basic doctrine of the Eucharist, which is in agreement with the Word of God and the universal tradition of the Church. We gratefully acknowledge that both traditions, Reformed and Roman Catholic, hold to the belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist; and both hold at least that the Eucharist is: (1) a memorial of the death and resurrection of the Lord (2) a source of loving communion with Him in the power of the Spirit, and (3) a source of the eschatological hope for His coming again."
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MY ANALYSIS: What! Is the body, blood, soul and divinity, flesh and sinews and all bodily parts (to quote the Catechism of the Council of Trent)  really, physically, present there?  If this is what those "Reformed" churches signed up for, then they betray their cause and "deny the Lord that bought them" (2 Peter 2:1) The faithful man of God will not be influenced by the actions of others, but will judge all things by the word of God. The whole teaching of Rome on the mass must colour the rest. Some agreement cannot override the whole.
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PM:We also affirm a statement from the Anglican/RC International Commission on the Eucharist, in 1981, "Christ's redeeming death and resurrection took place once and for all in history. Christ's death on the Cross, the culmination of His whole life of obedience, was the one perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the world. There can be no repetition of, or addition to, what was then accomplished once for all by Christ." Some Evangelical Protestants seem not to want to hear what our Church affirms on the once for all nature of the sacrifice of Christ. They seem unwilling to accept that this is the official teaching of the Catholic Church.
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MY ANALYSIS: I am aware what Rome says about there being but one sacrifice and that the mass is not a repetition etc., of the sacrifice. But the main heresy is still there i.e. that the mass is a sacrifice and that Jesus Christ is still being sacrificed as a Victim on the Roman altars by a sacrificing priest.  Any Bible believer will deny the mass outright as a blasphemous fable and dangerous deceit. By holding unto the mass and seeking here to defend it, Paddy Monaghan and friends plainly show they are attempting to highjack the term of evangelical.
 PM: Mary. Mary is God's guarantee that His Son truly took on human flesh. He who was God drew His humanity from Mary, his mother, through the Holy Spirit. Mary is a model for us of walking in obedience, in humility and in the fear of the Lord. Luke 1:48 tells us that all generations will call her blessed. Jesus himself points out that Mary's blessedness is in hearing the word of God and observing it.
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MY ANALYSIS: Agreed.
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 PM: Mary, as a disciple, is saved by faith in Jesus.
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MY ANALYSIS: Agreed again but we disagree here fundamentally over how Mary was so saved. In line with the Bible, Evangelicals believe that Mary sinned (Romans 3:23/Mark 10:18) and was saved from paying the penalty of her actual sin through Christ taking that penalty upon Himself. Rome believes that Mary never sinned at all and was saved from sin the way people who heed temperance messages may be said to be saved from drink i.e. from ever touching it. Of course, it does not suit Paddy Monaghan's purpose to tell us the whole truth and so we are getting truth here on the drip. This is the equivalent of theological art. The trick of the artist's trade is to put as little on the page as is necessary and rely on the power of suggestion, even illusion to do the rest. By making the above minimalist statement, Paddy Monaghan wants the unwary to assume that we are in complete agreement when the facts are otherwise.
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 PM: Mary's natural relationship to Jesus as His mother was put in proper perspective by Jesus, in Matt. 12:48-50 ("Who is my mother? ... For whoever shall do the will of my Father...is my brother and sister and mother."). In gratefully acknowledging the unique role of Mary as Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, we see no scriptural warranty for ascribing to her any other role in excess of that.

.MY ANALYSIS: True, but when has the Evangelical Catholic movement embraced the concept of the Bible alone as the sole rule of faith and practice? Paddy gets his extra bits about Mary from tradition which his church keeps assuring us is equal to the Bible. A true Evangelical rejects such tradition as dangerous (Mark 7:13) It is the things left unsaid in this charm offensive by Paddy Monaghan which cause us concern. We are both "old hands" at this game. Paddy Monaghan knows what not to say and we know exactly what we have to say it for him. And when the missing bits are filled in, we are just looking at the old Reformation battle again. Nothing fundamentally has changed.
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 PM: Jesus Christ alone is the one Mediator between God and human kind.
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MY ANALYSIS: But as we have seen, Mary is described in one of her many salvic roles as being a "Mediatrix." (1995 catechism) If she is not a mediatrix between men and God, then she is such between us and Christ i.e. we come to Mary in order to come to Jesus in order to come to God. Ligouri's Glories of Mary, which carried the imprimatuer of Paddy's church, regales us with all the advantages of seeking Mary in order to get something from Jesus. This is an insult to the ever gracious Son of God.
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 PM: However, we do believe that Evangelical Protestants, rather than reacting against Mary, should begin to state positively what part they believe she played as a "handmaid of the Lord" in God's purposes. This would bring us closer in our understanding of this magnificent woman of faith.
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MY ANALYSIS: Protestants do not react against Mary, but we do react against Rome's heresies concerning her. Just as there is "another Jesus" (2 Corinthians 11:4) and "another gospel" (Galatians 1:8) so too it would appear that there is effectively "another Mary" for the Virgin Mary of the NT is never viewed or proclaimed to be "Advocate, Helper, Benefactress and Mediatrix" or saw herself as holding the office of Saviour. Where she did assume she had some sort of sway with her Son, He very kindly, though firmly, put her into her place (John 2:4) To be positive, as Paddy Monaghan rightly suggests we should be, Evangelicals  see Mary as the instrument God used to bring His Son into the world in a human body. We see her primarily as a "woman of faith" (as stated by above) - not perfect or without sin but primarily as one who should be imitated just as we would imitate Peter and John and other servants of God when they did that which is right in the sight of the Lord. We do not however thrust her into those spiritual roles which are reserved uniquely and without equivocation to her Son and we must repudiate those who do.
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 PM: How many evangelical Catholics are there in Ireland? The 1993 edition of Operation World by Patrick Johnstone of WEC International estimated the number of evangelical Catholics in Ireland at 2.6% or 100,000. Our estimate would be considerably higher than this. They are to be found in all of the 1,400 parishes in Ireland. They might be participants in an Alpha Course or a Parish Prayer Group or Bible Study, in a Cursilio or Focalare Group, or they may just be ordinary parishioners or clergy.
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MY ANALYSIS: Reference here to the Alpha Course will not go unnoticed. Despite the hype, it is just old fashioned ecumenism under an evangelical guise. Again the minimalist statements which mean different things to different people cobbled together to present a "common" front before an unsuspecting world.
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 PM: Plea for Acceptance. Is it not time for the cold war among evangelical Christians to end?
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MY ANALYSIS: Our battle here with Paddy Monaghan and the Evangelical Catholics is neither a "cold war" nor is it among "Evangelicals" Without exaggerating any, it is a life or death struggle between the truth of the gospel of Christ and the false gospel of the Roman Catholic Church. Was Paul's fight with the false teachers in Galatia just a storm in a tea cup? No! Paul went in hard to save the gospel in those parts from extinction. If we embrace the doctrines of the Evangelical Catholics, then we can kiss our gospel liberties goodbye. Perhaps not so slowly but surely we will come into the sacerdotal bondage our Reformation forefathers died to free us from. This is no shadow boxing! 
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PM: Surely we need to allow the Holy Spirit to remove the suspicion and prejudice from our hearts so that we can find one another across the divide, listen to each other's testimonies and build friendships.
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MY ANALYSIS: Again, I am all for friendships between human beings. I wish Paddy Monaghan no ill will whatsoever as a person. I am willing to reach out the hand of friendship to any sinner because I believe the gospel is for every last creature on earth. It is because of this that I must resist error in all its various forms. If I embrace the ecumenism of Paddy Monaghan and his friends in ECONI then ultimately (as already indicated) I will have no gospel to bring. What we need to "allow the Holy Spirit" to do is to remove the cause of suspicion i.e. the false gospel of a church long departed from the truth and simplicity of the gospel.
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 PM: Many Evangelicals feel threatened when they hear that a Catholic, who knows Jesus as personal Lord and Saviour, still worships God in the Roman Catholic Church.
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MY ANALYSIS: It is not so much that we feel threatened to hear about some one professing faith worshipping in the RC Church, but that we fear the idea that this will be accepted as the norm and as a sign of Christian maturity instead of (at best) an untaught believer who has still to learn the truth of separation from idols and false teaching etc., The fact that these words are being written responding to an article appearing sympathetically on a website of a professed Evangelical site shows just how real our concern is. We are not fighting imaginary battles here or having a 16th Century re-enactment. The fight is as contemporary as it can be.  
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 PM: Perhaps we need a revelation from God to see that the Body of His Son extends through all the Christian Churches.
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MY ANALYSIS: No we don't! The word of God is sufficient to teach us the spirit of truth and error. Judging the doctrines and practices of the Roman Catholic Church by this same standard, I find her so seriously wanting as to forfeit the title of "Christian."
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PM: Then, like Peter, in Cornelius' house, we might also affirm: "I now realise ... that God does not show favouritism, but accepts men from every nation who fear Him and do what is right." Acts 10:34
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MY ANALYSIS: The issue is not what country men come from, but what creed they hold. You cannot be said to fear God and do what is right when you not only deny basic Bible doctrines...but seek to seduce others into holding them. This effectively is what Paddy Monaghan is doing, even if unconscious of the fact.
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 PM: ECI Activities. ECI organises conferences, produces a newsletter and various pamphlets e.g. "Will I go to Heaven when I die? - no doubt about it" (a 16 page evangelistic tract). A second tract for Catholics entitled 'Why you need to read the Bible' is published with ecclesiastical permission and has proved very popular (140,000 in print. 50 were sent to each of the 1,400 parish priests in Ireland, (sponsored by a N.I. evangelical Protestant businessman!). For three years ECI sponsored a Christian Leaders Conference, now an annual Charismatic Renewal Leaders Conference attended by mainline and Pentecostal/New Church Leaders. ECI also strongly promotes the Alpha Bible Study Course in various parishes and ran an Alpha Leaders Seminar last March. We are also involved in networking across the denominations and in supporting a major 2 year prayer initiative beginning shortly. ECI's reconciliation work recently attracted a grant from the Programme for Peace and Reconciliation.
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MY ANALYSIS: Again, we are dealing here with an aggressive movement which is seeking by various means to remove those God erected barriers between truth and darkness.
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 PM: Moment of Grace for Ireland. We now have a second cease-fire and political talks will start in mid-September.

.MY ANALYSIS: It will be obvious from these words that this document is somewhat dated, although the same old arguments and tactics are still in vogue today.
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 PM: Let us believers truly humble ourselves, seek God's face, turn from our wicked ways and pray, then surely God will hear from heaven, forgive our sin and heal our land. This is a moment of grace for Ireland; as believers let us not be found wanting. Following the example of churches in South Africa, could not all evangelical Christians in Ireland commit themselves for a period of two years to praying for one hour per week towards these three goals: The removal of sectarian attitudes from all our hearts; Christ-centred, biblically based revival, North and South; A just political solution in Northern Ireland. May Ireland again be a light to the nations, giving glory to God. Amen.

.MY ANALYSIS: Fair enough words, but wrongly applied in this situation. Paddy Monaghan believing that he is an evangelical does not make him one, nor does the efforts of ECONI to present him as one simply do the trick. When such a Christ centred Bible based revival comes to Ireland, as it did in 1859 and again in the 1920's under W.P. Nicholson, then Rome will pay a heavy price in the loss of her disciples. However Rome's loss will be Christ's gain. May that be so, for Christ's sake. Amen.

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Paddy Monaghan is secretary of the Evangelical Catholic Initiative in the Republic of Ireland. Since 1980 he has worked part time as an evangelical Catholic lay missionary and part time in a small financial consultancy practice. He lives near Dun Laoghaire in County Dublin.

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Colin Maxwell has been working as an evangelist in the Irish Republic since 1987.