Pope John Paul II Publically Admits He Supports Evolution

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What are the Ramifications

THEY HAVE HARDENED HEARTS, because that is all we see around us. We ask Christians to search their hearts. We "call the church, amidst our dying culture, to repent of its worldliness, to recover and confess the truth of God's Word as did the Reformers, and to see that truth embodied in doctrine..
"Though weakened, the church is not, however, lost. We thank God for the many men and women of faith in whom Christ's character has been formed who are faithfully living for Him and His kingdom. At the same time, there are also many ministries that have been corrupted by money, ambition, the thirst for power, the lust of success, and by moral lapses that dishonor Christ and His work. Furthermore, the scramble for market-share among the many commercial enterprises that profit from evangelical faith often appears to have more importance for those concerned than the consequences of that competition on evangelical faith. There are too many evangelical churches that have the form of godliness but lack its authenticity and power. Evangelicalism has become worldly.." (quotes reprinted from The Cambridge Declaration of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, 4.20.1996)

As we see it the worldly evangelism has become `a worldly super power', influential political blocks. Therefore, the Bible should be taught and preached in the church. We should settle for nothing less than what God has given us. "Furthermore, the work of the Holy Spirit in personal experience cannot be allowed to float free from the Scripture which He inspired. The Spirit does not speak in ways that are independent of Scripture. It is the biblical Word, therefore, rather than spiritual experience, which is the test of truth.
"We confess that Christ rules His Church by the biblical Word, illuminated by His Spirit. The truth of God's Word is supreme over tradition and experience alike, and it is always at odds with the wisdom of this world. If this antithesis is lost, what is true and right will be lost and the church will be guilty of claiming to believe the Word of God while disobeying its teaching in order to make itself more acceptable to the culture.
"As our world has become modernized, God has been relegated to the margins of society. Human concerns then flow in to fill the void left by his disappearance, and life becomes disordered. The therapeutic worldview which has resulted, with its loss of absolute values, its permissive individualism, and its substitution of wholeness for holiness, recovery for repentance, intuition for truth, feeling for belief, chance for providence, and immediate gratification for enduring hope, has invaded the churches..

"While the theology of the cross may be believed, these movements are actually emptying it of its meaning. There is no cross except that of Christ's substitution in our place whereby God imputed to Him our sin and imputed to us His righteous. Because He bore our judgment, we now walk in His grace as those who are forever pardoned, accepted and adopted as God's children. God redeemed us in Christ because we could not redeem ourselves. There is, therefore, no basis for our acceptance before God except in Christ's death; there is no basis in our patriotism, churchly devotion or moral decency. The gospel declares what God has done for us in Christ; it is not about what we can do to reach Him. "Faith, therefore, turn from emptiness of sin and the bankruptcy of human effort and places its trust in Christ to do for us what we have never been able to do for ourselves. Faith accepts Christ's gift of pardon and it acknowledges the futility of every form of self-justification before God.
"We confess that justification is not simply one doctrine among many. It is the central affirmation of authentic Christianity. We appeal to the evangelical churches and institutions to recover and confess this chief article, without which we have no gospel, to make it central to their ministry, and to defend its truth in the midst of a pluralistic, selfsufficient and secularized culture..
"The faithfulness of the evangelical church in the past contrasts sharply with its unfaithfulness in the present.. We hereby acknowledge that there is no prophet today who will tell us the truth beside Jesus Christ and that this truth is found only in the biblical Word. Jesus was sent by His Father to sum up in Himself the whole of the Old Testament revelation. These Scriptures speak of Him, and speaks through these Scriptures. We therefore refuse to listen to other spirits, whether from heaven or earth, who seek to add to or detract from the written Scriptures.
"We acknowledge that there is no other priest than the Christ who intercedes on our behalf before the judge of all the earth. There is no other name, no other salvation, no other sources of growth and vitality for the church of Christ other than her one, divine High Priest and Savior. We therefore commit ourselves to preach Christ and Him crucified as the mission of the people of God..
"Finally, we call our brothers and sisters to join us in repentance and reformation, not only to affirm the truths of the faith we hold in common, but to be employed in a determined effort to overthrow false prophets [and] priests.. It is not only by affirming the truth, but by distinguishing it from error that we will succeed in passing on an authentic Christian faith to future generations.. For Christ's sake. Amen" (Ibid., pp 3-7)

"And when he had called all the people [unto him], he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one [of you], and understand: There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable. And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, [it] cannot defile him; Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats? And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man." (Mark 7:14-23)

Examining what the interpretation of heart, soul and spirit are, the Greek Lexical Aid in the Hebrew Greek Study Bible, to the New Testament explains the Greek words used in the New Testament to explain what Jesus meant. The numbers are the same as used in Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. 2588 Kardia: heart (Acts 2:26) The Scriptures attributed to the heart: thoughts, reasonings, understanding, will, judgment, designs, affections, love, hatred, fear, joy, sorrow, anger; these things can actually affect a man's physical heart. Therefore, "heart" is used as a metonym for the mind in general (Matt. 12:34; John 13:2; Rom. 2:15; 10:9,10; 1Pet.3:4) the understanding (Lu.3:15; 9:47;Acts 28:27; Rom. 10:1) the memory (Lu. 1:66; 2:51); the intention, affection or desire (Matt. 6:21, 18:35; Mark 7:6; Lu.1:17; 8:15, Acts 8:21; 1Thess 2:4); the conscience (1John 3:20,21). It can also mean the middle or inner part, as the heart is in relation to the breast (Matt. 12:40) as the heart of the earth is the inner part of the earth; the grave. Derivative 4641 sklerokardia (derived from (4642) sklerosis: hard hardening of the heart "stubbornness" of men and kardia (2588) heart. Hardness of heart, that is, stubbornness, obstinacy, perverseness (Matt.19:8; Mark 10:5; 10:14) It indicates man's condition in his bearing toward God and the revelation of His grace for which he ought to have a willing heart and receptive place in his heart.

Second is the soul 5590 Psuche; soul that immaterial part of man held in common with animals (Matt.10:28; Rom.2:9) contrast 4983 soma, body, and 4151 pneuma: spirit (1Thess.5:23). The psuche, no less than 4561, flesh, belongs to the lower region man's being. Sometimes psuche stands for the immaterial part of man made up of the soul, psuche in the restrictive sense of the animus, the life element and the pneuma (4151) spirit, but animals are not said to possess the spirit. Only man has a spirit (if he is regenerated) giving him the ability to communicate with God (1Thess.5:14-28).
The Word of God is necessary for the dividing of soul and spirit. The Word needs to bring our `rejection of God' which is hiding in us to the surface so we can acknowledge our sinfulness to God and ask for His forgiveness. We try to fix it with good works which has a tendency to move us deeper and deeper into Satan's web of deceit, when all we have to do is, allow the Word to dredge up the real reasons behind our joining the people who seem to have the answers to our problems. "For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things [are] naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." (Hebrews 4:12,13)

We believe the statement that was made by Pope John Paul II on October 25, 1996 was probably in the top 10 of profound statements made in human history. It will have an influence as profound as Darwin's, if not more, in supporting anti Christian views. Paralell to the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints, Pope John Paul II stated: "The spiritual soul is immediately created by God." This is what Mormons teach. It suggests that man was in the spirit before he was born which is not true. There is Scripture to prove it.
If you read the article on Mormonism which advocates that man was a spirit, a spark of intelligence, (a god unit which can't be created) before he was born, the Pope supports this view by supporting evolution. To bring all religions under one roof, pure Christian teachings have to disappear. They don't fit into today's world view. Darwin provided the perfect foundation for world wide unity without even realizing it.
"It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul 5590 Psuche; immaterial part of man held in common with animals The Psuche, no less than sarx (flesh) belongs to the lower region of man's being. Psuche is in a restrictive sense "animus". Animals do not possess a spirit.; the last Adam [was made] a quickening spirit. Howbeit that [was] not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man [is] of the earth, earthy: the second man [is] the Lord from heaven." (1 Corinthians 15:44-47)
"That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." (John 3:6) Speaking of Jesus Christ, John taught: "He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all." (John 3:31) Jesus Himself confirmed it. "And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world." (John 8:23)
Jesus stated that He is the way, the truth and the life..(John 1:14) and "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:10-13)
The Pope has confirmed what reformers like Martin Luther taught all along. When I hear Lutherans apologizing for Martin Luther to the Pope, I wonder why they call themselves Lutherans?
Now that the new generation of all the world has been taught that evolution is a fact rather than God's creation in six days, the Pope finds nothing but support in his agreement with such a theory. What I had a hard time accepting was no word from the Christian media, as Pat Robertson, Hank Hanegraaff and the like. This confirms our suspicions that these "proclaimers of the Gospel" are fundamentally in agreement with the "historical" Catholic church of which Peter was supposedly the first pope. Hank Hanegraaff, the Bible Answer Man, claimed that to be true yesterday on his talk show, January 13, 1997.
When we asked Catholics if they agreed with the pope, they said that evolution has been taught in Catholic schools for years. Needless to say, we are shunned now by young Catholics whom we had been trying to convert to the Gospel with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Pope John Paul II stated, ".. that fresh knowledge leads to recognition of the theory of evolution as more than just a hypothesis." Is he saying that he believes in spite of the fact that there is no evidence, no fossils, no intermediate states. All they have are "drawings". In 1950, an encyclical letter Humani Generis, issued by Pope Pius XII: "It strongly cautioned that the theory of evolution might not be objectionable, it could play into the hands of materialists and atheists." (Rocky Mountain News 10.25.96 NYT) The article goes on to state "The statement did not mention Darwin by name, nor did it make reference to views that human beings are evolved from other species, such as apes." Evolution cannot be reconciled with creation. It can only be one or the other, not both.
What this "blessing to teaching of evolution" will do, is bring more members. Mormons and many other New Age religions teach that we were created before we became a physical being. To believe that, is to be anti Christ.
"Creationists denounce Pontiff's `Compromise'.. Mike Zovath of Answers in Genesis.. Florence, Kentucky.. said: "It's a complete compromise of God's Words. It directly contradicts the Bible. It can't be compatible with the Christian position based on biblical principal and biblical understanding." "William Hoesch of the Institute for Creation Research said, "Because he (the pope) believes this, he is going to cause a lot of others to believe it, just because people want to believe stories like this, not because it is scientifically valid. I think it is pretty sad." (Today, the Bible & You, p.3. November 1996)

Reuter's News Service 10.24.1996 quoted from a copy of the pope's statement released by Vatican City: "Truth cannot contradict truth.. if the origin of the human body is sought in living matter which existed before it, the spiritual soul is directly created by God." The question the pope raised is: what were Adam and Eve before they were Adam and Eve? Evidently he thinks that they evolved up through insects and creeping things to primates, etc. But at what point does the pope believe that God breathed into these two creatures the breath of life and they became livings souls?
".. Who can rival Pope John Paul II's reputation as a spiritual leader or representative. The pronouncement of the pope that evolution is compatible with the creation account in Genesis will be a powerful argument for removing all roadblocks to the teaching of evolution as fact (not theory) in public education, and theistic evolution in Christian schools and seminars..
"The Vatican Council convened in 1869-1870 and simply issued a decree that in all matters, even Scripture, the pope could make no error - he would always be right.. Vatican II accepted that the Bible was authoritative on morals and ethics, but not on science and history.. It will doubtless promote religious ecumenism, a world religious system." (Reprinted by Cultivate Ministries, December 1996)
Bill Moyer's series of teachings on Genesis appeared in the October 28, 1996 issue of Time, which suggested that the entire story of Adam and Eve was a myth. Noah W. Hutchings, South West Radio Church reported that "John Wimber, founder of the Vineyard movement, and reported to be involved in the Promise Keepers, stated in a Church Planting Seminar: "The pope, who is very responsive to the charismatic movement, and is himself a born- again evangelical, is preaching the Gospel as clear as anyone in the world today." Bill McCartney, founder of Promise Keepers, has encouraged Catholic congregations to become participants in this organization, and Catholics are becoming increasingly involved in Promise Keepers, as well as the Mormons.. We wonder if Bill McCartney would dare question the pope's endorsement of evolution."
Jack Chic, editor of Battle Cry, wrote: "The Pope Denies Genesis by Endorsing Evolution.. However, the pope cautioned his audience that believers must still consider God as Creator of all things.. many scientists.. admit that nearly all animal groups known today came into being in a "burst of life." Evolutionists see this as a "mystery." Common sense sees this as evidence of a most simple truth: "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth." And He did it in six days." Jack recommends the book "The Collapse of Evolution" by Scott Huse.
Statisticians have tried to analyze how many "accidents" would have had to occur to change an organism from one cell to a human being as it exists today. They came to the conclusion that it was statistically impossible. Too many parts of the body have to act in perfect harmony to produce the effects necessary to sustain life. As a student of Science, I was under the impression that experiments are based on facts not fiction. In closing what comes to mind are some of our Lord's last words: ".. Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.." (Luke 23:34)
Regarding the subject of evolution, Christians face more pressure than ever to stop teaching creation. To think that "In 1925 the nation was riveted to coverage of the case of Tennessee schoolteacher John Scopes, who was prosecuted for teaching naturalist Charles Darwin's theory that human beings evolved from a few common ancestors. Picking up on the implied linkages between ape and human, the press dubbed the case the "The Monkey Trial". At that time, it was illegal for public schools to teach anything but the biblical account of creation. Evolution was still an upstart theory advanced in Darwin's 1859 book, Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. (Rocky Mountain News 8.25.96) This account for illillicited due an exciting story of a former higher school teacher.. who feels the urgency to spread the creation message and takes teenagers on a tour through the Denver Museum of Natural History, encouraging teens to question what they are taught in school.
"Creation is a hot issue because that's where many Christian students begin to question and doubt their faith," says Jack. The curator was not in favor since their video asserts that 700 million years after the Earth's birth, "ultraviolet rays and lightning caused carbon-shaped molecules to form. The former high school teacher, Jack said that the key words are, `what we think.' It's an estimate based on assumptions presented as fact.. they are guessing." (see ibid, p.12A )
A video that states all life evolved from single-cell organisms won a victory of 3 to 1 when the school board ruled in Jefferson County in September of 1996. The victory for scientists who argued that the theory of evolution must be taught, even though some students reject its conclusions. A high school junior objected to the school policy of teaching evolution as fact instead of theory. The battle was on. The audience overflowed at the meeting. More than 300 showed up. It increased the pressure against the teaching of creation. The ratio was 2-to-1. The high school student vowed to carry on the battle. True Christians will remember the courage Danny Phillips portrayed in standing up for the Creator of this universe. (see RMN 9.7.96)
More vehement opposition was felt by `Answers in Genesis' ministry who majors on the biblical teaching of creation. They requested rezoning for their Creation Museum project. Two humanist groups found out about the public hearing, and they orchestrated a campaign to influence the commission not to allow this venture. The day of the zoning meeting, we suddenly found ourselves in the middle of a media blitz, resulting in front-page newspaper headlines, radio and TV news coverage.. a secular humanist group and Cincinnati Skeptic organization sent e-mail messages out for humanists to attend this meeting and to raise objections.. They spread much misinformation regarding our ministry, just as they do when teaching evolution as fact.. At the end of the meeting, many ny supporters expressed their shock at the hatred that was displayed and how organized the opposition was.. as we are going to print, the county was still considering our rezoning request.." (reprinted letter from Answers in Genesis, Ken Hahn, October 1996)

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