Joe McBride@McBrideLawNYC
For decades, Catholics were told to remain quiet, to absorb the insults, to apologize, to tolerate humiliation. That time is over. Standing by while the Faith is attacked from every direction was never an option. Now the response will match the assault. Catholics will defend the Faith with force, clarity, and conviction. The witness of the one true Church will rise in volume, strength, and courage. There will be no apology and no deference to anyone’s politics or feelings.
Let us speak plainly about what is happening. The aggression comes from those who mock the Church. The endless accusations that Catholicism is pagan. The constant weaponization of the abuse scandal, one of the darkest chapters in our history, dragged out again and again as if it defines the Church forever. The demand that Catholics adopt Zionism or be deemed anti-Semitic. The mockery of the Eucharist. The profaning of the Sacraments. The casual contempt for what we hold sacred.
We will not retreat. We will attack harder. We will raise an army of Catholics ready to defend the Faith against the constant assaults directed at it by Evangelicals, secular Jews, and other unbelievers who treat the Catholic Church as an open target.
At the same time, I want to be clear about something important. My longstanding relationships with people who sincerely practice their faith continue to grow.
Jews, Protestants, Muslims, Hindus, and others who live their beliefs with seriousness and devotion have treated Catholics with love, respect, admiration, and goodwill for decades. Not because we agree on theology, but because sincere faith recognizes sincerity in others.
There is mutual respect in the pursuit of divine knowledge and a shared concern for what is good in the world. Despite our religious differences, I respect and value each of you who pursues God with honesty. I cherish this reality and those who share it tremendously.
But respect between believers does not require Catholics to accept mockery of our Faith or attacks on the Church. The era of Catholic passivity is over. We will defend what is holy. We will defend the truth of the Church. And we will do it openly, aggressively, and without apology.