Reason 18

18. Because six Protestant ministers collaborated in making up the New Mass (pictured below, left to right: George, Jasper, Shepherd, Kunneth, Smith, and Thurian). (Bold in the original, picture not included).


Now is the time for fact checking by our friends the pamphlet writers. The picture they offer is generally claimed to be from the Second Vatican Council which it is. The Six men were in fact Protestant ministers (though one later converted to Catholicism) and were invited to the Council as observers and thus did not speak. The same cannot be said for Council of Trent. Protestants were invited there not only as observers but as participants with an active part in the Council. The only evidence I have ever encountered as to the idea that these men collaborated on the New Mass is that very photograph taken years before the revision of the Liturgy was done (it was initiated at the Council but was not actually undertaken until sometime after its conclusion).

Further, even if these six men were involved in the revision of the Liturgy, that does not in and of itself mean anything. For example, suppose they were the six least important collaborators out of a hundred. What real influence could they have? Or perhaps every suggestion they offered was rejected.

Let us now postulate that they did in fact have a powerful influence on the revision of the liturgy. Again, what of it? There are areas (numerous, in fact) where Protestants and Catholics agree. It would be fully feasible that these ministers only contributed in areas were there was understood to be agreement (such as the value of Scripture, or the Divinity of Christ). The fact that a non-mathematician contributed to a math book in no way diminishes the capacity of the book the properly and adequately present math. Arian bishops attended the Council of Nicea as valid members and were in no way able to corrupt the truth therein.

Essentially this is, in the end, both a factually incorrect argument and a meaningless one. There is simply nothing here truly upsetting, just shadows and fear mongering, trying to transform a simply image into a charge of grave heresy, hiding the truth behind a veil of panic.